I need help designing a database structure for a file management system where users can create nested folders and organize their files. I want users to be able to make new folders, create subfolders inside them, and put their files anywhere in this folder tree. I looked at how Microsoft does their installer directory tables but I think that approach might be too complicated when I need to fetch the folder structure for specific users. What would be the best way to set up the database tables for this kind of hierarchical file organization? Should I use a parent-child relationship or is there a better approach for handling nested folders?
Stick with parent_id for now. Nested sets look appealing but become a nightmare when users drag folders around constantly. I built something similar last month - parent_id worked great. Just index the user_id + parent_id combo and you’re set. You can optimize later if performance tanks, but don’t overcomplicate things upfront.
The nested set model is perfect for this. Each folder gets left and right boundary values that show where it sits in the tree - no more just tracking parent-child stuff. Want an entire subtree? One query. Just grab all nodes where the left value falls between the parent’s left and right values. I used this on a document system last year and the speed boost was huge compared to those recursive nightmare queries. Sure, adding new folders means updating multiple records, but if you’re doing way more reads than writes (like most file browsers), it’s totally worth it. Keep your usual fields - folder_id, user_id, folder_name - then add lft and rgt columns for the boundaries.
I’ve worked with similar systems before - go with an adjacency list model. Each folder gets a parent_id that points to its parent folder. Makes querying and managing nested structures way easier. Your folders table needs these fields: id, name, parent_id, user_id, and timestamps. Here’s a pro tip: add a string column for the full path. It’ll save you from writing complex recursive queries when you need to grab folder hierarchies. One more thing - set a limit on how deep folders can nest or you’ll run into performance issues.