NAME

       fdupes - finds duplicate files in a given set of directories

SYNOPSIS

       fdupes [ options ] DIRECTORY ...

DESCRIPTION

       Searches  the given path for duplicate files. Such files are found by comparing file sizes
       and MD5 signatures, followed by a byte-by-byte comparison.

OPTIONS

       -r --recurse
              for every directory given follow subdirectories encountered within

       -R --recurse:
              for each directory given after this option follow subdirectories encountered within
              (note  the  ':'  at  the  end of option; see the Examples section below for further
              explanation)

       -s --symlinks
              follow symlinked directories

       -H --hardlinks
              normally, when two or more files point to the same disk area they  are  treated  as
              non-duplicates; this option will change this behavior

       -n --noempty
              exclude zero-length files from consideration

       -f --omitfirst
              omit the first file in each set of matches

       -A --nohidden
              exclude hidden files from consideration

       -1 --sameline
              list each set of matches on a single line

       -S --size
              show size of duplicate files

       -m --summarize
              summarize duplicate files information

       -q --quiet
              hide progress indicator

       -d --delete
              prompt user for files to preserve, deleting all others (see CAVEATS below)

       -N --noprompt
              when used together with --delete, preserve the first file in each set of duplicates
              and delete the others without prompting the user

       -I --immediate
              delete duplicates as they are encountered,  without  grouping  into  sets;  implies
              --noprompt

       -p --permissions
              don't consider files with different owner/group or permission bits as duplicates

       -o --order=WORD
              order files according to WORD: time - sort by mtime, name - sort by filename

       -i --reverse
              reverse order while sorting

       -v --version
              display fdupes version

       -h --help
              displays help

SEE ALSO

       md5sum(1)

NOTES

       Unless  -1 or --sameline is specified, duplicate files are listed together in groups, each
       file displayed on a separate line. The groups are then separated from each other by  blank
       lines.

       When  -1  or  --sameline is specified, spaces and backslash characters  (\) appearing in a
       filename are preceded by a backslash character.

EXAMPLES

       fdupes a --recurse: b
              will follow subdirectories under b, but not those under a.

       fdupes a --recurse b
              will follow subdirectories under both a and b.

CAVEATS

       If fdupes returns with an error message such as fdupes: error invoking md5sum it means the
       program  has  been  compiled  to  use  an  external  program  to  calculate MD5 signatures
       (otherwise, fdupes uses internal routines for this purpose), and  an  error  has  occurred
       while  attempting  to  execute  it.  If  this is the case, the specified program should be
       properly installed prior to running fdupes.

       When using -d or --delete, care should be taken to insure against accidental data loss.

       When used together with options -s or --symlink, a  user  could  accidentally  preserve  a
       symlink while deleting the file it points to.

       Furthermore,  when specifying a particular directory more than once, all files within that
       directory will be listed as their own duplicates, leading  to  data  loss  should  a  user
       preserve a file without its "duplicate" (the file itself!).

AUTHOR

       Adrian Lopez <adrian2@caribe.net>

                                                                                        FDUPES(1)