Automate File Inventory with BarrySoft DirLister (Step‑by‑Step)

BarrySoft DirLister: Best Settings for Large Directory ExportsExporting large directories with thousands of files and nested folders can be slow, produce incomplete output, or create files that are hard to analyze. BarrySoft DirLister is a lightweight Windows utility designed to list folder contents and export them in human- and machine-readable formats. This article explains how to configure DirLister for reliable, fast exports of large directory trees, how to avoid common pitfalls, and how to prepare output for downstream processing.

What makes large directory exports challenging

• File counts measured in tens or hundreds of thousands stress memory and I/O.
• Deeply nested folder structures increase recursion overhead.
• Long file paths can hit legacy path-length limits on older Windows APIs.
• File permissions, locked files, or special files (junctions, symlinks) may cause errors or endless loops.
• Output format and encoding choices affect compatibility with other tools.

Recommended general workflow

1. Plan the export scope: decide which root folders, file types, and depth to include.
2. Test with a representative subset (a single large folder) to estimate time and output size.
3. Adjust DirLister settings for performance and reliability.
4. Run the full export, monitor progress, and verify results.
5. Post-process the exported file if needed (filtering, importing to spreadsheets or databases).

Best DirLister settings for large exports

Below are the DirLister options you should pay attention to, and recommended settings for handling very large directory trees.

• Output format — CSV

  • Why: CSV is compact, widely supported, and easy to stream to disk line by line. Use CSV when you plan to import into Excel, a database, or scripts.
  • Tip: If you need human-friendly output for quick reading, choose plain text with indentation, but be aware it’s larger and harder to parse programmatically.

• Character encoding — UTF-8 without BOM

  • Why: Ensures correct handling of Unicode file names and is broadly compatible with modern tools. Avoid UTF-16 unless your downstream tools specifically require it.

• Include columns — Full path, file name, size, modified date, attributes

  • Why: These fields cover most inventory and audit needs. Add hashes only when you need content verification (see performance note below).

• Recursion depth — Unrestricted (default) or set an explicit depth

  • Why: Leave recursion unrestricted when you want entire trees; set a max depth to limit scope and speed up runs if deep nesting is irrelevant.

• Follow junctions/symlinks — Disabled

  • Why: Prevents circular traversal and accidental duplication of entries. If you must include targets of links, do it deliberately for known locations.

• Hidden/system files — Include (optional)

  • Why: For full inventories include hidden/system files. If you only care about user files, exclude them to reduce output size.

• Date format — ISO 8601 (YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS)

  • Why: Unambiguous and sortable across tools and locales.

• File size units — Bytes

  • Why: Using bytes avoids rounding issues and makes size-based calculations exact.

• Hashing (MD5/SHA1) — Disabled for routine exports; enable only when necessary

  • Why: Hash computation is CPU- and I/O-intensive and will slow exports significantly for large filesets. If you need integrity checks, run hashing as a targeted follow-up on changed or suspicious files.

• Output buffering — Default (stream to disk)

  • Why: Ensure DirLister writes progressively to disk rather than storing entire results in memory. This avoids memory exhaustion. If DirLister offers an explicit “write as you go” or “flush frequently” option, enable it.

• Multi-threading — Use only if DirLister supports safe parallel traversal

  • Why: Parallel scanning can speed up exports on multi-core systems and fast storage, but ensure the tool’s implementation avoids race conditions, especially when following links or writing a single output file.

Performance tips for Windows environments

• Use an SSD or fast external drive for both source and destination where possible—seek-heavy directory traversal benefits from low latency.
• Run exports during off-peak hours to reduce interference from other I/O-heavy processes and anti-virus scanning.
• Temporarily disable or configure real-time antivirus exceptions for trusted large exports to avoid per-file scanning slowdowns (follow your organization’s security policy).
• If the dataset spans network shares, prefer scanning from a machine close to the storage (lower latency) and ensure network caching and throughput are adequate.
• Increase DirLister’s process priority only if necessary and you understand consequences for other applications.

Handling long paths and permissions

• Long path support: On modern Windows ⁄₁₁ with apps that use the Win32 long path APIs and with the appropriate system setting enabled, paths longer than 260 characters are supported. If you encounter truncated paths or errors, enable long path support system-wide or use methods that support the extended-length path prefix (\?).
• Permission errors: Run DirLister with an account that has sufficient read permissions for the directories you intend to list. For whole-system inventories, an administrative account is typically required. Log and review errors for skipped folders and files.

Avoiding infinite loops and duplicates

• Disable “follow junctions/symlinks” unless you have a specific need.
• If following links, DirLister should detect already-visited targets by tracking file system object IDs—enable this detection if available.
• Exclude known mount points or network paths that could cause cross-mounted duplication.

Post-export validation and processing

• Validate row counts against expected file counts (e.g., compare with PowerShell Get-ChildItem counts).
• Check for non-UTF characters or encoding issues by opening the CSV in a plain-text editor that shows encoding.
• For large CSVs destined for Excel, be aware of Excel row limits (older versions: 1,048,576 rows). Consider importing into a database (SQLite, PostgreSQL) or using tools like Power BI, pandas, or command-line utilities (awk, csvkit) for analysis.
• If you need deduplication or hash-based verification, run hashing on a filtered subset (e.g., files with same size and modified date) to reduce workload.

Example command patterns and usage scenarios

• Quick full-tree export (CSV, UTF-8): use DirLister’s GUI options to select root folder, choose CSV, UTF-8, include desired columns, disable symlink following, and start. For command-line automations, use DirLister’s CLI (if present) with flags to mirror these choices.
• Scheduled nightly inventory: create a script that runs DirLister with output filenames including date/time, rotate or archive older exports, and import deltas into a database for change tracking.
• Targeted verification: export only file metadata (path, size, mtime) daily and compute hashes weekly for files flagged as changed.

Troubleshooting common issues

• Missing files in output: check permissions, excluded attributes (hidden/system), and any path filters.
• Very slow exports: test disabling hashing, include fewer columns, scan a smaller depth, or run on a faster disk. Also check antivirus interference.
• Crashes or memory errors: ensure DirLister is writing incrementally to disk, check for exceedingly long single-line outputs, and consider splitting the export into per-folder jobs.

When to consider alternatives or complementary tools

DirLister is excellent for straightforward, quick directory listings. For extremely large-scale or enterprise-grade inventory tasks, consider complementary approaches:

• PowerShell scripts with Get-ChildItem piped to Export-Csv for tight integration into Windows automation.
• Robocopy with logging options for robust copy-and-list operations.
• Dedicated file inventory software that supports databases, incremental scanning, and distributed scanning.

Comparison (quick):

Final checklist before a large export

• [ ] Decide output format (CSV, UTF-8) and columns.
• [ ] Disable symlink following unless required.
• [ ] Disable hashing for baseline runs.
• [ ] Ensure destination drive has sufficient space.
• [ ] Test with a representative subset.
• [ ] Schedule during low activity and consider antivirus exceptions.
• [ ] Verify results and import into chosen analysis tool.

Using these settings and precautions will make BarrySoft DirLister exports of large directories faster, more reliable, and easier to analyze downstream.