tree

Overview

The tree command displays directory structure in a tree-like format. It’s useful for visualizing directory hierarchies and file organization.

Syntax

tree [options] [directory...]

Common Options

Option Description
-a Show all files
-d List directories only
-f Print full path prefix
-i Don’t print indentation lines
-l Follow symbolic links
-p Print protections
-s Print size
-h Print size in human readable format
-u Print user name
-g Print group name
-L level Max display depth
--prune Prune empty directories
--filelimit n Don’t descend dirs with > n files
--dirsfirst List directories first

Key Use Cases

  1. Directory visualization
  2. Project structure analysis
  3. File system navigation
  4. Documentation generation
  5. Directory comparison

Examples with Explanations

Example 1: Basic Usage

tree

Show directory structure

Example 2: Limited Depth

tree -L 2

Show only two levels deep

Example 3: Directory Only

tree -d

Show only directories

Understanding Output

.
├── dir1
│   ├── file1
│   └── file2
└── dir2
    └── file3

2 directories, 3 files

Common Usage Patterns

  1. Project overview:

    tree -L 2 project/

  2. Show with details:

    tree -pugh

  3. Filter output:

    tree -P '*.py'

Performance Analysis

  • Directory traversal impact
  • Memory usage for large trees
  • Output formatting overhead
  • Pattern matching speed
  • Symbolic link handling

Additional Resources

Output Formatting

  1. Color options
  2. HTML output
  3. XML output
  4. JSON output
  5. Custom patterns

Best Practices

  1. Use depth limits for large directories
  2. Consider file limits
  3. Filter unnecessary files
  4. Use appropriate output format
  5. Handle symbolic links carefully