MerceqGuideJoin the alpha

2 · Import your footage

Copy to disk first

Use this method before clearing a camera card after a new shoot, or when you want to gather your videos on another disk.

  1. Select the sources you want to copy.
  2. Open the Copy to disk first menu.
  3. If you want to start culling after copying, choose Copy to disk, then import (the subtitle says “Files are also added to your library”). To make a copy only, choose Copy to disk only (the subtitle says “Not added to your library”).
  4. Choose a destination in the folder picker titled “Where should the files be copied?”. You can choose a folder on your Mac or a connected disk.
  5. When you return to Merceq, check the folder you chose in the Destination field at the top. If you change your mind, go back with Cancel.
  6. If you chose Copy to disk, then import, start with Copy and import. If you chose Copy to disk only, use Copy to disk.

To start culling right away, choose “Copy to disk, then import”; to copy without adding to the library, choose “Copy to disk only”.

The transfer doesn’t start when you choose a destination folder. You can check the destination or go back with Cancel before starting.

Which folder opens at the destination?

Merceq creates a dated folder inside your chosen destination and copies the files there.

  • From a card or disk: something like “2026-10-13 DCIM”. If a folder with the same name was created that day, “(2)” is added to the new folder’s name.
  • If you copy from multiple sources together, their folder names are prefixed with sequence numbers such as “1-…” and “2-…”.
  • From a phone: “_”, for example, “iPhone_2026-10-13”.
  • If you resume the transfer the next day, files keep copying to the same folder.

When won’t copying start?

Merceq won’t start copying in these situations and tells you why:

  • The destination is on the same disk as the source: “The copy must be on a separate disk…”.
  • The destination is inside the source folder.
  • The destination is FAT32 and the selection contains a file over 4 GB: “Choose an exFAT or APFS disk.”
  • There isn’t enough free space on the destination disk. Merceq also accounts for the free space that must remain on the disk.
  • The destination can’t be written to, or macOS privacy permission is missing.
  • The SD card is locked: “Eject the card, unlock it using the switch beside it, and reconnect it.”

What gets copied?

When you copy a folder to a disk, its folder structure and all its files are preserved; system leftovers such as .DS_Store and ._* aren’t included. When you select a clip individually, sidecar files with the same name come with it: .THM, .LRV, .XML, .WAV, DJI’s .SRT, and Sony’s M01.XML files. These sidecar files contain information such as location and camera settings (see the Organize your cameras and sources section).

That’s why the file count shown during a transfer may be higher than the number of videos added to the library. The result says “{video} videos, {yan} camera sidecar files”.

Files that have already been copied aren’t copied again. Verified files already at the destination are skipped. The result says “N files were already there” or “Already all on disk, verified”.

Copies are verified

When copying finishes, Merceq checks every file from beginning to end. After verification, it writes an ascmhl record (ASC MHL) to the dated folder. If the card already has an ascmhl history, that’s copied too. Keep this record file with your footage.

Possible alerts:

  • “MHL couldn’t be written”
  • “the card’s ASC MHL history conflicts with a different generation on the destination; the destination’s version was kept”
  • If the destination disk isn’t fully protected against power loss: “…safely eject the card before formatting it”