Installation
Get RCompare up and running on your system
Linux Installation
Flatpak (Recommended)
Available on Flathub for easy installation and updates.
flatpak install flathub com.github.aecs4u.rcompare
Snap
Install from the Snap Store.
sudo snap install rcompare
Arch Linux (AUR)
Available in the Arch User Repository.
# Using yay
yay -S rcompare
# Using paru
paru -S rcompare
Debian/Ubuntu (.deb)
Download the .deb package from the releases page.
wget https://github.com/aecs4u/rcompare/releases/latest/download/rcompare_amd64.deb
sudo dpkg -i rcompare_amd64.deb
Fedora/RHEL (.rpm)
Download the .rpm package from the releases page.
wget https://github.com/aecs4u/rcompare/releases/latest/download/rcompare.x86_64.rpm
sudo rpm -i rcompare.x86_64.rpm
AppImage
Portable application that runs on most Linux distributions.
wget https://github.com/aecs4u/rcompare/releases/latest/download/rcompare.AppImage
chmod +x rcompare.AppImage
./rcompare.AppImage
Windows Installation
Installer (Recommended)
Download and run the Windows installer.
# Download from GitHub releases
https://github.com/aecs4u/rcompare/releases/latest/download/rcompare-setup.exe
Winget
Install using Windows Package Manager.
winget install aecs4u.rcompare
Chocolatey
Install using Chocolatey package manager.
choco install rcompare
Scoop
Install using Scoop package manager.
scoop bucket add extras
scoop install rcompare
Portable
Download the portable ZIP and extract anywhere.
# Download portable version
https://github.com/aecs4u/rcompare/releases/latest/download/rcompare-windows-portable.zip
macOS Installation
Homebrew (Recommended)
Install using Homebrew package manager.
brew install rcompare
DMG Installer
Download and mount the DMG file.
# Download from GitHub releases
https://github.com/aecs4u/rcompare/releases/latest/download/rcompare.dmg
After downloading, open the DMG and drag RCompare to your Applications folder.
MacPorts
Install using MacPorts.
sudo port install rcompare
Build from Source
Build RCompare from source code using Cargo.
Prerequisites
- Rust 1.70+ (install from rustup.rs)
- Git
Clone and Build
# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/aecs4u/rcompare.git
cd rcompare
# Build release version
cargo build --release
# Install CLI
cargo install --path rcompare_cli
# Install GUI
cargo install --path rcompare_gui
Install from crates.io
# Install CLI only
cargo install rcompare_cli
# Install GUI
cargo install rcompare_gui
CLI Usage
Quick reference for command-line usage
Basic Comparison
rcompare_cli scan /path/to/left /path/to/right
Common Options
| Option | Short | Description |
|---|---|---|
--ignore <pattern> |
-i |
Glob pattern to exclude (repeatable) |
--follow-symlinks |
-L |
Follow symbolic links during scan |
--verify-hashes |
-v |
Enable hash verification for same-sized files |
--diff-only |
-d |
Show only differences (hide identical files) |
--json |
Output results in JSON format | |
--no-color |
Disable ANSI colors in output | |
--cache-dir <path> |
-c |
Custom cache directory path |
Examples
# Compare with ignore patterns
rcompare_cli scan /project /backup -i "*.o" -i "target/" -i "node_modules/"
# Show only differences with hash verification
rcompare_cli scan /source /dest --diff-only --verify-hashes
# Compare archives
rcompare_cli scan backup-v1.zip backup-v2.zip
# JSON output for scripting
rcompare_cli scan /left /right --json > results.json
Configuration
Environment Variables
| Variable | Description |
|---|---|
RCOMPARE_CACHE_DIR |
Custom directory for hash cache storage |
RUST_LOG |
Set to "debug" for verbose logging |
Default Cache Locations
| Platform | Location |
|---|---|
| Linux | ~/.cache/rcompare/ |
| Windows | %LOCALAPPDATA%\rcompare\cache\ |
| macOS | ~/Library/Caches/rcompare/ |
Need Help?
Check out the FAQ or open an issue on GitHub if you encounter any problems.