Question 1

How do I install cloc on Windows without Perl?

Accepted Answer

Use the pre-built Windows executable from GitHub releases, which has no dependencies but is larger (around 11 MB). Note that the Windows binary is built with PAR::Packer and may trigger antivirus false positives.

Question 2

cloc vs tokei: which is better for speed?

Accepted Answer

tokei, written in Rust, is generally faster for large codebases, but cloc offers more accurate comment detection and diff features. Choose cloc if you need detailed diffs or custom language definitions.

Question 3

How to count lines of code in a git repository with cloc?

Accepted Answer

Use the --git option or provide a git commit hash, e.g., 'cloc --git' or 'cloc <commit>'. cloc will count lines in the repository at that commit, as shown in the examples with PuDB.

Question 4

Does cloc work with Docker containers?

Accepted Answer

Yes, cloc has a Docker image: run 'docker run --rm -v $PWD:/tmp aldanial/cloc .' to count code in the current directory. This is ideal for isolated environments without Perl installed.

Question 5

How to exclude directories like node_modules when using cloc?

Accepted Answer

Use the --exclude-dir option, e.g., 'cloc --exclude-dir=node_modules,vendor .'. This skips specified directories during the count, as described in the filter options.

Question 6

Can cloc output results in JSON for scripting?

Accepted Answer

Yes, use the --json flag to output in JSON format. This allows easy parsing and integration with other tools, part of the flexible output formats supported.

cloc

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