# Configuration file not working

**URL:** <https://discourse.beets.io/t/configuration-file-not-working/1594>\
**Category:** Help\
**Created:** [November 30, 2020, 12:35pm UTC](https://discourse.beets.io/t/configuration-file-not-working/1594 "2020-11-30T12:35:44Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Silvertail](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Silvertail](https://discourse.beets.io/u/Silvertail)\
**Post date:** [November 30, 2020, 12:35pm UTC](https://discourse.beets.io/t/configuration-file-not-working/1594/1 "2020-11-30T12:35:44Z")

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(im on windows) Basically my configuration file is not working. When i run the command “beet -config” it returns “Empty configuration”. So you would assume that i havnt set up a config file but i have. Running “beet config -e” opens up my config file which includes this:

directory: C:\Users\darcy\Music\beet  
plugins: scrub ftintitle duplicates fromfilename  
import:  
move: no  
copy: yes  
write: yes  
log: beetslog.txt

Would love to know whats going on so i am able to use the plugins, thanks.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![martin](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex029/user_avatar/discourse.beets.io/martin/32/414_2.png) [@martin](https://discourse.beets.io/u/martin)\
**Post date:** [November 30, 2020, 9:16pm UTC](https://discourse.beets.io/t/configuration-file-not-working/1594/2 "2020-11-30T21:16:39Z")

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Hello,

In your configuration file, you must indent (with 4 spaces, for example) the move/copy/write settings, because they belong to the `import` group, so it would look like

```
plugins: scrub ftintitle duplicates fromfilename
import:
    move: no
    copy: yes
    write: yes
log: beetslog.txt

```

Also, `beet -config` is interpreted as a `-c` flag (path to configuration file) with `onfig` as the configuration path (as `beet --config=onfig`). It’s unlikely to work. Just test with `beet help` (it should list your plugins’ specific commands, if they have some) and `beet ls` (which should return nothing when your library is empty).

Then you should be able to start importing !