--- title: "DuplicateDuster 1.4: Safer Cleanups" description: "DuplicateDuster 1.4 is out for Windows: every copy is re-read and re-hashed before it is touched, and every cleanup leaves a report you can open afterwards." url: "https://royalsoftworks.com/blog/duplicateduster-1-4-checks-before-it-deletes/" source: "https://royalsoftworks.com" format: "markdown" note: "Markdown rendering of the HTML page at `url`. Same content, same canonical URL." --- [All posts](https://royalsoftworks.com/blog/) DuplicateDuster # DuplicateDuster 1.4: It Checks Again Before It Deletes Anything October 5, 2026 3 min read Royal SoftWorks duplicate-duster changelog release-notes **TL;DR —**DuplicateDuster 1.4.0 is the first public build, for Windows 10 and 11 as an installer or a portable .exe. Before any copy is deleted, the app walks your folders again, re-hashes every candidate with SHA-256 and acts only on matches it has confirmed itself. Every cleanup writes a readable report. Scanning is free and unlimited; cleanups of more than 50 files a run need Pro, €20 once. DuplicateDuster finds the files — and whole folders — that you are storing twice, by comparing what is inside them rather than what they are called. 1.4 is the first build on the [download page](https://royalsoftworks.com/download/#duplicate-duster), and its headline is not a new way to find duplicates. It is a new way to be sure before deleting one. ## The scan is not what deletes Every duplicate finder works the same way at the start: walk the folders, group files by size, hash the ones that could be twins, and show you the matches. The weak point is what happens next. You look through the results, tick boxes, maybe go and make a coffee — and then press delete. Whatever changed on the disk in the meantime, the tool is still acting on what it saw before. In 1.4 the scan result on screen is never what the delete acts on. When you press the button, the app: 1. walks the folders you selected **again**, from the disk; 2. re-hashes every file whose size matches something in the delete set, with SHA-256; 3. works out the duplicate relationships from those fresh hashes alone; 4. acts only on a copy it has confirmed itself. Anything that does not survive that check is refused and named, not skipped silently: a copy whose contents changed since the scan, a batch that holds every copy of the same contents (so deleting it would leave you none), a copy or an original that can no longer be read. ## A report after every cleanup Each run now writes a record: a readable `.txt` and a `.json`, naming for every file the one that was kept, the copy, what was done to it, both SHA-256 hashes, and the reason when nothing was done. The last 200 are kept under **Help → Run reports**, and the run you just finished is summarised on the results panel with a link straight to its report. It is written from the disk, not from what the window claimed — the window's own totals are kept alongside for comparison, so a disagreement between the two is visible rather than hidden. ## Four ways to take the space back Nothing about the reclaim modes changed, but they are worth repeating, because the second check above applies to all four: - **Recycle Bin** — the copies can be restored the normal way. - **Delete permanently** — the space comes back at once. - **Delete and shred** — each copy is overwritten before removal. The app refuses to shred a file that another name points at, which is how a shred once could have gone straight through to the original. - **Replace with a hard link** — every file name stays, the contents are stored once. Nothing is deleted. ## Also in 1.4 - **A portable build.** One `.exe` beside the installer that runs without installing. It cannot replace itself, so it points you at the download page when an update is out. - **Keys that only work here.** All our apps activate against one licence server; activation now names the product, so a key bought for another of our apps is refused instead of unlocking this one. - **A reset after every cleanup.** Selections, results and caches are cleared; your settings, filters, language, licence and reports are not. The full list, with the safety fixes from the builds before it, is on the [changelog](https://royalsoftworks.com/products/duplicate-duster/changelog/). ## What it costs Scanning is free and unlimited, and so is the report of how much space you would get back. The free version clears up to 50 files per cleanup; **Pro is €20 once, VAT included**, for one computer, with no subscription and future updates included. See [pricing](https://royalsoftworks.com/pricing/) or read [how DuplicateDuster works](https://royalsoftworks.com/products/duplicate-duster/how-it-works/). ## Frequently asked questions What is new in DuplicateDuster 1.4? An independent second check before anything is removed, a report after every cleanup, a portable Windows build beside the installer, and licence keys that only work in DuplicateDuster. The app also resets itself after a cleanup, because its results describe a disk that has just changed. Why check again if the scan already found the duplicates? Because the scan and the delete can be minutes or hours apart. A file can be edited, moved or replaced in between. 1.4 re-reads every selected copy and the file it duplicates, compares their SHA-256 hashes, and refuses anything that no longer matches — so a delete never acts on an old answer. Can DuplicateDuster delete my last copy of a file? No. If every copy of the same contents is in the batch you selected, the batch is refused rather than leaving you with none. Files in the folder you marked as the source — the originals — are never deleted at all. Where are the cleanup reports? Each cleanup writes a readable text file and a JSON file into the app's data folder, naming what was kept, what duplicated it, what was done and both hashes. The last 200 are listed under Help → Run reports, and the run that just finished links to its report from the results panel. How much does DuplicateDuster cost? Scanning and the report of how much space you would get back are free and unlimited. The free version clears up to 50 files per cleanup. Pro removes that limit for €20 once, VAT included — a perpetual licence for one computer, not a subscription. Does it run on Linux or macOS? 1.4 ships for Windows 10 and 11. The Linux build comes from the same code and follows; there is no macOS build. ## Related posts [October 2026: Five Releases, Two New Downloads, One Price List Read](https://royalsoftworks.com/blog/october-2026-releases/) [AssistantGeneral Beta 3: Workspaces, Quick Answers, and an Offline Mode You Can Prove Read](https://royalsoftworks.com/blog/assistantgeneral-beta-3/) [Privatta 1.2: Offline Activation and Fourteen Days of Pro Read](https://royalsoftworks.com/blog/privatta-1-2-offline-activation-and-trial/) ## See what we're building Private, on-premise AI and software that runs entirely on your own infrastructure — no cloud, no subscriptions, no data leaving your hardware. [Explore products](https://royalsoftworks.com/products/) [Talk to us](https://royalsoftworks.com/contact/)