DupKiller 0.8.2

Overview

It is not rare to have in your disk copies of files that you don’t even know they exist. DupKiller will scan your hard drive and let you know of how many and which duplicates are located in any storage devices. It is quick if you want it to be, or thorough for more and better results.  It uses advanced algorithms to compare files; you can adjust the search criteria to compare files just by name, file size, last date modified and other properties.

Installation

The setup process is a piece of cake. If you have ever managed to install any software before then you don’t have to worry about anything. Follow the instructions and after a few steps the installation will finish. The program is clean from any spyware and malware, and it doesn’t include any additional software either.

It can run smoothly under any Windows OS.

Interface

The first thing that you will see when you run the program is the Tips and Tricks window, which contains helpful tips for using the program. The main window has a pane on the left side where you can choose what you want to do with the program. The options are: Scan Drives, Files and Folders, Exclusions, Search Settings, Other Options, Removal, Statistics and List. Depending on the category that is selected, the main area at the center changes accordingly and the corresponding features appear. The Scan and Exit buttons are always located at the bottom.

Pros

There is no limit to the folders or files you want to include/exclude in your search. You can scan a whole drive, CD/DVDs, USB flash disks and even run a scan over a network. After making the desired settings before starting the search you can save them and use them again at a later time. The same goes for search results, after the scan has finished.

Preview of pictures and text files is supported, so that you don’t have to open each file with an external viewer. It can save you time and trouble.

You can find statistics of duplicate files and the amount of space they consume in a convenient list that is automatically created after the search.

The following search options are supported: Match by file content, match by file name, detect similar names, match by file size, match by file type, match by file date and time and skip zero-length files. In addition, you can set the bounds for file sizes and let the scanner only search for the files between them. Last but not least, you can set a percentage that indicates how similar the matching files should be.

The hidden files and folders can be easily included or excluded from searches.

Cons

The interface has just a few graphical glitches and could use some enhancement in that area. It is currently not very attractive.

Alternatives

Duplicate Cleaner (paid) is a worthy software that can clean your computer from unwanted copies of files. Whilst it has a free version too, the Pro version is significantly more powerful. If you want a free but fully-featured alternative to DupKiller, try CloneSpy. It has many useful features, and it can find duplicate files searching by contents and other criteria.

Conclusion

DupKiller is a great program, but it has nothing really special that makes it exceptional. However, it is more than enough in most cases and can keep you satisfied even in more difficult situations.