Knowledgebase

The main reason for this is that if we included the data of single files, the exported XML files would grow considerably and reach a size that cannot be handled reasonably.

Other export types, like Excel or PDF for example, allow including single files if it has been configured like this in the settings.

Since v9.0 you can also export the whole scan, including single files to an SQLite file. These database files can be reimported and worked with in TreeSize, just as you already know it from the XML files.

In case you need data like history data or growth reports on file level, we would like to recommend our product SpaceObServer. It regularly collects the file system information using a background agent and stores it in an SQL database, including size development and (optionally) all permissions. The reporting is faster and more flexible compared to TreeSize, because it is built on a database and collects data on file level. SpaceObServer offers advanced scripting capabilities through OLE Automation.

Yes. This web page provides an overview on the permissions reporting capabilities of TreeSize.

Right clicking on the header of the Details list will show a popup menu that allows to choose additional columns showing the permissions.
 
If you export a scan to Excel, these columns will be included as well. (To get a full report in Excel, you need to check-mark the option "Tools > Options > Export > Excel > Export the full directory branch" and optionally "Include single files in export"). Excel Auto-Filter is a good tool to filter the exported lists for specific users or groups, or to find folders or files where inherited permissions are missing or own permissions are added.

Our advanced disk space and file manager SpaceObServer has better reporting capabilities for permissions.

Are the "Owner" or the "Permissions" column active and part of the export? In Active Directory environments, Windows can take a long time to query these values. To speed this up, please disable these columns if they are not needed.

You can compare a scan to another folder using "Scan > Compare with path". This will show the size and file count differences on folder level between the path that was scanned, and the one that was selected for comparison.

No. TreeSize does not actively change the archive bit, and the system only changes the archive bit if a file is written. TreeSize works strictly read-only when scanning and searching and also does not modify the last access date if possible,

The most likely reason for this problem is a Windows update that has been published by Microsoft recently. We were able to solve this problem in TreeSize version 9.8.1 and UltraSearch version 4.8.2, so if possible, please update your software. If this is not possible, please consider uninstalling Windows update KB5094126.

TreeSize operates primarily in memory (in-memory scan) and is ideal for ad hoc analyses and one-time scans.

For environments where recurring analyses, historical comparisons, or automated reports are required, SpaceObServer offers an alternative.

The scan results are stored in an SQL database, which significantly reduces RAM requirements on the client and makes long-term trends visible.

While TreeSize can handle a lot of folders if the RAM usage is to high, the upgrade to SpaceObserver is a viable option.

Some factors that one might intuitively consider relevant have no significant impact on memory usage in practice:

- Total file size: Whether you’re scanning 1 TB or 100 TB is irrelevant to RAM usage. What matters is solely the number of folders and file extensions, not the volume of data.

- Scan depth and path length: It makes no noticable difference whether your folder structure is deeply nested or flat. The only decisive factor is the total number of folders.

- File system: In practice, TreeSize scans NTFS and exFAT identically. Theoretical differences (e.g., NTFS-internal IDs) are not typically utilized by TreeSize and therefore do not affect memory usage.

 - Idle Usage: TreeSize’s basic overhead when not actively scanning is negligible. The application itself does not place any significant demands on RAM.

TreeSize's memory requirements depend primarily on two factors: the number of folders and the number of different file extensions in the scanned structure. The more folders there are and the more varied the file extensions are, the more memory is required.

In addition, certain features increase memory requirements. For example, if you enable file type statistics or user statistics, you can expect higher RAM usage. The majority of the memory is used by the internal data model.

RAM

As a basis we recommend at least 8GB of RAM. Depending on your usecase more can be beneficial. For the general usage 1GB of free RAM should be sufficient.

Disk Space

For the installation is 500MB of free disk space required. During operation of the software, additional disk space usage may occur depending on how it is used, for example from scan exports, snapshots, logging or similar.