README.org

November 4, 2020 · View on GitHub

=rip= is a command-line deletion tool focused on safety, ergonomics, and performance. It favors a simple interface, and does /not/ implement the xdg-trash spec or attempt to achieve the same goals.

Deleted files get sent to the graveyard (=/tmp/graveyard-$USER= by default, see [[https://github.com/nivekuil/rip#-notes][notes]] on changing this) under their absolute path, giving you a chance to recover them. No data is overwritten. If files that share the same path are deleted, they will be renamed as numbered backups.

=rip= is made for lazy people. If any part of the interface could be more intuitive, please open an issue or pull request.

** ⚰ Installation Or get a binary [[https://github.com/nivekuil/rip/releases][release]] (Linux x86_64, ARMv7 and macOS), untar it, and move it somewhere on your PATH: #+BEGIN_EXAMPLE tar xvzf rip-*.tar.gz $ mv rip /usr/local/bin #+END_EXAMPLE

or build it: #+BEGIN_EXAMPLE $ cargo install rm-improved #+END_EXAMPLE

Arch Linux users can install it from the [[https://aur.archlinux.org/packages/rm-improved/][AUR]] (thanks @Charon77!) #+BEGIN_EXAMPLE $ yay -S rm-improved #+END_EXAMPLE

macOS users can install it with Homebrew:

#+BEGIN_EXAMPLE $ brew install rm-improved #+END_EXAMPLE

** ⚰ Usage #+BEGIN_EXAMPLE USAGE: rip [FLAGS] [OPTIONS] [TARGET]...

FLAGS: -d, --decompose Permanently deletes (unlink) the entire graveyard -h, --help Prints help information -i, --inspect Prints some info about TARGET before prompting for action -s, --seance Prints files that were sent under the current directory -V, --version Prints version information

OPTIONS: --graveyard Directory where deleted files go to rest -u, --unbury Undo the last removal by the current user, or specify some file(s) in the graveyard. Combine with -s to restore everything printed by -s.

ARGS: ... File or directory to remove #+END_EXAMPLE Basic usage -- easier than rm #+BEGIN_EXAMPLE rip dir1/ file1 #+END_EXAMPLE Undo the last deletion #+BEGIN_EXAMPLE rip -u Returned /tmp/graveyard-jack/home/jack/file1 to /home/jack/file1 #+END_EXAMPLE Print some info (size and first few lines in a file, total size and first few files in a directory) about the target and then prompt for deletion #+BEGIN_EXAMPLE $ rip -i file1 dir1: file, 1337 bytes including:

Position: Shooting Guard and Small Forward ▪ Shoots: Right 6-6, 185lb (198cm, 83kg) Send file1 to the graveyard? (y/n) y #+END_EXAMPLE Print files that were deleted from under the current directory #+BEGIN_EXAMPLE rip -s /tmp/graveyard-jack/home/jack/file1 /tmp/graveyard-jack/home/jack/dir1 #+END_EXAMPLE Name conflicts are resolved #+BEGIN_EXAMPLE touch file1 ripfile1rip file1 rip -s /tmp/graveyard-jack/home/jack/dir1 /tmp/graveyard-jack/home/jack/file1 /tmp/graveyard-jack/home/jack/file11 #+END_EXAMPLE -u also takes the path of a file in the graveyard #+BEGIN_EXAMPLE rip -u /tmp/graveyard-jack/home/jack/file1 Returned /tmp/graveyard-jack/home/jack/file1 to /home/jack/file1 #+END_EXAMPLE Combine -u and -s to restore everything printed by -s #+BEGIN_EXAMPLE rip -su Returned /tmp/graveyard-jack/home/jack/dir1 to /home/jack/dir1 Returned /tmp/graveyard-jack/home/jack/file11 to /home/jack/file1~1 #+END_EXAMPLE *** Emacs #+begin_src emacs-lisp (setq delete-by-moving-to-trash t) (defun system-move-file-to-trash (filename) (shell-command (concat (executable-find "rip") " " filename))) #+end_src

** ⚰ Notes

  • You probably shouldn't alias =rm= to =rip=. Unlearning muscle memory is hard, but it's harder to ensure that every =rm= you make (as different users, from different machines and application environments) is the aliased one.
  • If you have =XDGDATAHOME=environmentvariableset,=rip=willuse=XDG_DATA_HOME= environment variable set, =rip= will use =XDG_DATA_HOME/graveyard= instead of the =/tmp/graveyard-$USER=.
  • If you want to put the graveyard somewhere else (like =~/.local/share/Trash=), you have two options, in order of precedence:
    1. Alias =rip= to =rip --graveyard ~/.local/share/Trash=
    2. Set the environment variable =$GRAVEYARD= to =~/.local/share/Trash=. This can be a good idea because if the graveyard is mounted on an in-memory filesystem (as /tmp is in Arch Linux), deleting large files can quickly fill up your RAM. It's also much slower to move files across filesystems, although the delay should be minimal with an SSD.
  • In general, a deletion followed by a =--unbury= should be idempotent.
  • The deletion log is kept in =.record=, found in the top level of the graveyard.