A very easy terminal UI for finding duplicates when you're stuck in the terminal like me and would rather see your duplicates files than memorize CLI flags.
I mostly made this because I wanted to actually see what I was deleting without leaving the terminal. If you've ever SSH'd into a remote Linux server and felt a bit nervous running a bulk-delete command on a bunch of duplicate files, you'll get why I made this.
I wanted a tool where I didn't have to remember complex flags or commands. I wanted something that:
- Feels like a desktop app: An interactive list where you can scroll and check things.
- Groups everything visually: You can see exactly which files are clones / duplicates of each other in a single group.
- Shows the details: It shows you the file hash so you can be 100% sure that "ah, okay, these really are the same" before you hit delete.
It’s basically a "middle ground" for people who like the terminal but miss the visual clarity of a GUI.
Note on Speed: This is a hobby project and it is not fast yet. It does a full SHA-256 hash on every file to make sure it's 100% accurate. If you're scanning big files, it will take a while. I’m working on making it faster.
Since I'm just building this for fun/utility, there are a few things it doesn't do yet:
- Speed: It’s slow on large datasets because it doesn't pre-filter by file size yet.
- OS Support: Works great on macOS and Linux. Windows is still a bit hit-or-miss.
Homebrew (Recommended so you can get easy updates)
brew tap karimz1/dupster
brew install karimz1/dupster/dupster-cliFrom Source
git clone https://github.com/karimz1/dupster.git
cd dupster
pip install .Just point it at a directory:
dupster ~/DownloadsControls:
You will see all controls and shortcut in the UI when you start dupster but here is a little list:
s: Start the scan.h/l: Move between the list and the file details.o: Open the file (to double-check it's the one you want).i: Keep only this (Deletes all other duplicates in that group).d: Delete all (Removes the whole group).q: Quit.
If you actually need raw speed for massive amounts of data, I highly recommend these instead:
Disclamer Not affiliated at all. I just use their tools and honestly, they’re incredible.
- fclones - Incredible speed, written in Rust.
- fdupes - The standard tool most people use.
- rdfind - Great for replacing dupes with links.
Dupster is just for when you want to "see" what's happening in a terminal ui and don't want to memorize all CLI flags, I must admit I'm kinda this person.
If you're a developer and want to help me make this faster, I'd love the help. It’s mostly a learning / side-project for me, so if you want to fork it and open a PR with performance improvements (like file-size filtering or multi-threading), I'd be happy to add you as a co-author.
- Tests: Run
pytest -v. - Dummy Data: I included a script at
tools/generate_dupes.pythat creates a folder of fake duplicates so you can test things without breaking your real files.
Author: Karim Zouine
License: Apache 2.0