# andreafrancia/trash-cli

Command line interface to the freedesktop.org trashcan.

Repository: https://github.com/andreafrancia/trash-cli
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/trash-cli
Language: Python
License: GPL-2.0
License Family: copyleft
Topics: python, linux, trashcan
Last push: 2026-08-22T14:42:06+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 77/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-02T17:46:02.011165+00:00)
- activity 99, release rhythm 35, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 5411, "days_push": 11, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: no_releases
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 4557, forks 211 (observed 2026-08-28T04:08:53.401597+00:00)

## What it is
A Python command-line tool implementing the FreeDesktop.org Trash specification, providing commands to trash, list, restore, and permanently remove files using the same trashcan as KDE, GNOME, and XFCE. It records original paths, deletion dates, and permissions so deleted files can be safely recovered.

## Use cases
- safely delete files from the terminal instead of rm
- restore accidentally deleted files from the command line
- list trashed files with deletion dates
- empty the trash or purge files older than N days
- script file deletion with recoverability in shell scripts
- remove specific trashed files matching a pattern

## When to choose
- you want a recoverable alternative to rm on Linux
- you need CLI trash integration with desktop environments like GNOME or KDE
- you're writing scripts that delete files but want an undo path
- you want to age out trash contents automatically by deletion date

## When to avoid
- you need a graphical trash manager
- you're on a platform without FreeDesktop trash support
- you want permanent, immediate deletion without a trashcan

## Facets
- artifact type: cli-tool
- maturity: stable
- function: cli, file-system, developer-tools
- domain: developer-tools, files
- platform: cli, python
- tags: trashcan, freedesktop, file-deletion, recycle-bin, safe-rm, command-line, linux

## Member repositories
- andreafrancia/trash-cli (main) score 77

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:08:53.401597+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-29T18:20:01.803411+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/andreafrancia/trash-cli (fetched 2026-08-28T04:08:53.401597+00:00, sha d52e00176cbc)
  - registry_pypi: https://pypi.org/pypi/trash-cli/json (fetched 2026-08-29T09:05:38.124879+00:00, sha 8e2da223ded1)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.