WinCatalog Turns 24: Two Decades of Trusted Disk Catalog Software

WinCatalog 24th Birthday Today we celebrate a remarkable milestone — 24 years since WinCatalog first became the trusted disk catalog software for organizing digital collections around the world!

Over these 24 years, we’ve evolved from a simple file organizer into a comprehensive solution that helps thousands of users manage everything from personal photo libraries to massive business archives. What started as a tool for organizing floppy disks and CD collections has grown into powerful disk catalog software capable of indexing terabytes of files across countless external drives, NAS devices, and network locations.

Your Impact on Our Journey

Every feature enhancement, every performance improvement, and every interface refinement has been guided by your invaluable feedback. You’ve helped transform WinCatalog from a basic file organizer into the sophisticated cataloging solution it is today. Your suggestions about search capabilities, metadata handling, and workflow improvements continue to shape our development roadmap.

Moving Forward with Innovation

As we enter our 25th year, we remain committed to keeping WinCatalog at the cutting edge of disk catalog software technology. We’re actively developing new capabilities to help you organize, search, and manage your digital assets even more efficiently. Our focus continues to be on delivering a file organizer that’s both powerful for advanced users and intuitive for newcomers.

A Sincere Thank You

Twenty-four years is a testament to your loyalty and trust. Thank you for choosing WinCatalog as your disk catalog software, for sharing your feedback, for recommending us to colleagues and friends, and for being part of our journey. Your support has made every update, every improvement, and every milestone possible.

Here’s to 24 incredible years — and to many more ahead!

Happy birthday, WinCatalog!

With gratitude,
The WinCatalog Team

Posted on: October 14, 2025

WhereIsIt to WinCatalog Converter Updated

WinCatalog 2024.14 Release We are glad to announce an updated version of the WhereIsIt to WinCatalog Converter, a free utility that helps you transfer your existing catalogs from the discontinued WhereIsIt program into WinCatalog — a modern disk catalog software and the best WhereIsIt alternative for Windows.

What’s New in This Update

  • Improved XML pasting — better handling of missing dates in exported files.
  • Resizable window — now you can adjust the size of the converter window for more comfortable work.
  • Larger font — improved readability on high-resolution (4K) monitors.
  • Pause after conversion — the converter now waits for a button click, allowing you to review the conversion log for possible warnings or errors before closing.
  • Command-Line improvements — when run from the command line, the converter automatically saves the log into a text file. This makes it easy to review results even if the converter closes after finishing.

About the Converter

The WhereIsIt to WinCatalog Converter was created to make the transition from WhereIsIt to WinCatalog as smooth as possible. It allows you to import your existing WhereIsIt XML exported catalogs directly into WinCatalog, preserving your data and keeping your collections accessible and searchable.

WinCatalog is a powerful disk catalog software solution that lets you organize, search, and browse your files even when the original disks or drives are not connected. For anyone looking for a reliable WhereIsIt alternative, WinCatalog provides a modern interface, regular updates, and advanced features that go far beyond what WhereIsIt offered.

If you’re migrating from WhereIsIt, please follow the step-by-step export instructions here: WhereIsIt Export Instructions

Download

You can download the updated converter here: Download WhereIsIt to WinCatalog Converter

Posted on: September 29, 2025

WinCatalog 2024.14(.1) Release

WinCatalog 2024.14 Release Hello! We’re excited to announce that a new maintenance update of WinCatalog has been released — version 2024.14.1.

Improved Support for RAR Archives

In addition to listing files and their attributes, WinCatalog can now extract and store comments from RAR archives.

Fixed a Rare Issue in Reports

We resolved a rare issue where reports occasionally displayed “Search Results” instead of the first hard drive’s name. This bug is now fixed.

Accurate Size for Virtual Folders

The size field for virtual folders is now correctly updated after their contents change or update, ensuring accurate folder size information.

Other Minor Improvements

This update also includes various small fixes and enhancements, such as: improved keyboard support in context menus (the Enter key now works as expected), updated UI translations, and other minor UI and performance refinements.

As always, we recommend installing the update to benefit from the latest improvements.

WinCatalog 2024.14.1 Release (July 28, 2025)

Version 2024.14.1 fixes an issue where the Scanning Options window could appear behind the main window, creating the impression that the application had frozen.

Download WinCatalog 2024.14.1

There’s no need to uninstall your current version — simply install the update over your existing installation. If you’re new to WinCatalog, you’re welcome to download the free trial and explore all the features.

Thank you for using WinCatalog!

The WinCatalog Team

Posted on: July 25, 2025

WinCatalog 2024.12 Release

WinCatalog 2024.12 Release Hello, we’re glad to announce the release of WinCatalog 2024.12. This update brings several important improvements and fixes to make your cataloging experience smoother and more efficient.

Improved support for multi-part archives

In this version, we’ve fixed the support for multi-part Zip and 7zip archives, along with multi-part RAR archives. We’ve also added .001 and .z01 extensions to the list of default archive extensions. If you have multi-part archives in your catalog, just update the corresponding drive or folder—the contents will now appear correctly in the catalog.

