Asynchronous File Sorter

Description

This script sorts files from a source directory into various subdirectories of a target directory based on their extensions. The program uses asynchronous programming for efficient processing of large numbers of files simultaneously.

Features

• Asynchronous processing: uses asyncio for parallel reading and copying of files
• Recursive traversal: ability to process nested folders
• Extension-based sorting: automatically creates subdirectories for each file type
• Duplicate handling: automatically renames files with identical names
• Detailed logging: records all operations and errors to console and log file

Installation

Requirements

• Python 3.7 or higher
• Standard Python library (no additional dependencies required)

Installation

1. Clone the repository or download the script file:

git clone https://github.com/username/async-file-sorter.git

2. Make the script file executable (for Linux/Mac):

chmod +x file_sorter.py

Usage

Basic Usage

python file_sorter.py -s /path/to/source/folder -d /path/to/destination/folder

Command Line Options

• -s, --source: Source folder containing files to sort (required parameter)
• -d, --destination: Target folder where sorted files will be placed (required parameter)
• -r, --recursive: Process subfolders recursively (optional parameter)

Examples

Sorting Files from a Single Folder

python file_sorter.py -s ~/Downloads -d ~/Sorted

Recursively Sorting Files

python file_sorter.py -s ~/Desktop/Unsorted -d ~/Desktop/Sorted -r

Project Structure

.
├── file_sorter.py     # Main program script
├── file_sorter.log    # Log file (created when script runs)
└── README.md          # This file

How It Works

1. The script analyzes the specified command-line parameters
2. Checks for the existence of the source directory and creates the target directory if it doesn't exist
3. Recursively or non-recursively traverses all files in the source directory
4. For each file:
   • Determines its extension
   • Creates the corresponding subfolder in the target directory (if it doesn't already exist)
   • Copies the file to the appropriate folder
   • Renames the file if a file with the same name already exists
5. Logs all operations and errors

Special Case Handling

• Files without extensions are placed in a no_extension subfolder
• If a file with the same name already exists in the target subfolder, a unique identifier is added to the filename

Logging

The script maintains a detailed operation log. Logs are written to:

• The console (INFO level and above)
• The file_sorter.log file (INFO level and above)

Limitations

• The script copies files rather than moving them, so original files remain in place
• Large files may consume significant memory during copying
• The script checks only file extensions, not their contents