Terminology
Terms used in this documentation are defined below.
Comparisons
DiffDog enables you to make the following kinds of comparisons: File Comparisons and Directory Comparisons.
File comparison
A file comparison is the process of comparing two files. The term is also used to refer to the display of results of the comparison.
File Comparison window
Each file comparison is displayed in a File Comparison window. Multiple file comparisons can be open in DiffDog at a time, but only one may be active at any given time.
Directory comparison
A directory comparison is the process of comparing two directories. The term is also used to refer to the display of the results of the comparison.
Directory Comparison window
Each directory comparison is displayed in a Directory Comparison window. Multiple directory comparisons can be open in DiffDog at a time, but only one may be active at any given time.
Directories and Folders
These two terms are used interchangeably.
Difference
Two types of differences are distinguished: (1) differences between two compared files, and (2) differences between two compared directories.
1.A difference between two files that are compared as text denotes a line of text in a file that is different from the corresponding line (if any) in the compared file. Note that the entire line is considered to be a single difference—even if the option to show differences within lines is selected. (This is significant when merging differences because the entire line will be merged; merges are not carried out at the character level.) A line of text is considered to be different from its corresponding line if one or more characters of text in it are different, if text is missing, or if a line is present for which there is no corresponding line in the compared file. A difference between two files that are compared as XML denotes a node that is different from the corresponding node in the compared file. In general, nodes are considered different if the corresponding text values do not match. What constitutes a difference can be further refined in the Comparison Options dialog box.
2.Differences between two compared directories are determined by comparing corresponding files within the two compared directories. In Quick Comparison Mode, the file sizes and timestamps of the corresponding files are compared. If one of these is different, the files are said to be different. Alternatively, corresponding files within directories are compared on the basis of their contents. Such comparisons are carried out as normal DiffDog file comparisons, and a difference causes the files to be flagged as different. Also see the definition of Equal Files and Non-Equal Files.
Equal Files
In directory comparisons, files that are identical according to the comparison options, are said to be equal.
Non-equal Files
In directory comparisons, there are two types of non-equal files: (1) a different file (see definition of Difference above), and (2) a file that is present in one directory but not in the other. Note that a non-equal file is not necessarily a different file.
Merging
Differences found in a filecomparison can be merged, that is, copied from one file to the other. The block that is copied overwrites the corresponding block or space in the compared file. In file comparisons, merges are performed for the active (current) difference, and can be performed in either direction. Note that non-equal files in a Directory Comparison can also be copied from one pane (directory) to the other.
Synchronizing
Two directories that are different are synchronized by copying or deleting, respectively, all non-equal files and sub-folders from one directory to the other, or by deleting files that are present in one directory but not in the other. The default synchronization options are displayed in the Synchronize directories dialog box where they can be changed for the entire directory. Additionally, you can also edit the synchronization actions for individual files or sub-folders.