Translation updates

This update includes a major fix for the Greek translation and minor improvements for Korean and Hungarian. Thank you to everyone who helped report and verify the translations!

Updated Office document libraries

The libraries responsible for processing Office documents have been updated to their latest versions, ensuring better compatibility and performance when cataloging Word, Excel, and other Office files.

As always, we recommend installing the update to take advantage of these improvements.

Download WinCatalog 2024.12

There is no need to uninstall your current version — just install the update over your existing installation. If you’re not yet a WinCatalog user, feel free to try our free trial and explore all the new features.

Thank you for using WinCatalog!

— The WinCatalog Team

Posted on: June 13, 2025

BitDefender False-Positive Alert for Latest WinCatalog Installer

We’d like to inform our users that BitDefender has recently shown a false-positive alert for the latest WinCatalog installer. We’re aware of this issue and have already submitted a false-positive report to BitDefender.

We’re pleased to share that BitDefender has completed their analysis and confirmed that the file is clean. The detection will be removed in one of their upcoming database updates.

In addition, we’ve verified the installer using VirusTotal, which scanned the file with over 70 different antivirus programs. The results confirm the file is safe. You can view the report here:

👉 VirusTotal Report

If you prefer not to wait for BitDefender’s next update, you can update WinCatalog manually. Simply download the “no installer” version, unzip it, and replace the entire WinCatalog folder in your Program Files (x86) directory.

👉 Download WinCatalog (no installer version)

Thank you for your understanding and continued support!

— The WinCatalog Team

Posted on: May 28, 2025

WinCatalog 2024.11 Release

WinCatalog 2024.11 Release Hello, we are pleased to announce the release of WinCatalog 2024.11, bringing you more accurate cataloging, richer media information, and smoother search and user interface performance.

Improved Importing Accuracy

Root Virtual Folder Size Update: Importing from another catalog file now correctly updates the size of the root virtual folder that hosts all imported contents, ensuring that your catalog always reflects the true storage footprint of your media and files.

Smarter Handling of Reparse Points

Better Support for Cloud-Synced Folders: WinCatalog now handles reparse points more intelligently. If a reparse point refers to the same location where it resides and the folder has the cloud attribute (as in OneDrive or Synology Drive), it is now treated as a regular folder, not a symbolic link.

This means these folders will be included in the catalog even when the “Do not follow symbolic links (shortcuts to folders)” option is enabled, ensuring more complete and accurate scanning of cloud-synced directories.

Enhanced Statistics Tracking

Stats Counter by Extension: Statistics are now incremented by file extensions rather than by processing modules. Even if the Basic File Info profile is selected, the stats counter is fully populated, giving you immediate visibility into your file-type distribution.

New Media Information Fields

Expanded MediaInfo Support: We’ve added new metadata fields sourced from MediaInfo: General Title, HDR Profile, Color Range, Color Primaries, Transfer Characteristics, and Matrix Coefficients. Searchable Metadata: All newly added fields are now fully searchable, allowing you to filter and locate files based on any of these advanced media attributes, or include them into Reports.

Advanced Search Capabilities

Non-Latin Character Queries: Fixed an issue that prevented the use of additional search options when queries contained non-Latin characters. You can now rely on consistent, diacritic-insensitive search behavior across all scripts and languages.

User Interface Fixes

Main Tabs Close Button Access: Resolved a UI issue where very long captions in the Main Tabs would obscure the close “[×]” button. You can now close tabs without difficulty, regardless of caption length.

Minor Fixes and Improvements

Various under-the-hood optimizations and stability improvements to make WinCatalog even more reliable.

How to Update

To upgrade to WinCatalog 2024.11, simply download and install the latest version:

Download WinCatalog 2024.11

There is no need to uninstall your current version — just install the update over your existing installation. If you’re not yet a WinCatalog user, feel free to try our free trial and explore all the new features.

Thank you for your continued support and feedback. We hope you enjoy these enhancements!

— The WinCatalog Team

Posted on: May 21, 2025

Important Update: Please Re-Download WinCatalog 2024.10.1

WinCatalog 2024.10.1 Release We recently released WinCatalog 2024.10, and shortly after the release, some users reported a critical issue affecting the core functionality of the application.

The issue was caused by a new feature that is still under development. Although the feature was not enabled, part of its code was unintentionally included in the release. As a result, the bug blocked the ability to add new drives to the catalog or update existing ones, which is a key function of WinCatalog.

We’ve now addressed the issue by fixing the unfinished feature and released a revised version: WinCatalog 2024.10.1 (Build 410).

If you downloaded WinCatalog 2024.10 before this announcement, we kindly ask you to re-download the updated version using the link below:

👉 Download WinCatalog 2024.10.1 (Build 410)

This build restores normal functionality and ensures the application performs as expected.

