btrfs-diff

btrfs-diff is a Python script designed to compare two Btrfs snapshots and identify recently modified files, outputting the results in a JSON format. It also provides options for human-readable file sizes and customizable output formatting.

Features

• Compares two Btrfs snapshots to find recently modified files (using btrfs subvolume find-new)
• Outputs results in a hierarchical JSON format showing files and directories.
• Supports human-readable file size output (e.g., KB, MB, GB).
• Configurable JSON indentation for output formatting.
• Can output results to stdout or a specified file.

Caveats

• btrfs subvolume find-new is known to not 100% acurately track all changes. For example it misses deleted files. For further information refer to the BTRFS docs and source code.

Requirements

• Python 3.x
• btrfs-progs installed on your system
• Root privileges to access Btrfs commands (uses pkexec)

Installation

Clone the repository and make sure you have the necessary dependencies:

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/btrfs-diff.git
cd btrfs-diff
chmod +x btrfs-diff

Usage

$ ./btrfs-diff [OPTIONS] <snapshot_old> <snapshot_new>

Options

• -o, --output: Path to the output file (default: stdout).
• -i, --indent: Set the JSON indentation level (default: 4).
• --human, --human-readable-sizes: Output file sizes in human-readable format.

Example

su
# Compare Snapper snapshots 8 and 9
btrfs-diff --human /.snapshots/8/snapshot/ /.snapshots/9/snapshot/ | less

License

This script is licensed under the GNU General Public License v3.0 or later.. See the LICENSE file for details.