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EndNote 21 for Windows: Managing Library

Banner of the managing EndNote library page on PC

Managing Your EndNote Library

An Overview of the EndNote Library Window

 

Below is a screenshot of an EndNote library window. Click on the Info icon for details or a video demo about the feature next to it. 

Grouping EndNote Records

 

You can use Groups and Group Sets to manage a large library by breaking it down into more manageable parts.

  • Groups are a way to organise your references within a library. They allow you to create subsets of references for easier viewing and categorisation.
  • A Group Set is essentially a collection of groups, ideal for organising large projects with multiple reference groups.
  • You can create up to 5000 groups and up to 5000 group sets as needed. 
  • An individual record can be linked to multiple groups as needed. 

 

  • Right click on My Groups in the Groups Panel, then select Create Group.
  • Type a name for the group, then press Enter. 
  • Add records to a group by highlighting the record/s in the Library Window then dragging them into the group.
  • Groups are listed alphabetically.

 

You can create a new group from other groups using the Boolean Operators (And, Or, Not).

  • Right click on My Groups in the Groups Panel, then select Create from Groups
  • Name the combined group in Group Name box
  • Choose the appropriate Boolean Operator and select the groups from the drop down lists, then click Create.
  • Right click on My Groups, then select Create Group Set. Type the name of the group set, then press <Enter>.
  • You can add individual groups to the Group Set, either by creating a new group (following the directions above), or moving an existing group to the new group set (click on the group name then drag and drop to the Group Set).

Smart groups use search criteria to dynamically update groups as existing records are edited or new records are added to the Library. Once a smart group is created it works in the background, automatically adding new records that match the smart group's criteria.

 

To create a Smart Group:
  • Right click on My Groups in the Groups Panel, then select Create Smart Group. The Smart Group Window  will appear.
  • Name the group in the Smart Group Name box.
  • Enter the terms you want to identify for inclusion in your smart group, and select the field within which EndNote will search for each term. 
  • Choose the appropriate Boolean Operator (AND, OR, NOT), then click Create.

 Screenshot of creating a smart group on PC

Watch the following video on Groups and Group Sets

 

Tagging EndNote Records

 

Tagging is a new feature in EndNote 21.

  • Tags are visual labels that you can customise by colour and name, making it easy to categorise your references.
  • You can add multiple tags to a single reference or assign a single tag to multiple references.
  • The tags and the number of references assigned each tag can be viewed in the Groups Panel.
  • You can create, rename, edit, or delete tags as needed, giving you full control over the tagging system.

 

  • Click on the + beside the My Tags heading in the Groups Panel
  • Name your new tag, and assign it a colour
  • Click on Create Tag

Creating a tag on PC

  • Double-click a reference to open the Summary Panel, then select the Edit tab
  • Click on the Manage tags button
  • Select a tag from the Available tags list, or create a new one
  • Click OK.

Adding a tag to a record on Mac

Alternatively, you can right click on a reference, then click Manage Tags.

You can also add tags to references by dragging and dropping references to the tag groups in the group panel.

Watch the following video on Tagging EndNote Records

 

Searching Your EndNote Library

 

As your Library grows, using the searching tools will make it easier to locate the records you want to use.

To search the library, you can use the Simple Search box for quick results or the Advanced Search option for a more detailed search.

  1. Choose Your Search Scope: You can search the entire library, a specific group, or a particular tag.
  2. Enter Search Terms: Type your search terms into the fields, select the appropriate Boolean connectors, and run the search.
  3. View Results: The search results will appear below the search box.

Watch the following video on searching in your EndNote library

Sorting Your EndNote Library

 

As your Library expands, using the sorting tools will simplify the process of reviewing records for any errors.

To sort records, click on any of the column headings. For instance, clicking on the Title column heading will sort the records alphabetically by title (A-Z). Clicking the Title column heading again will reverse the order (Z-A). Note that initial articles such as “A,” “An,” or “The” are ignored during sorting.

Watch the following video on Sorting EndNote Records

 

Global Editing of Records

 

EndNote provides a feature that allows you to simultaneously add text to multiple records. This feature is particularly useful when you are transferring records from databases into EndNote and need to add text to records, such as search terms or details about the name of the database.

To add text to multiple records:

Select Library | Change/Move/Copy Fields. The Change/Move/Copy Fields Window will appear (see below).

 

 

  1. Ensure the Change Fields tab is selected

  2. From the Select a Field drop down list, select the field to which the text will be added (e.g. Name of Database field)

  3. Type the text to be added into the text box (e.g. Database name, date of search, search terms, etc.)

  4. Select where you would like the text to be added within the field using the Change radio button (e.g. Insert before field's text)

  5. Click OK.

Global editing 2024

Backing Up Your Library and Documents

 

It is essential to back up your EndNote library (and associated Data folder) in case disaster strikes. Create a backup copy whenever you make significant changes to your library – ensure you re-name the backup library (for example, add the date of backup to the file name).

