Knowledge Base

Guides, tutorials, and documentation for every feature in Brutal Copy and Brutal Zip.

Brutal Copy 2

High-performance file copy, sync, and management for Windows power users and IT professionals.

Getting Started

System requirements, installation, first run and trial activation, and portable mode for Brutal Copy 2.

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Copy Engine

Size-first dispatch with zero-alloc micro copies, raw P/Invoke I/O, triple-buffered overlapped pipeline, 9 hash engines, VSS snapshot support, and Defender exclusion.

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File Hashing & Verification

Inline and post-copy hash verification with 8 algorithms, plus a standalone file hasher tool supporting 25 algorithms for auditing and comparison.

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Advanced Tools

19 integrated tools including disk analysis, duplicate finder, hex viewer, benchmarking, folder snapshots, symlink management, file unlocking, metadata editing, and more.

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Secure Delete

Military-grade secure file destruction with 13 wipe methods ranging from single-pass random to 35-pass Gutmann, with real-time progress tracking.

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AI Pipeline

AI-powered file classification, smart routing, natural language rules, and 22 built-in templates for automated file organisation.

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Scripting Engine

Built-in script engine with 75+ commands across 15 categories, a visual block editor, syntax highlighting, and autocomplete for automating file operations.

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Sync & Compare

Folder synchronisation with five direction modes, four compare methods, real-time folder watching, and persistent sync jobs.

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Search

Fast file search with filename, metadata, and content modes, six built-in file type groups, and deep integration with the shell and main UI.

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Shell Integration

Windows Explorer context menu with 15 configurable operations, drag-and-drop handlers, and automatic named-pipe IPC with the running application.

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Command-Line Interface

Verb-based CLI with 25+ commands, configurable switches, headless mode, and JSON output for scripting and automation.

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Licensing & Activation

30-day trial, yearly subscription, perpetual license, and enterprise licensing with step-by-step activation instructions.

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Settings Reference

Key settings for the copy engine, performance, verification, filesystem handling, and more, with their defaults and descriptions.

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Dashboard

Real-time performance dashboard with throughput charts, session statistics, and live operation monitoring.

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History Log

Searchable operation history with filtering, export, and detailed per-file results for auditing and troubleshooting.

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File Watcher

Monitor folders for file changes and automatically trigger copy, move, or sync operations in real time.

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Filter Rules

Define include and exclude rules by extension, name pattern, size, date, and attributes to control which files are processed.

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Batch Rename

Rename multiple files at once using find-and-replace, regex, counters, date tokens, and custom templates with live preview and undo.

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Disk Analyzer

Scan drives and folders to visualize disk usage with drill-down navigation, top-50 largest files, and file-type breakdowns.

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Duplicate Finder

Find duplicate files by content hash, filename, or size across one or more folders with batch delete and move options.

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File Unlocker

Identify which processes are locking a file and optionally release handles to allow copy, move, or delete operations.

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File Recovery

Attempt to recover deleted or lost files from NTFS volumes by scanning the Master File Table for orphaned file entries.

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Folder Snapshot

Capture point-in-time folder snapshots with file names, sizes, hashes, and timestamps, then compare snapshots to detect changes.

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Hex Viewer

View raw file contents in hexadecimal format with offset addressing, ASCII display, and navigation for large files.

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Metadata Editor

View and edit file properties including timestamps, attributes, EXIF data, and extended metadata for single files or batches.

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NTFS Streams

View, create, edit, and remove NTFS Alternate Data Streams (ADS) attached to files and folders.

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Space Map

Interactive treemap and pie chart visualization of disk usage with drill-down navigation and image export.

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Speed Benchmark

Benchmark sequential and random I/O performance for drives and network paths with detailed throughput reporting.

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Symlink Manager

Create and manage symbolic links, directory junctions, and hard links with a guided interface and batch operations.

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Brutal Zip

Free, fast, modern archive management with multi-format support, repair tools, and a self-extracting archive builder.

Getting Started

Overview of Brutal Zip as a free application, installation, and the create/extract wizard.

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Compression

Create ZIP archives with three compression methods, nine compression levels, smart probing, multi-threading, and split archive support.

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Extraction

Extract ZIP, 7z, RAR, TAR, and 10+ other formats with automatic detection, multi-threading, password handling, and post-extract options.

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Encryption & Security

Four encryption algorithms from legacy ZipCrypto to AES-256, plus a built-in password cracker for recovering forgotten passwords.

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UI & Workflow

Visual archive browser with tree/flat views, a rich preview pane supporting images, text, code, media, and executables, plus drag-and-drop workflow.

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Archive Info & Comparison

Detailed archive metadata with per-entry statistics, on-demand hashing, and side-by-side archive comparison with export.

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Repair & Diagnostics

Three repair modes (test, repair central directory, salvage), diagnostic analysis with header verification, and a visual archive map.

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SFX Builder

Create self-extracting executables with full branding, license agreements, custom icons, silent mode, and built-in preview.

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Explorer & CLI

Windows Explorer shell integration for right-click archive operations, plus a comprehensive command-line interface for scripting and automation.

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Format & Standards

ZIP64 for large archives, Unicode filenames, NTFS timestamp preservation, file attribute handling, and archive comments.

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