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Docs: explain mutually exclusive (disjoint) groups #614

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Docs: explain mutually exclusive (disjoint) groups
Pratyush020505 Jan 21, 2026
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Docs: fix markdown emphasis style
Pratyush020505 Jan 21, 2026
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Merge branch 'main' into docs-disjoint-groups
koppor Feb 3, 2026
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Docs: use backticks for search expressions in disjoint groups example
Pratyush020505 Feb 3, 2026
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24 changes: 24 additions & 0 deletions en/finding-sorting-and-cleaning-entries/groups.md
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Expand Up @@ -209,3 +209,27 @@ Be careful, this can slow down JabRef when a library has numerous groups.
## Groups in the library file

Groups are saved as a `@COMMENT` block in the `.bib`-file and are shared among all users (future versions of JabRef might support user-dependent groups).

## Mutually exclusive (disjoint) groups

By default, entries in JabRef can belong to multiple groups at the same time. JabRef does not automatically enforce that an entry belongs to only one group.

However, it is possible to create _mutually exclusive (disjoint) groups_ by using **dynamic groups** with **free search expressions**.

This approach relies on search-based (dynamic) groups and does not change JabRef’s default behavior for static groups.

### Example

Assume you want three groups: _Read_, _Skimmed_, and _Pending_, where an entry should only appear in one of them.

You can define the groups as follows:

- **Read** group:
`keywords = read`
- **Skimmed** group:
`keywords = skimmed`
- **Pending** group:
`NOT (keywords = read OR keywords = skimmed)`

With this setup, an entry will appear in the _Pending_ group only if it is not marked as _Read_ or _Skimmed_. When the keywords of an entry are updated, it automatically moves between these groups.