We sincerely apologize for the disruption this issue may have caused. Thank you for your patience, your understanding, and your continued support. Special thanks to those who quickly reported the issue and helped us resolve it swiftly.

— The WinCatalog Team

Posted on: April 10, 2025

WinCatalog 2024.10 Release

Hello, we are pleased to announce the release of WinCatalog version 2024.10, introducing a range of enhancements and fixes aimed at improving stability, performance, and the overall user experience.

Improved PDF Processing

WinCatalog now processes the content of PDF files more efficiently by eliminating extra whitespace during text extraction. Additionally, the handling of date fields from PDF metadata has been improved—WinCatalog now correctly interprets dates stored in various formats, ensuring accurate recording of document creation and modification times.

New Drive Properties

The Properties pane now displays “Added” and “Updated” fields for drives. These fields provide timestamps for when a drive was first added to the catalog and when it was last updated, helping with better organization and version tracking.

Support for AVIF and AFIF Image Formats

The application now supports thumbnail extraction from AVIF and AFIF image formats, broadening the range of media file types that WinCatalog can catalog.

Enhanced Display on High-DPI Monitors

The tags list has been updated for better compatibility with high-DPI monitors and high scaling factors. Visual clutter on the Tags page has been eliminated.

New Drive Type: Tape

A new “Tape” drive type has been added to support users utilizing tape-based storage solutions. WinCatalog does not detect tape drives automatically; however, the drive type can always be changed manually via the Properties window, under the Volume Info tab.

Command Naming Update

The “Open in Explorer” command has been renamed to “Reveal in File Explorer” for improved clarity and consistency with modern operating system terminology.

Fix for Office Thumbnails Watermark

An issue where thumbnails generated for Microsoft Office files displayed a “trial” watermark has been resolved. Thumbnails now appear cleanly without any unnecessary markings.

How to Update

To upgrade to WinCatalog 2024.10, simply download and install the latest version: download now. There is no need to uninstall your current version. For existing users, upgrade eligibility can be checked on the website. If you’re new to WinCatalog, a free trial is available to explore the full range of features.

Posted on: April 9, 2025

WinCatalog 2024.9.1 Release

Hello! The latest update for WinCatalog has just been released. This maintenance update resolves an issue where the support for symbols like ♣ and ♦ in search queries disrupted diacritic-insensitive searches.

If your files don’t contain diacritic characters in their names or comments, you can skip this update. Otherwise, we recommend downloading the latest version: click here. There’s no need to uninstall the previous version of WinCatalog — simply install the update over your existing installation.

Posted on: January 3, 2025

WinCatalog 2024.9 Release

Hello, we’re excited to announce the release of WinCatalog 2024.9! This latest update brings improvements, feature additions, and fixes, making your cataloging experience more efficient and enjoyable. Here’s a detailed look at what’s new in this version.

Restrict Search by Fields

One of the most requested features is finally here! Previously, WinCatalog searched across multiple fields simultaneously, which could lead to too many results—especially when text from PDF files and documents was included. The new feature allows you to restrict searches by specific fields such as filenames, comments, or other text fields individually, enabling a more focused and precise search experience.

Expand Your Archive Support:

WinCatalog 2024.9 now supports TAR and TAR.GZ archives, allowing you to catalog the contents of these compressed formats. The support of BZ2 and XZ archives is also included.

Smarter Archive Rescans:

WinCatalog now employs a “smart” rescanning feature for archives. If the “scanning inside archives” is on, disregarding the “skip unmodified files” feature, the Update process finds archives where the content might be missed during initial scans and ensures your archive contents are accurately captured and reflected in your catalog.

Virtual Folders Stay Accurate:

Virtual folders are a great way to organize your catalog without physically moving files. We’ve fixed an issue where the size of virtual folders wouldn’t decrease after deleting an item within them. Now, your virtual folders will always reflect the accurate size of their contents, ensuring a clear picture of your data organization.

Improved PDF Text Processing

An issue affecting the PDF files processing module has been fixed. Previously, the module ignored the unmarked “Limit text to keep” option, failing to capture full text. This fix ensures comprehensive text extraction, enhancing your document cataloging process and enabling the full-text-search capabilities.

Search Engine Recognizes Special Characters

Previously ignored symbols like ♣ and ♦ are now recognized, allowing you to conduct more refined and accurate searches based on specific characters within your files.

Improved Search UI in WinCatalog Reader App

An issue in the search UI of the WinCatalog Reader App has been fixed: you can now select tags to refine your searches.

MKV File Duration Export in Reports

We’ve resolved an issue that prevented the export of MKV file durations to reports. Now, you can include video or audio length in your reports using the same Duration column.

How to Update

Upgrading to WinCatalog 2024.9 is easy! If you’re a licensed user, simply download it here. You do not need to uninstall a previous version of WinCatalog. Just install the latest version over the existing one.

If you’re a user of a previous version, check your upgrade status here.

Not a user yet? This is the perfect time to experience the power of comprehensive cataloging with a free trial.

Posted on: December 23, 2024