> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://elephas.app/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# How to Create and Manage Brains in Elephas

> Create a Brain to keep your documents for one client, case or project together, then rename, pin, sort or delete it. Shortcuts for Mac and Windows.

A Brain is a collection of your documents about one subject: a client, a case, a deal, a research project or a course. Create one with **New Brain** (⌘B on Mac, Ctrl+B on Windows), then rename, pin, sort or delete it from the **Brains** page.

## Before you start

* Elephas is installed and open. Your first Brain, **My Documents**, is created for you when you add files in the welcome guide.
* Brains belong to the workspace you are in. Brains you create in your Personal workspace stay there. In a Team workspace, Team Brains are created and shared by the Team Owner or an Admin. See [Team Brains](/docs/teams/team-brains).

## Steps

### Create a Brain

<Steps>
  <Step title="Choose New Brain">
    Press ⌘B on Mac or Ctrl+B on Windows. You can also click **New Brain** on Home or on the **Brains** page, or choose **File › New Brain**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Name it">
    Type a name in the **New Brain** dialog and click **Create**, or press Return (Mac) or Enter (Windows). Names can be up to 120 characters. Two Brains can share a name, but distinct names make them easier to pick in Ask.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add your documents">
    The new Brain opens. Drag your files onto the page, or click **Add** and choose **Files…**, **Folder…** or **Web Page…**. See [add files and folders](/docs/brains-and-documents/add-files-and-folders).
  </Step>
</Steps>

### Rename, pin or delete a Brain

1. Open the **Brains** page (⌘3 on Mac, Ctrl+3 on Windows).
2. Hover over the Brain's card and click its **…** menu, or right-click the card.
3. Choose **Pin** (or **Unpin**), **Rename** or **Delete**.

### Sort the Brains page

Click **Sort** at the top of the **Brains** page and choose one of:

| Order | What it does |
| - | - |
| **Last Opened** | The Brains you used most recently first. This is the default. |
| **Name (A–Z)** | Alphabetical, so a Brain is always in the same place. |
| **Recently Added** | The newest Brains first. Useful while you set up your library. |

Elephas remembers your choice. Pinned Brains are not affected by the sort.

## How it works

### Pinned Brains

Pinned Brains appear under **Pinned** in the sidebar, so you can open them in one click. You can pin up to 5 Brains. If you try to pin a sixth, Elephas shows **You can pin up to 5 Brains. Unpin one to pin another.** To unpin from the sidebar, right-click the pinned Brain and choose **Unpin**.

### What a Brain is for

Ask answers only from the Brains you select. Keeping each client, matter or project in its own Brain means an answer about one never draws on another's documents. That is the difference from a generic chatbot: answers come from your documents, not the internet. You can ask up to 8 Brains at once. See [ask questions about your documents](/docs/ask/ask-questions-about-your-documents).

Each Brain also has its own **Protected Names** list in its **More** menu, for client names and code names that should always be hidden before cloud AI. See [Protected Names](/docs/brains-and-documents/protected-names).

### Deleting a Brain

When you delete a Brain, Elephas asks **Delete "name"? This cannot be undone.** Deleting removes the Brain, Elephas's copies of its documents, their extracted text and their search index from your computer. A large Brain can take a while. The dialog shows **Deleting "name" and its N documents…** until it finishes.

* **Your original files are not touched.** Elephas works from its own copies, so the files in your Documents folder, Downloads or Desktop stay where they are.
* **Past chats stay.** Chats that used the Brain keep their answers. Citations to its documents show **Source no longer available**.
* **With Personal Sync on,** the deletion also reaches your other devices.

In a Team workspace, only people allowed to delete a Team Brain see **Delete**. See [team roles and permissions](/docs/teams/team-roles-and-permissions).

## Keyboard shortcuts

| Action | Mac | Windows |
| - | - | - |
| New Brain | ⌘B | Ctrl+B |
| Go to Brains | ⌘3 | Ctrl+3 |
| Add files to the open Brain | ⌘O | Ctrl+O |
| Add a folder to the open Brain | ⌥⌘O | Ctrl+Alt+O |
| Add a web page to the open Brain | ⇧⌘O | Ctrl+Shift+O |

See all [keyboard shortcuts](/docs/ask/keyboard-shortcuts).

## Troubleshooting

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Enter a name for this Brain">
    The name is empty. Type at least one character. If you see **Brain names can be at most 120 characters.**, shorten the name.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="This Brain is not here">
    The Brain you had open is not in the workspace you are in. It may have been deleted, or it may belong to another workspace. Switch workspace with the **Workspace** switcher in the sidebar, or open **Brains** to see the ones that are here.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="I can't add files to a Team Brain">
    Your role on that Team Brain lets you read it, not add to it. Dragging files over it shows **You can't add files to** and the Brain's name. Ask the Team Owner, an Admin or a Manager of the Brain to change your role. See [team troubleshooting](/docs/troubleshooting/team-troubleshooting).
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Related articles

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Add files and folders" href="/docs/brains-and-documents/add-files-and-folders" />

  <Card title="Key concepts" href="/docs/getting-started/key-concepts" />

  <Card title="Ask specific documents" href="/docs/ask/ask-specific-documents" />

  <Card title="Protected Names" href="/docs/brains-and-documents/protected-names" />
</CardGroup>


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