Overview

DuoBolt is a fast, modern tool for finding and cleaning duplicate files across your system. It comes in two forms:

• DuoBolt Desktop — a clean, visual interface for macOS & Windows
• DuoBolt CLI — a high-performance command-line version for automation, servers, and power users on macOS/Windows/Linux

Choose the docs that match your workflow:

Desktop Guide Start here if you use the visual UI for macOS & Windows

DuoBolt CLI For automation, servers, and power users on macOS/Windows/Linux

Both versions share the same philosophy: precision, speed, and clarity.

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Why DuoBolt?

Speed Focused

DuoBolt uses BLAKE3 and multi-threaded scanning for extremely fast hashing, even on large datasets.

Accurate by Design

Two-stage hashing, smart filtering, and size-based partitioning guarantee correct duplicate detection.

Desktop & CLI

Use the Desktop app for visual control, or automate workflows with the CLI.

Workload Friendly

Designed for both personal cleanups and professional environments with large file sets.

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DuoBolt Desktop (macOS & Windows)

DuoBolt Desktop provides a clear, guided UI where you can:

• Select folders or entire drives
• View duplicate groups visually
• Inspect file details before deleting
• Automatically keep newest/oldest/largest/smallest in each group
• Securely trash duplicates using the system Trash/Recycle Bin
• Export reports to CSV, JSON or text

Key Features

• Smart Filtering — exclude system files, temporary data, extensions, bundles, etc.
• Real-Time Preview — see duplicate groups before performing any action
• Safe Deletion — never removes files permanently by default (except on network volumes, where OS limitations apply)
• Cross-platform — works identically on macOS & Windows
• Fast Indexing — multi-core scanning and hashing

If you prefer to see what’s happening, DuoBolt Desktop is the ideal entry point.

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DuoBolt CLI

For automation, scripting, servers, pipelines, or engineering workflows. The CLI is extremely fast, lightweight, and script-friendly.

Basic Command

Basic usage

duobolt-cli <directory> [options]

Popular Options

• --min-size=SIZE — Skip tiny files
• --no-prehash — Disable head+tail prehash (enabled by default)
• --threads=N — Hashing worker threads
• --exclude-dir-ext=app,bundle
• --output=json|csv|txt

Example

Scanning a directory with JSON output

duobolt-cli ~/Projects --ignore-system-files --output=json > dupes.json

Exit Codes

• 0 — No duplicates
• 2 — Duplicates found
• 130 — User cancelled
• Other — Error

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Under the Hood

DuoBolt uses a multi-phase detection pipeline:

1. File discovery

   Scans directories with optional filtering rules.

2. Size & extension grouping

   Avoids hashing files that cannot possibly match.

3. Head+tail prehash (default)

   Fast prefilter; use --no-prehash to skip it.

4. Full hash (BLAKE3)

   Cryptographically strong yet extremely fast.

5. Duplicate grouping

   Identifies perfect matches across folders and drives.

6. Safe cleanup

   Duplicates are moved to system Trash/Recycle Bin by default.

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When to Use Desktop vs CLI

Use Case	Best Version	Reason
Personal cleanup	Desktop	Easier preview & deletion
Large codebases	CLI	Automatable & script-friendly
Servers	CLI	Lightweight, no UI
Photo/video libraries	Desktop	Visual grouping helps
CI/CD or pipelines	CLI	Exit codes & JSON output

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Documentation Sections

Installation Get DuoBolt Desktop or CLI installed on your system

Desktop Guide Complete guide for the visual UI on macOS & Windows

CLI Usage Command-line reference for automation and scripting

Core Concepts How DuoBolt works internally

KB vs KiB — File Size Units Why DuoBolt uses KiB, MiB, and GiB instead of KB, MB, GB

FAQ Common questions about Desktop vs CLI

Changelog Release notes and version history