Windows Path Export Scripts

Two lightweight batch scripts generate a CSV inventory of every file and directory in your working tree while ignoring the .git folder.

Script	Scan strategy	Order	Output file	.gitignore aware	Empty dirs included
List_Paths_Fast.bat	One‑pass dir /s /b (depth‑first)	Directories first, then files (sorted)	paths_fast.csv	❌	✅
List_Paths_BFS.bat	Breadth‑first queue (files first)	Files first within each level, then folders	paths_bfs.csv	❌	✅

Note — Neither script consults .gitignore; they include any ignored artefacts that are physically present, but still skip the .git folder itself.

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1 · List_Paths_Fast.bat

Walks the entire tree with a single dir /s /b, pipes through findstr to drop everything under .git, and writes the results to paths_fast.csv.

> List_Paths_Fast.bat

• Directories finish with a trailing \.
• Files appear without a trailing slash.

Expected first lines:

src\                 ← directory
src\main.c           ← file

When to use

• Need a very quick snapshot.
• Okay with extra build artefacts / swap files being present.

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2 · List_Paths_BFS.bat

Implements a classic breadth‑first search:

1. Queues root‑level sub‑folders.
2. Writes root files, then root folders (with \).
3. Pops each queued folder, writing its direct files first, then its sub‑folders, queuing as it goes.
4. Repeats until the queue is empty.

Output is paths_bfs.csv and reflects the natural folder‑by‑folder exploration order a human would follow.

> List_Paths_BFS.bat

When to use

• Prefer to see files grouped by their immediate parent directory.
• Useful for diffing tree growth level‑by‑level.

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CSV Format

relative\folder\          ← directory (always ends in \)
relative\folder\file.txt  ← file

• Encoding — UTF‑8, no BOM.
• One path per line, Windows back‑slashes throughout.

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Known Limitations & Tips

Behaviour	Explanation	Work‑around
Ignored files included	Scripts operate on the filesystem, not Git’s index.	Run a Git‑based exporter instead (e.g. git ls-files).
Empty directories emitted	dir enumerates actual folders.	Delete unused folders or filter later.
Scripts list themselves / CSV	Both scripts contain inline checks to skip the running .bat and their own CSVs.	—
Path count differs from Git	Git doesn’t track empty dirs & ignores patterns.	Expect counts to diverge.

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