EndNote: Moving references between libraries

This page describes how to copy references from one library to another on your desktop. To copy references between desktop libraries and EndNote Web libraries please click on the EndNote Web tab above to access the EndNote Web page.

Note: If you want to copy only a subset of references from one library to another, first open the library with the references you want to copy from and highlight only the references you wish to copy into another library. If the library you are importing from is locked or in "Read-Only" mode, all references are imported regardless of what is highlighted

For Microsoft OS

1. Open the library into which you want to import the references.
2. From the File menu, choose Import.
3. Click the Choose File button to locate and open the library you want to import. Select the file and click OK.
4. From the Import Options list, select EndNote Library.
5. Select an option from the Duplicates list:
   • Import All:   Imports the references, including duplicates.
   • Discard Duplicates:  Imports the references, except duplicates.
   • Import into Duplicates Library:  Duplicate references are imported into a library called File-Dupl.enl, where "File" is the name of the library into which you are importing.
6. Set the Text Translation option to No Translation. Extended characters, saved as Unicode in EndNote, will transfer correctly.
7. Click Import to import the file.
8. To import individual references into a library you must first open the library containing the references you want to export and copy the references you want to export into a group (see the tab above). You then highlight this group and then follow the directions above.

Note: The time required to import an EndNote library is proportionate to the size of the library. Refer to the progress indicator to determine when EndNote has completed the task.

When the import is complete, only newly imported references display in the Library window. This is a perfect time to peruse the imported data to make sure it imported as expected.

To return all of your references to the library display (including the newly imported ones), choose Show All References from the References menu.

 For MAC OS

1. Click on the Library you want to import references into
2. In taskbar at the top of your screen click on File
3. click on Import
4. Click on the  library (.enl format) containing the references you want to import
5. Under Import Options  select EndNote Library
6. To import individual references into a library you must first open the library containing the references you want to export and copy the references you want to export into a group (see the tab above). You can then highlight this group and then follow the directions above.