Remove Unnecessary Large Files
Introduction
In this article, we will discuss the importance of removing unnecessary large files from a repository. Large files can significantly affect the checkout speed of a repository, making it difficult to work with. We will explore the steps to identify and remove these large files using Git.
Identifying Large Files
To identify large files in a repository, we can use the following command:
git rev-list --objects --all | git cat-file --batch-check='%(objecttype) %(objectname) %(objectsize) %(rest)' | grep '^blob' | sort -k 3 -n -r | head -n 50
This command will list the 50 largest files in the repository, along with their commit hashes and sizes.
Analyzing the Output
Let's analyze the output of the command:
blob e0f7627d5016d5c5869b213d9ff2cc67ff07f0ba 103637632 cmd/cdk-erigon/__debug_bin803489507
blob 8a847c414267e69981bebe187b3a3ddf9d01e428 85864248 build/bin/cdk-erigon
blob 24ac370d7867ff94ad00b393c8e8b34af22f6d8d 85864240 build/bin/cdk-erigon
blob 4bac85c391948fcaf7897800fbb595bd87071e75 85491426 build/bin/erigon
blob e2567e22eef7cab4fb18faec6ab3c434db3a1017 83494466 build/bin/cdk-erigon
blob 2b0928195c49a98f1b74e9bc78ee6e346bec6a8d 82786210 build/bin/erigon-el
blob 25f02f958a582a624bb0fb774c434b7ca52b1495 82636930 build/bin/erigon-cl
blob 151ddb11d37a66069793901607112bfd45adbb09 82482530 build/bin/devnet
blob 538b51f18a35daddc2fd989ddd4f3d5ae74b296a 82159410 build/bin/sentinel
blob 8ff6b195d90ff4ca18b615951e917f907cdc79eb 82142978 build/bin/lightclient
blob ce395c67b86c1d2fe9043595f464a31e669c5aaa 68410130 build/bin/sentry
blob 45fa47cbe09d3b7d9269cdf2b4174dd200446945 63231491 tests/files/VMTests/vmInputLimits.json
blob c35298fef94ccae68b1a0a8ef9e4ebe2e49943c7 63179530 tests/files/VMTests/vmInputLimitsTest1.json
blob 709f61faac84fd0db028d4518237ef41c7bf5f08 59693570 build/bin/devnettest
blob db65f0d1e9489a857ae87206cd60196b746dbb51 59497466 libz3.a
blob 566f49d709c717926b13865bedb2670538f091d0 55730274 build/bin/rpcdaemon
blob ccce32f0461e0ed60ddb0cb07afa2ed7bf702feb 50997619 tests/files/VMTests/vmInputLimits2.json
blob 2eb3d96b6af78c424415971c2aa98c50dc1455d8 50861892 tests/files/VMTests/vmInputLimitsTest2.json
blob eb709311a9cc4ed3254cd0284e2b2f3e870cdfb9 50611858 build/bin/integration
blob 49c1fca230380aee33ff1ac25810e721e4a0bcf8 49682930 build/bin/observer
blob 47633fa1ad27dfa6ba774f72c53ae04b671582fc 49574162 build/bin/rpcdaemon22
blob 2c0e5851ab87c5af0fc4586df141646500d3e23d 49200658 build/bin/pics
blob da2b3930b71e0df3593708e3805c13f2b57c7015 48141218 build/bin/state
blob 6adaf04c9a4a49772af8f87517f992912abf7642 47516248 tests/testdata/BlockchainTests/GeneralStateTests/stStackTests/underflowTest.json
blob b22e4ec22ffecda9fa0d8f0549a7f81655f592db 46632437 cmd/ef-tests-cl/erigon/erigon/capella/sanity/blocks/pyspec_tests/elee_bug_1/post.ssz_snappy
blob ca777bc2d2a6b4c7442f8408f76269ab1e1969be 46559127 cmd/ef-tests-cl/erigon/erigon/capella/sanity/blocks/pyspec_tests/elee_bug_1/pre.ssz_snappy
blob 5373358d2c0c391c1c8895c4e769c6db6cd5a42d 46189172 tests/testdata/BlockchainTests/GeneralStateTests/stEIP1559/intrinsic.json
blob 442eb562d428cb77ed5215ae1f99b4e2fc30392d 45021522 build/bin/txpool
blob 4a67049bc765cf6165902acbe937403281818ade 44272338 build/bin/evm
blob 3a597f07eca6e2f590adfaf2a3a7fa54db4dcce0 44059378 build/bin/downloader
blob b90f776d5c857a2e181e0ba55abc6387826bc11b 42994002 zkevm-roots-devnet.json
blob 7a45ea0b41bbabbe9ad241df381b776e07500f5a 41943873 tests/files/TransactionTests/Homestead/tt10mbDataField.json
blob 6f4caf18e7987c203814ae9d35f4ead6186e582a 41943873 tests/files/TransactionTests/Homestead/tt10mbDataField.json
blob 8d4645dc0ff82175a2fa64d29da8ede6683c0fd7 41943867 tests/files/TransactionTests/tt10mbDataField.json
blob 63aba2be501405bd59d96e29f34e6931a3cdad5e 41943867 tests/files/TransactionTests/tt10mbDataField.json
blob 827e73eb26811523d4bc9c688c7310d311003125 41943838 tests/files/TransactionTests/tt10mbDataField.json
blob 5cc12d8eae01e80b7f0db5848c7239d08050c14d 41943838 tests/files/TransactionTests/tt10mbDataField.json
blob cf000cd6f0f181d6fcbbeefbc863010477e3a43c 41943806 tests/files/TransactionTests/tt10mbDataField.json
blob 963c7bb765186432a87a8af51a46059a256d9869 41678194 build/bin/hack
blob ab3e4f601e1fec7f6462a9c637ef6bfa17c36317 40540754 build/bin/cons
