Syntax To Get Total File Size

Question

So I'm trying to zip up a large number of files, but I want to see the total size of the files before I start zipping.

Before executing the following command to archive the files:

7za a files.7z files_2014-11-03*

I need to make sure I'm not zipping up too many files at once.

I used this command to find what I needed:

find -type f -name 'files_2014-11-03*' | wc -l

Is there something else I can pipe this to to get my wanted results?

possible duplicate of [Calculate size of files in shell](http://stackoverflow.com/questions/599027/calculate-size-of-files-in-shell) — Victor Wong, Nov 28 '14 at 02:26

score 2 · Accepted Answer · answered Nov 28 '14 at 02:20

2

du -hc files_2014-11-03* | tail -1

I would use -c instead of -s

-c, --total           produce a grand total

answered Nov 28 '14 at 02:20

Victor Wong

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This gives an innacurate size total. – user3299633 Nov 28 '14 at 02:57
If you want accurate size, then don't use `-h` – Victor Wong Nov 28 '14 at 02:59
I mean steven Penny's command produces 127 GB and this one produces 3.7 GB. Which is correct? – user3299633 Nov 28 '14 at 03:02
Penny's answer is counting all the files in that directory, mine is specific for `files_2014-11-03*` – Victor Wong Nov 28 '14 at 03:03

Zombo · Answer 2 · 2014-11-28T02:25:11.313

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du -bhs

More info

-b, --bytes
       equivalent to `--apparent-size --block-size=1'

-h, --human-readable
       print sizes in human readable format (e.g., 1K 234M 2G)

-s, --summarize
       display only a total for each argument

explainshell.com

edited Nov 28 '14 at 02:25

answered Nov 28 '14 at 02:16

Zombo

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Syntax To Get Total File Size

2 Answers2