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Asked: 2024-09-25T06:24:22+05:30 In:

How can I remove all files with a specific file extension from a directory and its subdirectories in Ubuntu?

I’ve been trying to clean up some folders on my Ubuntu system and I’m running into a bit of a roadblock. I’ve got this directory overflowing with files, and I’m especially struggling with all the random `.log` files that seem to pop up everywhere. Seriously, you wouldn’t believe how many of them I have scattered around!

So here’s the thing: I want to get rid of all those pesky `.log` files—not just in the main directory but also in all the subdirectories. I could go through each folder one by one and delete them manually, but I’d probably just end up losing my mind in the process. Plus, I know there’s got to be a faster way to do this.

I heard that there’s some command-line magic I can wield in Ubuntu to make this happen. Honestly, I’m a bit of a newbie when it comes to the terminal. I’ve dabbled with some simple commands, but something like this sounds a bit intimidating! I think I might mess it up and accidentally delete something I actually need, which is definitely not the goal here.

Has anyone else faced this dilemma? How did you go about cleaning up your directories without risking important files? I’m looking for a solution that’s relatively straightforward, maybe even a command that I can just copy and paste, but of course, I want to understand what I’m doing a little bit. Should I be worried about running these kinds of commands?

Also, if you have tips on making backups or ensuring nothing critical gets deleted, I’d love to hear them! I mean, it would be an absolute disaster to wipe out something essential by accident. Any suggestions for someone who’s trying to keep their system tidy without getting into a mess? I just want to streamline things and get rid of unwanted clutter, you know? Appreciate any wisdom you’ve got to share!

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    2 Answers

    1. Deleting all those pesky .log files can definitely be a pain, but there’s a neat command you can use in the terminal to make it easier! The command you’re looking for is find, which helps you locate and delete files in any directory, including all the subdirectories.

      Here’s a command that you can copy and paste into your terminal:

      find /path/to/your/directory -type f -name "*.log" -exec rm -f {} +

      Just replace /path/to/your/directory with the actual path to the folder you want to clean up. This command does the following:

      • find starts the search from the specified directory.
      • -type f ensures you’re only looking for files.
      • -name "*.log" tells it to find files that end with .log.
      • -exec rm -f {} + removes each found file.

      As for the worries about deleting essential files, it’s always a good idea to be cautious. Before running any delete command, you might want to check which files will be deleted first. You can do that by running:

      find /path/to/your/directory -type f -name "*.log"

      This will list all the .log files it finds without deleting anything. Once you’re sure it’s only going to delete the files you want, then you can use the previous command.

      And backups! Always a smart move! You could create a backup of your directory before deleting anything. Just copy your folder to a safe place, like this:

      cp -r /path/to/your/directory /path/to/backup/location

      Replacing /path/to/backup/location with where you want to store the backup. That way, if anything goes wrong or if you delete something important by accident, you can restore it!

      Good luck cleaning up your folders! Just remember to be careful with the commands you run. Happy tidying!

    2. To delete all `.log` files from your current directory and all of its subdirectories on your Ubuntu system, you can use the `find` command along with `rm`. This command is powerful and allows you to locate and remove files based on specific criteria. Open your terminal and navigate to the directory where you want to start the cleanup. The command you want to use is the following:

      find . -type f -name "*.log" -exec rm -f {} +

      This command works as follows: find . starts searching in the current directory (denoted by .), -type f restricts the search to files only, and -name "*.log" looks specifically for files ending with .log. The -exec rm -f {} part tells the system to execute the remove command (rm) on each file found ({}). The plus sign at the end efficiently batches the removal process, reducing the number of times rm is called. However, exercise caution when using this command, as it will permanently delete the files. You may want to create a backup of important directories before proceeding, which can be done by copying the directories to another location or using tools like tar to create an archive.

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