Duplicate files of the search and delete program. How to Easily Find Duplicate Files in Windows and Remove Them

Hello Dear Friend.

When working with files and documents, we often make backup copies of important data. In one folder in another in a third... And then we even forget how many copies of this or that file we made and where on the disk they are stored.

As a result, free disk space is eaten up by unnecessary copies of files and folders. How can you find duplicate files on all your drives and delete them?

Everything is very simple, we will use a small free utility with support for the Russian language - Soft4Boost Dup File Finder.

You can download the program here:

After installing the program, the main window will open:

If we check the box next to “Ignore file names,” then the search will not use matching file names, the search will be based on the internal contents of the file. This is very important, because identical files can have different names. Fortunately, all the tips in the program are in Russian.

Just below you can select the type of files to search for duplicates.

Select the required drives or individual folders (by clicking on the plus signs). Then you need to click on the folder image with the right arrow to add the desired list of folders for scanning by the program.

In this window, select the method for deleting files. The first option is added to the trash can with the option of recovery. Please remember that the basket size is limited. To increase the size of the recycle bin, go to the properties of the recycle bin icon on the desktop and set the size in megabytes.

You can also choose the permanent option, but I recommend deleting to trash first. If something goes wrong, you can always restore the file.

Click the “Search” button.

After the scanning is completed, a window with duplicate files found will open in front of you.

Select the checkboxes of the files that you want to delete and click on the button at the top of the “Fix problems” window; the selected duplicates will be deleted.

In this simple way you can get rid of numerous duplicate files on your disks.

Among the disadvantages of the program, I would note the inability to view found files by double-clicking the mouse. It would be very convenient to immediately view the file and remember what kind of file it is.

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A program for finding duplicate files is most often needed by users who store a large amount of music, photos and documents on disk.

And, although you can delete such unnecessary copies manually, specialized applications can save a lot of time.

Especially if the files are located in different folders or in .

You can search for such duplicates using universal software or one designed for a specific type of data.

In the first case, the search speed increases, in the second, the probability of finding all copies increases.

Universal Applications

Universal applications for finding copies mainly work on the principle of comparing file sizes.

And, since the probability of the same number of bytes in different photos is practically zero, identical values ​​are considered a sign of a duplicate.

Sometimes the algorithm provides for checking names - also an important parameter for the search, especially since the same data in most cases also matches by name.

The advantages of the programs are the ability to find files of any type with their help and the relatively high speed of operation. Disadvantage: lower detection accuracy.

So, for example, none of these utilities will consider the same file saved with different resolutions to be a duplicate.

1. DupKiller

And among its advantages we can note:

• ease of setup;
• setting multiple search criteria;
• the ability to ignore certain files (with a certain size or creation date, as well as system or hidden ones).

Important: If files with a size of zero are found, they do not have to be deleted. Sometimes this may be information created on another operating system (for example, Linux).

Rice. 4. CCleaner system optimization program can also search for duplicate files.

5.AllDup

Among the advantages of another program, AllDup, we can note support for any modern Windows operating system - from XP to 10.

At the same time, the search is carried out inside hidden folders, and even in archives.

Although the comparison of information by default occurs by file names, so it is advisable to change the settings immediately.

But during the search process, each duplicate found can be viewed without closing the application.

And if a copy is found, you can not only delete it, but also rename it or move it to another location.

Additional benefits of the application include completely free work for any period of time.

In addition, the manufacturer also produces a portable version in order to search for copies on those computers on which the installation of third-party software is prohibited (for example, on a work PC).

Rice. 5. Search for files using the portable version of AllDup.

6. DupeGuru

Another useful application that searches for duplicates with any extension is DupeGuru.

Its only drawback is the lack of new versions for Windows (although updates for MacOS appear regularly).

However, even a relatively outdated utility copes well with its tasks when working in newer operating systems.

With its help, even system files are easily detected, and the menu is intuitive and in Russian.

Rice. 6. Detecting copies using the DupeGuru utility.

It is noteworthy that, in addition to the usual universal option, the manufacturing company has created a utility for searching for files of a certain type.

There is a separate version for images and another for music.

And, if you need to clean your computer not only from documents and system files (which, by the way, need to be deleted very carefully - sometimes it’s even worth leaving an “extra” copy rather than disrupting the system’s functionality), it’s worth downloading these applications as well.

7. Duplicate Cleaner Free

Duplicate Cleaner Free, a utility for detecting copies of any file, has the following features:

• filtering data by extension;
• Russian interface language;
• possibility of free use;
• high speed.

