DDAS - Duplicate Detection & Alert System

DDAS - Duplicate Detection & Alert System

Real-time file duplicate detection with GUI alerts using Named Pipes IPC.

Architecture

┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│   Detection Engine (ddas_engine)    │
│   - Scans directory for files       │
│   - Computes BLAKE3 hashes          │
│   - Detects duplicates              │
│   - Monitors file system changes    │
│   - Named Pipe Server (IPC)         │
└──────────────┬──────────────────────┘
               │
        Named Pipe: \\.\pipe\ddas_ipc
               │
┌──────────────┴──────────────────────┐
│      GUI Tray App (ddas_gui)        │
│   - System tray icon                │
│   - Toast notifications             │
│   - Duplicate file report window    │
│   - File management (delete, open)  │
│   - Named Pipe Client (IPC)         │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘

Project Structure

DDAS/
├── src/
│   ├── main.c           # Engine entry point
│   ├── hash_table.c     # Hash table with IPC integration
│   ├── file_ops.c       # File operations
│   ├── scanner.c        # Directory scanner
│   ├── monitor.c        # File system monitor
│   ├── empty_files.c    # Empty file tracking
│   ├── utils.c          # Utilities
│   └── ipc_pipe.c       # Named Pipe IPC (NEW)
├── gui/
│   └── gui_tray.c       # Tray GUI application (NEW)
├── include/
│   ├── ipc_pipe.h       # IPC header (NEW)
│   └── [other headers]
├── blake/               # BLAKE3 implementation
├── build/               # Build output
└── Makefile

DDAS Quick Start Guide

🚀 Getting Started (3 Steps)

Step 1: Build Everything

mingw32-make

You should see:

Compiling src/main.c...
Compiling src/ipc_pipe.c...
...
Detection Engine built successfully!
GUI Application built successfully!

========================================
DDAS Build Complete!
========================================
Engine: ddas_engine.exe
GUI:    ddas_gui.exe

Step 2: Run the System

mingw32-make run-both

This will:

✅ Start the detection engine (minimized console window)
✅ Wait 2 seconds for engine to initialize
✅ Start the GUI (system tray icon appears)

Step 3: Test It!

Create a duplicate file:

cd C:\Users\Sahil\Documents\testfolder
echo Hello World > file1.txt
copy file1.txt file2.txt

What happens:

🔍 Engine detects the duplicate
💬 Toast notification appears: "Duplicate found: file2.txt"
🖱️ Click the notification
📊 Report window opens showing both files

🎯 Common Commands

Command	What it does
`mingw32-make`	Build everything
`mingw32-make run-both`	Start engine + GUI
`mingw32-make stop`	Stop everything
`mingw32-make clean`	Clean build files
`mingw32-make help`	Show all commands

🛠️ Individual Components

Run Engine Only (for testing)

mingw32-make run-engine

Console stays open
Shows all file operations
Press Ctrl+C to stop

Run GUI Only (engine must be running first!)

# In terminal 1:
mingw32-make run-engine

# In terminal 2:
mingw32-make run-gui

🔧 Troubleshooting

Problem: "GUI not connecting"

Symptoms:

No notifications appearing
Tray icon present but inactive

Solution:

Make sure engine is running first
Check engine console for: [IPC] GUI client connected
Restart in correct order: engine → GUI

mingw32-make stop
mingw32-make run-both

Problem: "Pipe already in use"

Symptoms:

Engine fails to start
Error about pipe creation

Solution: Kill any existing processes:

mingw32-make stop

Or manually:

taskkill /F /IM ddas_engine.exe
taskkill /F /IM ddas_gui.exe

Problem: No tray icon visible

Solution:

Check Windows notification area (bottom-right)
Click the up arrow (^) to show hidden icons
Right-click taskbar → Taskbar settings → Turn on all system icons

Problem: Build errors

Check:

All files are in place:

src/ipc_pipe.c
include/ipc_pipe.h
gui/gui_tray.c

Updated hash_table.c with IPC integration
Clean and rebuild:
```
mingw32-make clean
mingw32-make
```

📁 Changing Monitored Directory

Edit the Makefile, find these lines:

# Line ~97 (in run-engine target)
@.\$(ENGINE_TARGET) C:\Users\Sahil\Documents\testfolder --watch

# Line ~117 (in create-start-script target)
@echo start "DDAS Engine" /MIN $(ENGINE_TARGET) "C:\Users\Sahil\Documents\testfolder" --watch >> start_ddas.bat

Change C:\Users\Sahil\Documents\testfolder to your desired path.

