On operating systems that have been in use for over a year, unnecessary duplicate files inevitably appear. These can be service libraries, videos, music, pictures, etc. To get rid of this garbage, you can use special programs.
Sometimes it is not the user who is to blame for the occurrence of many duplicates, but third-party programs installed on the computer. For example, some applications may install the same dlls or ocx files in different folders. There are many programs available to deal with this problem. Most applications of this kind work according to the same principle. First, the user starts the scanning process, the program looks for files with the same names and the same size and offers to delete them.
Duplicate Finder
Despite the fact that the Duplicate Finder program is very small, it has good functionality. This application is able to match files bit by bit, which allows the most accurate identification of duplicates. After the scanning process is completed, the program offers to either delete unnecessary copies, or move them to a separate folder.
Duplicate Finder can also use the CRC32 algorithm to find duplicates. The application is able to find files with zero size and supports removable storage (including USB devices).
The program has a built-in image viewer in which you can preview duplicate photos before deleting them.
Duplicate Finder is a paid program. Its free version allows you to delete or move to a separate folder no more than 50 files, the size of each of which cannot exceed 2 megabytes. A license for the full version of Duplicate Finder costs a little over 1,500 rubles.
Auslogics Duplicate File Finder
Unlike Duplicate Finder, Auslogics Duplicate File Finder is free. It is also able to find redundant copies of music files, movies, pictures, etc. The program searches for duplicates by comparing MD5 hashes. The application interface is intuitive - after starting the program, the user is prompted to select the type of files to scan (archives, programs, photos, etc.), and after scanning, all that remains is to delete unnecessary copies. The only drawback of the program is that it displays intrusive ads from time to time.
CloneSpy and DupKiller
Of the free programs that can find and remove duplicate files, the most popular are CloneSpy and DupKiller. They, like other applications of this kind, can compare files with each other by name, creation date or checksum. DupKiller uses special algorithms to find duplicates that significantly speed up the scanning process.