Its disadvantages include minor limitations when searching for images (for this it is recommended to purchase a paid version) and not entirely accurate translation of individual menu elements.

However, due to its effectiveness and ease of use, the application enjoys some popularity.

Rice. 7. Find duplicates using the Duplicate Cleaner Free utility.

Finding duplicate audio files

If the search results for duplicates are not satisfactory for the user, you can consider an option designed for specific files. For example, for accumulated on disk.

This need often arises when downloading several albums and collections of the same artist at once - often the same tracks end up in different folders.

They can have similar sizes and differ, by and large, only in names. Especially for this, there are utilities for searching for similar melodies.

8.Music Duplicate Remover

Among the features of the Music Duplicate Remover program are relatively fast search and good efficiency.

In fact, this application “listens” to the composition and compares it with other audio files.

At the same time, naturally, its operating time is longer than that of universal utilities.

However, the amount of data checked by the program is usually tens of times less, so the average scan duration rarely exceeds a couple of hours.

Rice. 8. Detection of copies of music and audio files by album.

9.Audio Comparer

At the same time, photo analysis also takes longer compared to searching for files of any extension, but the result is worth it.

Images are detected even when there are several duplicates of the same image on the disk, but with different resolutions and, accordingly, sizes.

In addition, to increase efficiency, files with any graphic extensions are scanned - from to .png.

Rice. 11. Search for pictures using another version of DupeGuru.

12. ImageDupeless

Moreover, it is distributed free of charge and has a Russian interface. And the manufacturer periodically releases updates to it, increasing the efficiency of image search.

Rice. 12. Stylish interface of the ImageDupeless application.

13. Image Comparer

The advantages of the Image Comparer application, in addition to its simple interface, include the presence of a step-by-step wizard that allows you to learn how to quickly and efficiently search for images.

This feature distinguishes the utility from most others, to work with which you will have to read help files that are not always correctly translated (and sometimes even provided only in English).

In fact, the application is another version of Audio Comparer, and is also distributed under a “shareware” license - that is, the user will have to pay for certain functions.

Rice. 13. The Image Comparer app is a good way to find duplicate pictures.

Greetings, dear reader! Today I will show you a program that searches for identical files on the computer. The program not only finds copies of files, but also, at the user’s request, immediately deletes them. Very convenient in this regard. And there may be so many copies of files that you won’t even suspect it. They can just be located in different folders and even on different drives. You may use some of them all the time, but you may have forgotten about their copies.

For example, they downloaded a picture from the Internet, used it for their own purposes and forgot about it. After some time, you needed this picture, but you were too lazy to look for it on the computer. It's easier to find it on the Internet. Download again and get a duplicate file that already exists on your computer.

The same can happen with music files. You downloaded it into different folders and think that you have it in a single copy. Many PC users make one mistake. When you grab a file with the left mouse button and drag it to another folder located on another disk, it is not moved, but copied. This means that the file remained in the same place, but a copy of it ended up in a new folder on another disk.

It turns out that one file is superfluous and only takes up free space in the computer’s memory.

Search for identical files

This program has flexible settings with which we can speed up the search.

Let's say we are looking only on one or two disks. We tick them and press the “Scan” button

But the program will find all files that have copies. But we don’t need this, because, for example, we only want to find images.

Search by file type

In this case, go to the “Files and Folders” tab. Check the file format boxes. Images come in different formats, but the program offers us only four: jpg, jpeg, gif, bmp. These are the most popular image formats that almost every user has.

The rest that are not in the list must be entered manually. Click the “Add” button. In the window that opens, enter the desired image format. For example from the program Photoshop-(*.PSD)

OK! We scan and get a bunch of copies to delete. Stop! But they can be systemic. So let's move on.

We scan only the necessary folders

Let's select individual folders to scan. The program will only check them. At the bottom of the program there is a setting “Searched folders” Check the item “ Only specified folders"With such parameters, you don’t have to select the disk in the “Disks” tab. Yes, and don't forget to check the box here " Include these folders even if the corresponding drive is not selected «

We scan and get the result. Once the scan is complete, DupKiller will switch to the “List” tab, where all found duplicate files will be shown.

The files, in our case, are pictures, sorted into groups. A group consists of two or more files. They are all the same, as they are copies of each other.

Which files should I delete?

Click on any of the files in the group, and you will see a thumbnail image in the preview window. Now just scroll the mouse wheel to move through the list and compare copies with each other.