🎨 Using the GUI

Tray Icon Menu

Right-click the tray icon:

Show Last Alert → Opens report window for last duplicate
About → Shows version info
Exit → Closes GUI (engine keeps running)

Report Window

Displays:

Trigger file (the new file that caused the alert)
All duplicate files in the group
File details: size, modified date

Actions:

Open File Location → Opens Explorer at file location
Delete Selected → Moves file to Recycle Bin (safe delete)
Close → Closes window

📊 Console Output Examples

Engine Starting:

=== File Duplicate Detector with Real-time Monitoring ===
Directory: C:\Users\Sahil\Documents\testfolder
Mode: Scan + Watch

[IPC] Named Pipe server initialized on \\.\pipe\ddas_ipc
[IPC] Waiting for GUI client to connect...

=== File System Monitor Started ===
Watching for changes during scan and after...

[SCAN] C:\Users\Sahil\Documents\testfolder\file1.txt
[SCAN] C:\Users\Sahil\Documents\testfolder\file2.txt

[DUPLICATE DETECTED]
New file: C:\Users\Sahil\Documents\testfolder\file2.txt
Matches existing files:
 - C:\Users\Sahil\Documents\testfolder\file1.txt

GUI Connecting:

[IPC] GUI client connected

Duplicate Alert Sent:

[DUPLICATE DETECTED]
New file: C:\...\file2.txt
Matches existing files:
 - C:\...\file1.txt

🎯 Test Scenarios

Scenario 1: Copy Files

cd C:\Users\Sahil\Documents\testfolder
echo Test > original.txt
copy original.txt copy1.txt
copy original.txt copy2.txt

Expected: 2 alerts (for copy1.txt and copy2.txt)

Scenario 2: Create Directory with Duplicates

mkdir subdir
copy original.txt subdir\duplicate.txt

Expected: 1 alert for subdir\duplicate.txt

Scenario 3: Modify File

echo Modified >> original.txt

Expected: File reprocessed, old duplicates removed, new hash added

🔄 Daily Workflow

Morning: Start System

mingw32-make run-both

Work: Monitor happens automatically

Save files as normal
Get alerts when duplicates appear
Review duplicates periodically

Evening: Stop System

mingw32-make stop

Or: Right-click tray icon → Exit (stops GUI, engine keeps running)

📈 Next Steps

Test the basic functionality with the commands above
Watch the console to understand the detection flow
Try the GUI features (notifications, report window, delete)
Experiment with different file scenarios

Once you're comfortable, you can extend the system with:

Database integration (SQLite)
DELETE_FILES command implementation
Quarantine directory
Service mode for auto-start

💡 Pro Tips

Keep console window visible during development to see IPC messages
Test GUI reconnection by closing and reopening it
Use different test directories to avoid confusion
Check Windows Event Viewer if pipe issues occur
Monitor with Process Explorer to see pipe connections

📞 Quick Reference Card

BUILD:    mingw32-make
RUN:      mingw32-make run-both
STOP:     mingw32-make stop
CLEAN:    mingw32-make clean
HELP:     mingw32-make help

File Locations:

Engine: ddas_engine.exe
GUI: ddas_gui.exe
Pipe: \\.\pipe\ddas_ipc
Test Dir: C:\Users\Sahil\Documents\testfolder

JSON Message Format

ALERT: Duplicate Detected

{
  "type": "ALERT",
  "event": "DUPLICATE_DETECTED",
  "trigger_file": {
    "filepath": "C:\\Users\\sahil\\Downloads\\file.txt",
    "filename": "file.txt",
    "filehash": "a3f4...64hex",
    "filesize": 12345,
    "last_mod": "2026-01-10T12:34:56Z",
    "file_index": 987654321
  },
  "duplicates": [
    {
      "filepath": "D:\\Backup\\file_copy.txt",
      "filename": "file_copy.txt",
      "filesize": 12345,
      "last_mod": "2026-01-09T09:00:00Z",
      "file_index": 111222333
    }
  ],
  "timestamp": "2026-01-10T12:34:57Z"
}

ALERT: Scan Complete

{
  "type": "ALERT",
  "event": "SCAN_COMPLETE",
  "total_files": 150,
  "duplicate_groups": 5,
  "timestamp": "2026-01-10T12:35:00Z"
}

Features

Detection Engine

✅ BLAKE3 cryptographic hashing
✅ Recursive directory scanning
✅ Real-time file system monitoring
✅ Empty file detection
✅ Named Pipe IPC server
✅ Thread-safe hash table
✅ Pattern-based file ignoring

