Clean DS_Store

A high-performance Rust CLI tool to recursively clean .DS_Store junk files.

Features

• Safe and Reliable: Only deletes .DS_Store files with strict filename validation to prevent accidental deletion
• Trash Instead of Delete: Moves files to system trash instead of permanently deleting them, allowing recovery
• High Performance: Written in Rust with efficient recursive directory traversal
• Preview Mode: Supports dry-run mode to preview before execution
• Cross-Platform: Supports Windows, macOS, and Linux
• Rich Options: Supports depth control, hidden directory skipping, and more

Installation

Build from Source

# Clone or navigate to the project directory
cd clean_ds_store

# Build the project
cargo build --release

# The executable will be located at:
# target/release/clean-ds-store (Linux/macOS)
# target\release\clean-ds-store.exe (Windows)

Install to System

cargo install --path .

Usage

Basic Usage

# Clean current directory (preview mode)
clean-ds-store --dry-run

# Clean current directory (actual execution)
clean-ds-store

# Clean specific directory
clean-ds-store /path/to/directory

# Verbose output
clean-ds-store --verbose

# Or use short form
clean-ds-store -v

Advanced Options

# Preview mode (only show files that would be removed, without actual deletion)
clean-ds-store --dry-run
clean-ds-store -n

# Limit recursion depth
clean-ds-store --max-depth 3

# Do not recurse into subdirectories (current directory only)
clean-ds-store --no-recursive

# Skip hidden directories
clean-ds-store --skip-hidden

# Combine options
clean-ds-store /path/to/dir --verbose --max-depth 5 --skip-hidden

View Help

clean-ds-store --help

Examples

Example 1: Preview Cleanup

$ clean-ds-store --dry-run
Scan path: /Users/username/projects
Mode: Preview mode (files will not be removed)

[Preview] /Users/username/projects/.DS_Store
[Preview] /Users/username/projects/subfolder/.DS_Store

==================================================
Cleanup Statistics:
  Found .DS_Store files: 2
==================================================

Tip: Remove --dry-run flag to actually execute cleanup

Example 2: Execute Cleanup

$ clean-ds-store --verbose
Scan path: /Users/username/projects
Mode: Execution mode (files will be moved to trash)

[Found] /Users/username/projects/.DS_Store
  ✓ Moved to trash
[Found] /Users/username/projects/subfolder/.DS_Store
  ✓ Moved to trash

==================================================
Cleanup Statistics:
  Found .DS_Store files: 2
  Successfully moved to trash: 2
==================================================

Security

This tool implements multiple safety measures:

1. Strict Filename Validation: Only processes files with exact name match of .DS_Store
2. Double Check: Verifies filename again before moving to trash
3. Type Checking: Ensures only files are processed, not directories
4. Existence Check: Confirms file exists before operation
5. Trash Instead of Delete: Files can be recovered from trash instead of being permanently deleted

Performance

• Uses walkdir crate for efficient directory traversal
• Atomic operation statistics for concurrent safety
• Minimal memory footprint
• Zero-copy path handling

Tech Stack

• Rust - Systems programming language
• clap - Command-line argument parsing
• walkdir - Efficient recursive directory traversal
• trash - Cross-platform trash/recycle bin operations
• anyhow - Error handling
• colored - Colored terminal output

Development

Run Tests

cargo test

Run in Development Mode

cargo run -- --dry-run
cargo run -- --help

Code Checking

cargo clippy
cargo fmt

FAQ

Q: Will files be permanently deleted? A: No. All files are moved to the system trash and can be recovered at any time.

Q: How do I recover accidentally removed files? A: Recover them from the system trash (Windows Recycle Bin, macOS Trash, Linux Trash).

Q: Which platforms are supported? A: Windows, macOS, and Linux are supported.

Q: How is the performance? A: Written in Rust with excellent performance. Can quickly scan thousands of directories in large projects.

Q: Why not delete files directly? A: For safety reasons, moving to trash prevents data loss from accidental operations.

License

MIT License

Contributing

Issues and Pull Requests are welcome!