Command: fx filter

Filter files by extension with intelligent sorting capabilities.

Overview

fx filter provides powerful file filtering by extension with time-based sorting (creation or modification) and flexible output formats. Perfect for analyzing recent files, organizing by time, and content discovery.

Key Features: - 🎯 Filter by single or multiple extensions - 📅 Sort by creation or modification time - 🔄 Reverse sort order (newest first) - 📝 Multiple output formats (simple, detailed) - 📊 Show relative paths or full paths - 🔢 Limit results for targeted analysis

Usage

fx filter [OPTIONS] EXTENSION [PATHS...]

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
`EXTENSION`	string	-	File extension to filter (e.g., `py`, `jpg,png`)
`PATHS`	path	`.`	One or more paths to search (default: current directory)
`--recursive` / `--no-recursive`	flag	True	Search recursively in subdirectories
`--sort-by`	string	None	Sort by 'created' or 'modified' time
`--reverse`	flag	False	Reverse sort order (newest first for time sorts)
`--format`	string	detailed	Output format: 'simple' or 'detailed'
`--show-path`	flag	False	Show relative file paths instead of just filenames
`--limit`	integer	None	Limit number of results returned

Examples

Basic Usage

Find Python files:

fx filter py

Find multiple extensions:

fx filter "jpg,png,gif"

Sorting by Time

Find Python files sorted by modification time:

fx filter py --sort-by modified

Find newest Python files first:

fx filter py --sort-by modified --reverse

Find files sorted by creation time:

fx filter py --sort-by created

Output Formats

Simple output (just filenames):

fx filter py --format simple

Detailed output (timestamp, size, relative time):

fx filter py --format detailed

Path Display

Show relative file paths:

fx filter py --show-path

Limiting Results

Show only 10 most recent Python files:

fx filter py --sort-by modified --reverse --limit 10

Recursive vs Non-Recursive

Search recursively (default):

fx filter py --recursive

Search only in current directory:

fx filter py --no-recursive

Real-World Scenarios

Scenario 1: Recent Code Changes

Find recently modified Python files:

fx filter py --sort-by modified --reverse --limit 10

Find recently modified JavaScript files:

fx filter "js,jsx,ts,tsx" --sort-by modified --reverse --limit 10

Scenario 2: Data Analysis

Find recently created CSV files:

fx filter csv --sort-by created --reverse --limit 10

Find recent JSON data files:

fx filter json --sort-by created --reverse --limit 10

Scenario 3: Document Management

Find recent Markdown documents:

fx filter md --sort-by modified --reverse

Find recent PDF documents:

fx filter "pdf,docx" --sort-by created --reverse

Scenario 4: Log Analysis

Find recent log files:

fx filter log --sort-by modified --reverse --limit 20

Find recent log files with paths:

fx filter log --sort-by modified --reverse --show-path --limit 20

Scenario 5: Image Management

Find recent images:

fx filter "jpg,jpeg,png,gif,webp" --sort-by created --reverse --limit 50

Find recent screenshots:

fx filter "png,jpg" --sort-by created --reverse --limit 10 --show-path

Scenario 6: Configuration Discovery

Find recent config files:

fx filter "yaml,yml,json,toml" --sort-by modified --reverse

Find recent environment files:

fx filter env --sort-by created --reverse

Tips and Tricks

Combining with Other Commands

# Find recent Python files and count lines
fx filter py --sort-by modified --reverse --limit 10 | xargs wc -l

# Find recent logs and analyze
fx filter log --sort-by modified --reverse --limit 10 | xargs fx size

# Find recent files and grep
fx filter py --sort-by modified --reverse --limit 5 | xargs grep "TODO"

Time-Based Workflows

# Find files modified in last 24 hours
fx filter py --sort-by modified --reverse | head -20

# Find files created this week
fx filter "jpg,png" --sort-by created --reverse | head -50

# Daily review of changes
fx filter "py,js,md" --sort-by modified --reverse --limit 30

Multi-Type Filtering

# Find all source code files
fx filter "py,js,ts,java,cpp" --sort-by modified --reverse

# Find all documentation
fx filter "md,txt,rst" --sort-by created --reverse

# Find all configuration files
fx filter "yaml,yml,json,toml,ini" --sort-by modified --reverse

Path-Specific Filtering

# Filter specific directories
fx filter py src/ tests/ --sort-by modified --reverse

# Filter multiple directories
fx filter log ~/logs/ /var/log/ --sort-by modified --reverse --show-path

Script Integration

#!/bin/bash
# Find and process recent files
files=$(fx filter py --sort-by modified --reverse --limit 10 --format simple)

for file in $files; do
  echo "Processing: $file"
  python -m py_compile "$file"
done

Performance Notes

Large directories: Efficiently handles directories with thousands of files
**Sorting overhead`: Sorting adds minimal overhead; use only when needed
Recursive search: Recursive search is optimized for performance
Time resolution: Uses file system timestamps with OS-specific resolution

Common Issues

No Results Found

# Check extension spelling
fx filter python  # Should be "py"

# Try with paths
fx filter py ~/my_project/

# Check if files exist
ls -la *.py

Too Many Results

# Limit results
fx filter py --limit 20

# Add path to narrow scope
fx filter py src/ tests/

# Use more specific extensions
fx filter "py" --sort-by modified --reverse --limit 10

Sorting Not Working

# Make sure to specify sort type
fx filter py --sort-by modified

# Use reverse for newest first
fx filter py --sort-by modified --reverse

Path Display Issues

# Show relative paths
fx filter py --show-path

# Use absolute paths with cd
cd /path/to/dir && fx filter py --show-path