The library / Organisation
A shelf you
can return to.
A useful library needs a naming convention you can explain and a copy you can recover.
Keep an album together
Choose a predictable folder structure, for example Artist / Album / Disc. Include disc and track numbers in filenames when order matters. Keep a compilation together under its album title rather than splitting its tracks across performer folders.
Let tags do the detailed work
Folders are useful for browsing, but complete tags make a music player more useful. Check the album artist, track artist, title and disc number after importing. Preserve edition notes so that two different releases do not accidentally become one.
Keep the supporting pieces
Store artwork and any notes you are entitled to keep alongside the album. Give the main cover a consistent name. Avoid relying on a player-specific database as the only place your corrections exist.
Make a separate copy
An extra folder on the same failing disk is not a separate backup. Keep another copy on a different device, and check occasionally that a few albums can actually be restored. Do this before a major retagging pass.