Mendeley Desktop organizes research references and the PDF files attached to them. A library record holds citation data such as title, authors, journal, and publication details, while an attachment remains the document file itself. Mendeley Desktop can search and group those records, detect duplicates, synchronize the library, and send formatted citations into a word processor. Renaming a PDF in the file manager does not perform the same work: it does not correct the citation fields or update citations already inserted into a document.
Library records
A reference can enter the library with missing or incorrect metadata even when its PDF looks complete. Mendeley Desktop separates the bibliographic record from the visible first page of the paper. The Update Details action can retrieve missing fields after the record has entered All Documents, and the user can still edit the details pane when the selected result is wrong.
Folders organize references without creating another physical copy of every attached paper. The same record can participate in the library’s organization while keeping one set of metadata. This differs from making several PDF copies in operating-system folders, which creates separate files that can drift apart.
Duplicate sets
Check for Duplicates works inside the folder or group that the user selects before running the command. It presents possible matches as sets. Each set previews the record that a confirmed merge will create, and expanding it exposes the individual source records.
Metadata fields with no conflict carry a check mark. An unchecked field means that two or more records disagree, and Mendeley Desktop has selected one value as its proposed result. The user can edit that value or choose a field from another record before confirming. Accepting the set without reading those conflicts can keep the wrong author, title, or publication data.
A merge creates a new record and moves the originals to Trash. Edit Undo can reverse a recent merge. The older records can also return from Trash while it remains uncleared. Emptying Trash removes that later recovery path.
Citation fields
The citation plugin places a Mendeley citation field at the cursor in a supported word processor. It searches the library, merges adjacent citations, and builds a bibliography from the citations present in the document. The selected citation style controls their visible format.
Changing an author’s name or another field in Mendeley Desktop does not immediately rewrite an existing document. The word-processor plugin needs Refresh, another inserted citation, or a style change before the document uses the corrected library data. A stale bibliography can therefore remain visible after the library itself looks correct.
Export can create a copy without Mendeley fields, often called a flattened copy. That copy is useful when another word processor needs ordinary text, but later library edits cannot update those flattened citations. It should remain separate from the working document if more citation changes will follow.
Plugin setup
Mendeley Desktop installs its plugin through the Tools menu after detecting a supported word processor. The user must close the word processor during installation. Leaving it open can prevent the plugin files from entering the location that the next launch reads. The toolbar or ribbon also appears in a different place depending on the word processor, so a missing button does not always mean that the installation failed.
Moving libraries
A move to another computer depends on synchronization rather than copying only the program folder. Before using Save and Sync, the user must enable Synchronize attached files if the PDFs should follow the reference records. Syncing metadata without that option can populate the new library while leaving its attachments behind on the old machine.
Mendeley Desktop remains available, but its publisher has stopped active development and plans no further updates. The newer Mendeley Reference Manager uses a separate product path. Migration begins with a completed Mendeley Desktop sync, so the user should not remove an unsynced local library merely after installing the newer manager.