All information about the file is visible on the program screen. And even if the image is not displayed in the preview window, we can compare files by name, size and type. The first column, called "Path", shows the location of the file.

Deleting identical files

We look at this data and select one file in each group. Now the marked files can be deleted by clicking on the “Delete” or “” button. You can also use the “Delete” key on the keyboard to delete.

If there are too many files to delete, then it is better to use automatic file deletion. In this case, you choose from which folder to delete identical files. how it works? Select one file in the group with the right mouse button and click on the “Auto Select” button

In the window that appears in the top block, the paths to folders in which there are similarities between the files will be displayed. The same folders are listed in the lower block, but are not checked. We need to select one of these folders in which the files should be deleted. Click “Ok”

There's another problem here. Each time you delete one of the copies, a confirmation window appears.
You are tired of confirming. Disable this notification by going to the “Delete” settings and uncheck the “ Ask for confirmation before deleting«

OK it's all over Now. I superficially showed you the principle of operation of the DupKiller program.

If you want to dig into the additional settings " Search settings" And " Other settings«

And in my opinion, she does her job well.

Write in the comments how you like this program and how do you clean up disk space of unnecessary copies?

This is useful to know:

Removing duplicate files sometimes it takes a lot of time and effort, since this requires going through a considerable number of individual files, folders, and sometimes even disks. But with the advent of Duplicate Cleaner Pro, this task has become much easier. The program will not only help you find duplicates with maximum speed and accuracy, but will also efficiently remove them without leaving a trace.

This way of cleaning your computer from duplicates and similar files helps it work faster and better, because the hard drives will not be occupied by unnecessary files. As a result, not only the performance of the system will improve, but also the quality of its work. Duplicate Cleaner Pro helps you not only find files on hard and floppy disk drives, but also track the path, size and date of creation of duplicates.

Download the program to find duplicate files

You can download the program for searching and removing duplicates from the link below, completely free via torrent. Duplicate Cleaner Pro is multilingual, and Russian is also available. It has many search settings, for example by title, by content or by tags in music tracks. After finding a duplicate, Duplicate Cleaner Pro will remove it to the trash or move it to a new location you define. There is also a preview feature for duplicate images.

1. Install the program, do not run it.
2. Copy and replace the contents of the Crack folder to the folder with the installed program.
3. Register the program with any serial number.

Sometimes in everyday computer activities the task arises of finding duplicate files. There can be many reasons for this: lack of space on your hard drive, attempts to reduce entropy in your files, dealing with photos from your camera that were dropped at different times, and many other necessary cases.

You can find a large number of programs on the Internet that allow you to search for duplicate files. But why look for any programs if a smart tool for such work is usually always at hand. And this tool is called Total Commander(TC).

In this article I will show all the methods based on Total Commander versions 8.5 , in this version, the search for duplicate files has become very rich in functionality.

!!!A small important digression. What do you mean by duplicate file? Two files are IDENTICAL only if they are exactly the same bit by bit. Those. Any information in a computer is represented by a sequence of zeros and ones. So, files match only when they completely match the sequence of zeros and ones that make up these files. All talk about how you can compare two files on any other basis is deeply erroneous.

TC has two, essentially different, methods for finding duplicate files:

• Synchronize directories;
• Search for duplicates;

Their features and application are best illustrated with examples.

1.Directory synchronization.

This method is used when your two folders being compared have an identical structure. This usually happens in many cases, here are a few of them:

• Have you regularly archived your work folder? After some time, you need to find out which files have been added or changed since the archive was created. You unpack the entire archive into a separate folder. The folder structure in it practically coincides with the working one. You compare two folders “original” and “restored from archive” and easily get a list of all changed, added or deleted files. A couple of simple manipulations - and you will remove from the recovered folder all the duplicate files that are in the working one.
• You work in a folder on a network drive and regularly make a copy to your local drive. Over time, your working folder has become quite large and the time spent on a complete copy has become very large. In order not to copy the entire folder each time, you can first compare it with the backup one and copy only those files that have been changed or added, and also delete files in the backup folder that were deleted from the main one.

Once you get the hang of it and feel the full power of this method, you yourself will be able to come up with thousands of situations where the directory synchronization method will be of great help to you in your work.

So, how does everything happen in practice? Let's get started.

Let's assume we have a main folder "Working", which contains the files with which you are working. And there is a folder "Archive", which contains an old copy of the folder "Working". Our task is to find duplicate files in both folders and remove them from the folder "Archive".