GUI Application

✅ System tray icon
✅ Toast notifications
✅ Duplicate file report window
✅ File list with details (path, size, modified date)
✅ Open file location in Explorer
✅ Delete files (Recycle Bin)
✅ Named Pipe IPC client
✅ Auto-reconnect on disconnect

Testing

Test Scenario 1: Initial Scan with Duplicates

Create test directory with duplicates:

mkdir C:\test_duplicates
echo Hello World > C:\test_duplicates\file1.txt
copy C:\test_duplicates\file1.txt C:\test_duplicates\file2.txt

Start engine and GUI
Observe:
- Console shows scan progress
- GUI notification appears
- Report window shows duplicate group

Test Scenario 2: Real-time Detection

With engine and GUI running
Copy a file into monitored directory
Observe instant notification

Test Scenario 3: Reconnection

Start engine first
Start GUI → connects successfully
Close GUI
Restart GUI → reconnects automatically

Troubleshooting

GUI Can't Connect

Symptom: No notifications appearing
Fix: Ensure engine is running first
Check: Engine console should show [IPC] Waiting for GUI client to connect...

Pipe Already in Use

Symptom: Engine fails with "pipe in use"
Fix: Kill existing engine process:

taskkill /F /IM ddas_engine.exe

No Tray Icon

Symptom: GUI starts but no tray icon
Fix: Check Windows notification area settings
Enable "Always show all icons in notification area"

Next Steps / Future Enhancements

Phase 2: Command Support

Implement DELETE_FILES command
Add quarantine directory
File deletion confirmation

Phase 3: Database

SQLite integration for persistent state
File history tracking
Duplicate group management

Phase 4: Advanced GUI

Settings window
Scan progress indicator
Multiple monitor directory support
Filtering and search in report window

Phase 5: Service Mode

Run engine as Windows service
Auto-start with system
Service control from GUI

Development Notes

Building in Debug Mode

make clean
set CFLAGS=-Wall -Wextra -g -Iinclude -Iblake
make all

IPC Message Flow

Engine detects duplicate in check_for_duplicate()
Calls send_alert_duplicate_detected()
Builds JSON message
Writes to named pipe via send_message()
GUI's PipeReaderThread() receives message
Parses JSON with ParseAlertJSON()
Shows notification with ShowTrayNotification()

Adding New Message Types

Add enum in ipc_pipe.h
Create sender function in ipc_pipe.c
Add parser case in gui_tray.c::PipeReaderThread()

License

MIT License - Feel free to modify and distribute.

Author

Developed for real-time duplicate file detection and user notification.

Happy duplicate detecting! 🎉

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
.vscode		.vscode
blake		blake
docs		docs
gui		gui
include		include
prototype		prototype
src		src
tests		tests
Makefile		Makefile
README.md		README.md

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DDAS - Duplicate Detection & Alert System

Architecture

Project Structure

DDAS Quick Start Guide

🚀 Getting Started (3 Steps)

Step 1: Build Everything

Step 2: Run the System

Step 3: Test It!

🎯 Common Commands

🛠️ Individual Components

Run Engine Only (for testing)

Run GUI Only (engine must be running first!)

🔧 Troubleshooting

Problem: "GUI not connecting"

Problem: "Pipe already in use"

Problem: No tray icon visible

Problem: Build errors

📁 Changing Monitored Directory

🎨 Using the GUI

Tray Icon Menu

Report Window

📊 Console Output Examples

Engine Starting:

GUI Connecting:

Duplicate Alert Sent:

🎯 Test Scenarios

Scenario 1: Copy Files

Scenario 2: Create Directory with Duplicates

Scenario 3: Modify File

🔄 Daily Workflow

Morning: Start System

Work: Monitor happens automatically

Evening: Stop System

📈 Next Steps

💡 Pro Tips

📞 Quick Reference Card

JSON Message Format

ALERT: Duplicate Detected

ALERT: Scan Complete

Features

Detection Engine

GUI Application

Testing

Test Scenario 1: Initial Scan with Duplicates

Test Scenario 2: Real-time Detection

Test Scenario 3: Reconnection

Troubleshooting

GUI Can't Connect

Pipe Already in Use

No Tray Icon

Next Steps / Future Enhancements

Phase 2: Command Support

Phase 3: Database

Phase 4: Advanced GUI

Phase 5: Service Mode

Development Notes

Building in Debug Mode

IPC Message Flow

Adding New Message Types

License

Author

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