How to use the command rdfind (with examples)
Rdfind is a command-line tool used to find and eliminate files with duplicate content. It helps to identify duplicate files and allows you to replace them with hard links or symlinks, or delete them entirely. This can be useful for saving disk space and organizing files efficiently.
Use case 1: Identify all duplicates in a given directory and output a summary
Code:
rdfind -dryrun true path/to/directory
Motivation: When you want to identify all the duplicate files in a directory without making any changes, using the -dryrun option allows you to simulate the process and get a summary of the duplicates.
Explanation:
rdfind: Command to run the rdfind tool.-dryrun true: Simulate the process without making any changes.path/to/directory: Specify the directory path to scan for duplicates.
Example output:
1 duplicate files found.
Total size wasted: 1024 bytes.
Use case 2: Replace all duplicates with hardlinks
Code:
rdfind -makehardlinks true path/to/directory
Motivation: If you want to replace duplicate files with hard links, which conserve disk space by creating multiple links to the same file, you can use the -makehardlinks option.
Explanation:
rdfind: Command to run the rdfind tool.-makehardlinks true: Replace duplicates with hard links.path/to/directory: Specify the directory path to replace duplicates.
Example output:
Successfully replaced X duplicates with hard links.
Use case 3: Replace all duplicates with symlinks/soft links
Code:
rdfind -makesymlinks true path/to/directory
Motivation: When you want to replace duplicate files with symlinks (symbolic links) or soft links, which create a reference to the original file, you can use the -makesymlinks option.
Explanation:
rdfind: Command to run the rdfind tool.-makesymlinks true: Replace duplicates with symlinks.path/to/directory: Specify the directory path to replace duplicates.
Example output:
Successfully replaced X duplicates with symlinks.
Use case 4: Delete all duplicates and do not ignore empty files
Code:
rdfind -deleteduplicates true -ignoreempty false path/to/directory
Motivation: If you want to completely remove all duplicate files, even if they are empty, you can use the -deleteduplicates option and set -ignoreempty to false.
Explanation:
rdfind: Command to run the rdfind tool.-deleteduplicates true: Delete duplicates.-ignoreempty false: Do not ignore empty files.path/to/directory: Specify the directory path to delete duplicates.
Example output:
Successfully deleted X duplicates (including empty files).
Conclusion
Rdfind is a powerful command-line tool for identifying and managing duplicate files. It provides various options to either simulate the process, replace duplicates with hard links or symlinks, or delete them entirely. By using rdfind, you can effectively manage disk space and organize your files more efficiently.