Open TC. In the right and left panels, open the folders being compared:

Press menu “Commands” - “Synchronize directories...”

The directory comparison window opens

Next we need to set the comparison parameters. Put a tick in the parameters “with subdirectories”, “by content”, “ignore date”

• "with subdirectories"— files in all subdirectories of the specified folders will be compared;
• "by content"- this is the key option that forces TC to compare files BIT by BIT!!! Otherwise, files will be compared by name, size, date;
• "ignore date"— this option forces TC to show differing files, without attempting to automatically determine the direction of future copying;

!!! Only files with the same names will be compared!!! If the files are identical, but they have a different name, then they will not be compared!

Press the button "Compare". Depending on the size of the files, the comparison can take a very long time, do not be alarmed. Eventually the comparison will end and the result will be displayed in the bottom status line (section 1 in the figure):


If the buttons in the “Show” section (section 2 in the figure) are pressed, then you will see the comparison result for each file.

— this button enables the display of files that are in the left panel, but not in the right;

— this button enables the display of identical files;

— this button enables the display of differing files;

— this button enables the display of files that are in the right panel, but not in the left;

If you initially have all display buttons turned off, then the result of the comparison can only be assessed by the status bar (section 1 in the figure above), in this case we see that 11 files were compared, of which 8 files are the same, 2 files are different, and There is also a file in the left panel that is not in the right panel.

To complete our task, it is necessary to leave the display of only identical (identical) files, so we turn off all other display buttons


Now we only have identical files left, and we can safely delete them in the folder "Archive". To do this, select all files. The easiest way to do this is by pressing the universal combination CTRL+A. Or first select the first line with the mouse, then press the key on the keyboard SHIFT and without releasing it, select the last line with the mouse. As a result, you should get something like this:

The final step is to right-click on any line and select the item in the menu that opens "Delete on the left"

TC kindly asks us about our desire,

and if we press "YES" then it deletes all marked files in the folder "Archive".

After this, the two folders are automatically compared again. If you do not need a repeated comparison, the process can be interrupted by clicking on the button "Abort" or press the key ESC on keyboard. If the repeated comparison was not interrupted, and we turned on all the display buttons, then we will see a window like this

All. The task has been completed. All identical files were found and deleted in the folder "Archive".

Educational video on the topic

2.Search for duplicates.

The fundamental difference between this method and the directory synchronization method is that TC ignores the names of the files being compared. In fact, it compares each file with each, and shows us identical files no matter what they are called ! This search is very convenient when you do not know either the folder structure or the names of the files being compared. In any case, after searching for duplicates, you will receive an exact list of identical files.

I will demonstrate finding duplicates using one practical task, finding duplicates of personal photos. Quite often you download photos from your digital gadgets to your computer. Often the situation gets confused, something is reset many times, something is skipped. How to quickly delete files that have been dropped multiple times? Very simple!

Let's get started.

Let's say you always dump all your photos into a folder "PHOTO" on drive D. After all the resets, the folder looks something like this:

As you can see, some files are located in folders named by the date of shooting, some are dropped to the root of the folder "_New" And "_New1"

To start searching for duplicates, open the folder in which we will search in any TC panel. In our case this is the folder "PHOTO"

Next, press the key combination on the keyboard ALT+F7 or select from the menu “Commands” - “Search files”

The standard TC search window opens. String "Search files:" leave it empty, then all files will be compared.

Then go to the bookmark "Additionally" and check the boxes “Search for duplicates:”, “by size”, “by content” and press "To start searching".

The search can take a VERY long time, do not be afraid of this, since there are a huge number of comparisons of a large volume of files. At the same time, the progress percentage is shown in the status bar

When the search ends, a search results window will open, in which we press the button "Files to panel"

In the search window and in the panel window, identical files are collected in sections separated by dotted lines

Each section displays the file name and full path to the file. The names of IDENTICAL files can be completely different!
In this case, it is clear that the same photograph was recorded THREE times, twice under the same name( IMG_4187.JPG) and the third time this photograph was recorded under a completely different name ( IMG_4187_13.JPG).

Next, it remains to select unnecessary identical files and delete them. This can be done manually by selecting each file by pressing a key Ins. But it takes a long time and is not effective. There are better and faster ways.

So our task is to remove duplicate files in folders "_New" And "_New1".
To do this, press on the additional keyboard, the large key on the right [+] . Typically, using this key in TC, files are selected by mask. The same operation can be done through the menu “Selection” - “Select group”