blob 26952e479d1b16672bdba03e9ad458e2b0ae18d6 38579040 cmd/swarm/swarm
blob 7a302cdd305c8259f79e471c5e534e11c0c65f95 31995816 tests/execution-spec-tests/prague/eip2935_historical_block_hashes_from_state/block_hashes/block_hashes_history.json
blob 5e3624adc8ca29da88f6ee3ab29ef665b731bdf4 31995814 tests/execution-spec-tests/prague/eip2935_historical_block_hashes_from_state/block_hashes/block_hashes_history.json
blob 1004c214baf813f1f8d148dc5d5d9b5a032cd0fc 31425835 tests/testdata/LegacyTests/Constantinople/BlockchainTests/ValidBlocks/bcExploitTest/SuicideIssue.json
blob d0199087fe57bff60e7b68784dd2b28fd31dd7de 30991001 tests/testdata/BlockchainTests/GeneralStateTests/stTimeConsuming/sstore_combinations_initial01_2.json
blob d5263de265e0fe0b30a4fdf7cdc3fdb8646abe9c 30959784 cmd/state/state
blob d6319df37f4b9b270ceba8f0ffa546ca33f95bab 30931561<br/>
# **Remove Unnecessary Large Files: A Q&A Guide**
## **Q: What are unnecessary large files?**
A: Unnecessary large files are files that are not required for the project or are duplicates of other files. These files can take up a significant amount of space on the repository and slow down the checkout process.
## **Q: Why are unnecessary large files a problem?**
A: Unnecessary large files can cause several problems, including:
* **Slow checkout process**: Large files can take a long time to download, making it difficult to work with the repository.
* **Increased storage costs**: Large files can take up a significant amount of space on the repository, increasing storage costs.
* **Difficulty in collaboration**: Large files can make it difficult for team members to collaborate on the project, as they may need to download and upload large files.
## **Q: How do I identify unnecessary large files?**
A: You can use the following command to identify large files in the repository:
```bash
git rev-list --objects --all | git cat-file --batch-check='%(objecttype) %(objectname) %(objectsize) %(rest)' | grep '^blob' | sort -k 3 -n -r | head -n 50
This command will list the 50 largest files in the repository, along with their commit hashes and sizes.
Q: What if I want to identify all large files, not just the 50 largest?
A: You can modify the command to remove the head -n 50 part, which will list all large files in the repository:
git rev-list --objects --all | git cat-file --batch-check='%(objecttype) %(objectname) %(objectsize) %(rest)' | grep '^blob' | sort -k 3 -n -r
Q: How do I get the commit hash of a file?
A: You can use the following command to get the commit hash of a file:
git rev-list --all --objects | grep {blobhash}
Replace {blobhash} with the hash of the file you want to get the commit hash for.
Q: How do I get the branch that a commit is on?
A: You can use the following command to get the branch that a commit is on:
git branch -r --contains {commithash}
Replace {commithash} with the hash of the commit you want to get the branch for.
Q: How do I remove unnecessary large files?
A: Once you have identified the unnecessary large files, you can remove them using the following command:
git filter-branch --tree-filter 'rm -f {file}' -- --all
Replace {file} with the path to the file you want to remove.
Q: What if I want to remove multiple files at once?
A: You can modify the command to remove multiple files at once by listing the files you want to remove:
git filter-branch --tree-filter 'rm -f {file1} {file2} {file3}' -- --all
Replace {file1}, {file2}, and {file3} with the paths to the files you want to remove.
Q: How do I push the changes to the remote repository?
A: Once you have removed the unnecessary large files, you can push the changes to the remote repository using the following command:
git push origin {branch}
Replace {branch} with the name of the branch you want to push the changes to.
Q: What if I want to remove the files from the remote repository as well?
A: You can use the following command to remove the files from the remote repository:
git push origin :{branch}
Replace {branch} with the name of the branch you want to remove the files from.
Q: How do I verify that the files have been removed?
A: You can use the following command to verify that the files have been removed:
git ls-files -- {file}
Replace {file} with the path to the file you want to verify has been removed. If the file has been removed, the command will return nothing.