CentOS - Aug 2013 - Fastest way of removing very large number of files?

Hi All.

I currently have a problem on my backup server with very large number of
small files in a large number of directories. I would like to delete them
as fast as possible. Currently I use:

rsync -a --delete /empty_directory/ dir_to_clean/

I've read that rsync will be faster than rm or find.
Can you recommend something? I use an ext4 filesystem.

Best regards,
Rafal.

On Fri, 23 Aug 2013 07:34:50 +0200
Rafa? Radecki wrote:
> Can you recommend something? I use an ext4 filesystem.
Without actually trying to to see, I suspect that a C program that calls 
remove() would probably be faster than just about anything else.

-- 
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----- Original Message -----
| Hi All.
| 
| I currently have a problem on my backup server with very large number
| of
| small files in a large number of directories. I would like to delete
| them
| as fast as possible. Currently I use:
| 
| rsync -a --delete /empty_directory/ dir_to_clean/
| 
| I've read that rsync will be faster than rm or find.
| Can you recommend something? I use an ext4 filesystem.
| 
| Best regards,
| Rafal.

If it's on a different file system than mkfs is the fastest. ;)

-- 
James A. Peltier
Manager, IT Services - Research Computing Group
Simon Fraser University - Burnaby Campus
Phone   : 778-782-6573
Fax     : 778-782-3045
E-Mail  : jpeltier at sfu.ca
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