How to compare two folders in Win 7 prof 64bit

I created a batch file from the previous reply that should prove helpful to some:

1. compare.bat contents:

dir %1 /b >a.txt

dir %2 /b >b.txt

fc a.txt b.txt >dirdiff.txt

notepad dirdiff.txt

del a.txt

del b.txt

2. To use, put in something like:

compare "c:\temp\.*" "d:\temp\.*"

Hey dude-

Here's the right way to do it, without the external downloads.  It looks like a lot at first, but once you've done it, it's very easy.  It works in all Windows versions from 7 back to 95.  For our example assume that you're comparing two directories named 'A' and 'B'.

1. run cmd.exe to get a command prompt.  (In Windows 7, the powershell won't work for this, FYI.)  Then do it again, so that you have two of them open next to each other.
2. in each window go to the directories that you want to compare.  (Using 'cd' commands.  If you're not comfortable with this, then you should probably go with the external utilities, unless you want to learn command prompt stuff.)
3. type 'dir /b > A.txt' into one window and 'dir /b > B.txt' into the other.  You'll now have two text files that list the contents of each directory.  The /b flag means bare, which strips the directory listing down to file names only.
4. move B.txt into the same folder as A.txt.
5. type 'fc A.txt B.txt'.  The command 'fc' means file compare.  This will spit out a list of the differences between the two files, with an extra line of text above and below each difference, so you know where they are.  For more options on how the output is formatted, type 'fc /?' at the prompt.  You can also pipe the differences into another file by using something like 'fc A.txt B.txt > differences.txt'.

Have fun.

This is an old post but still works on Windows 10.

tx

James

Thanks - useful tip. However, despite having two folders with very (near-identical) similar content, when running the fc command I received an error "Resync Failed.  Files are too different."

The folders I want to compare are on separate drives, so could the drive letter be the cause of this? If so, how can I exclude the drive letter, either from the comparison files (which switch do I use with the dir command) or from the comparison itself (which switch do I use with the fc command)?

File A (produced by running dir /b /s > A.txt in folder J:\Pictures):

J:\Pictures\1967

J:\Pictures\1968

etc.

File 2 (produced by running dir /b /s > B.txt in folder C:\Pictures):

C:\Pictures\1967

C:\Pictures\1968

etc.