The controls on this options page are used to configure the appearance and behaviour of the folder comparison window.
Compare full folder hierarchy
If this option is checked, Merge will recursively descend through any sub-folders when comparing two folder hierarchies. If the option is unchecked, only files in the top level of the two folders being compared will be displayed.
Include NTFS streams in comparison
Check this option to include in the folder comparison results list all the NTFS data streams associated with each file.
Use filter programs for files in folder comparisons
Check this option to enable filter programs in folder comparisons. If checked, when Merge encounters a file that matches one of the patterns specified on the File Types page, it will run the appropriate filter program on the file and compare the filtered output, rather than the original file. This enables Merge to compare the contents of files in formats that it would otherwise not understand.
Enabling this option will almost always result in folder comparisons taking longer to complete, due to the additional work performed. For more information about filters, see the Edit File Type page.
Gather line-count statistics for inserted and removed files
Check this option to make Merge count the number of lines in inserted and removed files. This enables accurate line-count statistics to be presented in the Comparison Statistics window. If you aren’t interested in comparison statistics then this option can be unchecked, typically resulting in significantly faster folder comparisons.
Scan contents of archives (.zip, .jar, .tar, etc.)
Merge is able to compare the contents of archive files as though they were folders.
Merge has built-in support for the following archive formats: .zip, .jar, .war, .ear, .zipx, .xpi, .cab, .iso, .tar, .tgz (.tar.gz), .tbz2 (.tar.bz2), .tbz (.tar.bz), .taz (.tar.z), .txz (.tar.xz), .tpz, .slx, .xmind. The following formats are also partially supported: .udf, .rar, .7z.
Merge does not currently support password-protected archive files.
Unchecking this option to disable archive processing can be useful if you need to compare folders whose names have suffixes matching the supported archive formats and wish to ensure that Merge compares such folders as folders and not as archive files.
Use 7-Zip (if installed) for .rar archives
To improve support for the .rar archive format, you may choose to download and install the free third-party 7-Zip application. If 7-Zip is installed and this option is checked, Merge will use 7-Zip to process the contents of .rar archive files.
If you are using a 64-bit version of Merge (which will be the case if you are using the current release), you will need to install the 64-bit version of 7-Zip. If you are using an older, 32-bit version of Merge, you will need to install the 32-bit version of 7-Zip.
Scan contents of folders excluded by filters
If this option is checked, Merge will examine the contents of folders that have been excluded by the Filters options. This option can be useful if you are experimenting with different include/exclude patterns since the effect of changes to the patterns will be immediately visible in the folder comparison window.
Scan contents of files excluded by filters
If this option is checked, Merge will examine the contents of files that have been excluded by the Filters options.
Apply filters when copying the contents of folders
If this option is checked, Merge will honour the Filters options when copying the contents of folders between columns of a folder comparison. Any files excluded by filters will thus not be copied.
If this option is unchecked, copying a folder from one column to another will copy all the contents of that folder.
Follow (non-recursive) links
When checked, Merge folder comparisons follow file-system links to other folders.
Use multiple processor threads to compare folders
Folder comparisons may complete more quickly when this option is checked. However, on machines with many processor cores and slower storage devices (e.g. spinning hard disk drives), it may help to disable this option to prevent overloading the storage medium containing the folders being compared.