Add a Kodi video source with the correct content type

The useful distinctions

• The documented path starts at Videos, Files, Add videos.
• Set Content selects media type and information provider.
• The separate-movie-folders setting changes whether Kodi uses folder or file names.
• UPnP sources cannot be used to build this Kodi library.

Separate storage from interpretation

Being able to browse a directory proves that Kodi can see its entries; it does not tell the library whether those entries are films or episodes. Content assignment supplies that interpretation. Plan source roots around stable media types so that one scanner is not asked to infer several incompatible layouts from the same folder. A source name should also explain its purpose to the person maintaining it six months later.

Use a pilot collection

Create a temporary root containing copies or existing paths for a few representative authorised items. The useful cases are a normal film, a title with a duplicate name and one item with local metadata. Check which directory level is selected before confirming the source. Selecting the parent of several unrelated collections can create a much larger scan than intended and makes naming mistakes harder to isolate.

Confirm what the option means

The separate-folder choice should describe the files that actually exist. Enabling it because it sounds tidy does not reorganise a flat collection. After the pilot scan, compare the displayed identity with the underlying path and then preserve a note of the provider and source options. Those details explain future matching differences more clearly than a screenshot of the poster wall.

A focused way to proceed

1. Open Videos, then Files, then Add videos and Browse.
2. Select the folder that contains the collection and give the source a unique name.
3. Set This directory contains to the actual media type.
4. Choose the provider and set separate movie folders to match the layout.
5. Scan a small source and check its results before adding the rest.

Worked example · synthetic

Source name: Local workshop films
Selected folder: /media/workshop-movies/
Content: Movies
Layout: one movie folder per title
Pilot: three authorised local files

Read the comparison

A successful scan creates metadata entries; playback and external-service compatibility remain separate questions.

When to stop or ask for help

If scanning fails, capture the source root, selected content type and Event Log missing-item evidence.