 

Backing Up Your Library and Documents 

 

It is essential to regularly make a back up copy of your EndNote library, so that if something goes wrong you will always have a working copy of your library. Ensure you re-name the backup library (e.g., add the date of backup to the file name such as EN backup 2024-04-05).

There are a number of ways to create a back up:

  • Copy and paste the relevant files (the EndNote library and the .DATA folder) to a different location

Use Windows Explorer to navigate to where your files are stored. Copy your EndNote library (.enl file), AND its associated Data (.Data) folder, then Paste to a different folder on your computer, and/or to a USB drive or other portable storage device.  

  • Create a compressed library within EndNote: File > Compress Library (.enlx)

Open your EndNote library, select File | Compress Library (.enlx), and choose the option to Create | With File Attachments. This creates a single compressed file. Save this to a different folder on your computer, and/or to a USB drive or other portable storage device.

  • Email a compressed library within EndNote: File > Compress Library (.enlx)

Use the File | Compress Library (.enlx) | Create & Email command to send a copy of your EndNote library via email to yourself or a colleague (be aware of the size limit of the email system). 

  • Save an exact copy of your library within EndNote: File > Save a Copy

Use the File | Save a Copy… command to save an exact copy of the library to a different folder on your computer, and/or to a USB drive or other portable storage device. This will save a copy of your library, plus its associated Data folder. 

  • Sync within EndNote Desktop to EndNote Web for backing up and sharing your library

 

A screenshot of backing up library on PC

 

Please Note

  • It is also advisable to save backup copies of any Word documents which include links to your library.
  • EndNote is not compatible with cloud-based services such as Dropbox, iCloud, Google Drive, OneDrive, SharePoint, etc. There are synchronisation issues with these services that can corrupt your library over time if you access/update it directly from the cloud.

EndNote Disaster Recovery

 

It is possible to reconstruct at least part of your EndNote Library if you have:

  • just the EndNote Library (minus the DATA folder)
  • just the DATA folder (minus the EndNote Library)
  • documents which include references inserted from the EndNote Library.
  • a damaged or corrupted library

NOTE: All of the methods described below will not reconstruct the EndNote Library exactly as the original - a good backup schedule is essential for all of your research files.

 

Creating EndNote records when just the EndNote Library file is available

  • Open EndNote, then click File|Open Library.
  • Select the EndNote Library file.
  • A message will appear confirming whether you would like to continue opening the EndNote Library without the associated Data Folder.
  • Click OK.

The Library will now open and a new DATA folder created. Using this method:

  • any groups that were present in the original Library will not be recreated.
  • all file attachments present in the original Library will be lost.

 

Creating the EndNote library when just the DATA folder is available.

  • Open Notepad, then click File|Save As.
  • Do not enter any text in the file - save in same place as the data folder, with the same file name as the data folder and with the file extension as .enl
  • Open EndNote, then open the .enl file just created.

 

Creating an EndNote library with records from Word documents via Traveling Library

It is possible to create an EndNote library with records from references included in a Word document, if those references were inserted via EndNote. This is a very useful way of retrieving records if your EndNote Library and the .data folder are both lost. This process is also useful if a collaborator has sent you a document with many references that you would like included in your own EndNote Library.

  • With the Word document open click the EndNote 21 tab, then Export to EndNote|Export Traveling Library
  • Choose either to import into a new library, or to an existing target library.

This method creates EndNote records that include just the bibliographic data, as included in the Reference List entries. Additional fields, such as abstracts, plus notes, and attachments will not be created.

 

Repair a Damaged EndNote Library Using the Recover Library Feature

Depending on your situation, you may consider the following solutions:

  • If you have a recent back up copy of your library, you may use the backup copy.
  • If you have synced your library with EndNote Online recently and the online library is still intact, you may create a new local blank library and synchronise from the online library
  • If the two methods above are not applicable to you, you may use the Recover Library command to repair the damaged file. This command will recover references from your damaged library and save them into a new library named after the damaged library with a suffix '-saved' by default.

To repair a damaged EndNote library

  1. Close the damaged library if it is currently open
  2. From the Library menu, select Recover Library. Read the information about the Recover Library command, and click OK
  3. As prompted, select the damaged library and choose the name and location where you want to save it, then click Open
  4. Open and check the new library for any issues, and use the new library in the place of the original damaged library from now on.

Using EndNote for Covidence

 

Covidence is a web-based tool that streamlines the production of systematic reviews. It supports title and abstract, and full-text screening, risk of bias assessment, the extraction of study characteristics and outcomes, and the export of data and references.

Using EndNote you can collect references from databases and upload them into Covidence for title and abstract screening. You can also find and attach PDF files to the records in EndNote and upload the full text PDF files into Covidence for full text screening.

Watch the following videos on using EndNote with Covidence. For more details see the library’s guide on Covidence.

How to import references

How to add full text articles

Export studies missing full text

Introduction to Covidencet