How to deal with unused medias

boussnina · November 17, 2025, 8:33am

If a media file is referenced by other items, the items will appear under the info tab of the media as such:

However in many scenarios, i use pickers to select data, where it is often folders that are being selected. So for example the in the stock photo below, where the parent folder is selected in a media picker.

I currently have created my own extension, where the user can track unused medias, and clean up any unused medias they dont want to keep. My question is: Is there any built-in way, or do any of you know an easy way to track the actual unused medias?

Currently i just visit items parents until i reach the root node, but it is a very slow process with 10’s of thousands files.

Thanks in advance!

mistyn8 · November 17, 2025, 11:52am

If memory serves each propertyEditor implements it’s own referenced items..

eg mediapicker3…

github.com/umbraco/Umbraco-CMS

src/Umbraco.Infrastructure/PropertyEditors/MediaPicker3PropertyEditor.cs

b868a349d


      
          public IEnumerable<UmbracoEntityReference> GetReferences(object? value)
          {
              foreach (MediaWithCropsDto dto in Deserialize(_jsonSerializer, value))
              {
                  yield return new UmbracoEntityReference(Udi.Create(Constants.UdiEntityType.Media, dto.MediaKey));
              }
          }

github.com/umbraco/Umbraco-CMS

src/Umbraco.Core/Models/Editors/UmbracoEntityReference.cs

main

namespace Umbraco.Cms.Core.Models.Editors;

/// <summary>
/// Used to track a reference to another entity in a property value.
/// </summary>
public struct UmbracoEntityReference : IEquatable<UmbracoEntityReference>
{
    private static readonly UmbracoEntityReference _empty = new(UnknownTypeUdi.Instance, string.Empty);

    /// <summary>
    /// Initializes a new instance of the <see cref="UmbracoEntityReference" /> struct.
    /// </summary>
    /// <param name="udi">The UDI.</param>
    /// <param name="relationTypeAlias">The relation type alias.</param>
    public UmbracoEntityReference(Udi udi, string relationTypeAlias)
    {
        Udi = udi ?? throw new ArgumentNullException(nameof(udi));
        RelationTypeAlias = relationTypeAlias ?? throw new ArgumentNullException(nameof(relationTypeAlias));
    }

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So perhaps you can override that to check if a folder and then enumerate?

But my understanding is also that this is tracked by a relation umbMedia in the umbracoRelation table… and is reliant on the property editor implementing the relationship creation/deletion so could or could not be present in custom property editors.

Maybe your own extension is using the relationship service already and enumerating any folders it finds, so apologies if this is telling you how to suck eggs