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Configuration

dsearch uses a TOML configuration file to control indexing behavior. The first time you run DankSearch, it creates a default config file at ~/.config/danksearch/config.toml.

Configuration File Location​

Default paths:

  • Linux/macOS/BSD: ~/.config/danksearch/config.toml

Override with the -c flag:

dsearch -c /path/to/config.toml

Basic Settings​

index_path​

Where DankSearch stores the index database.

Default:

  • Linux/macOS/BSD: ~/.cache/danksearch/index

listen_addr​

HTTP server address and port.

Default: :43654

listen_addr = ":43654"

max_file_bytes​

Maximum file size to index (in bytes). Larger files are skipped.

Default: 2097152 (2MB)

max_file_bytes = 2097152  # 2MB

worker_count​

Number of parallel indexing workers. More workers = faster indexing but higher CPU usage during index operations.

Default: Half your CPU cores (minimum 1)

worker_count = 4

index_all_files​

Index all file types, not just text files. When enabled, binary files are indexed by filename only.

Default: true

index_all_files = true

auto_reindex​

Automatically re-index on startup if the interval has passed.

Default: false

auto_reindex = false

reindex_interval_hours​

How often to re-index (in hours). Set to 0 to disable periodic re-indexing.

Default: 24

reindex_interval_hours = 24

text_extensions​

File extensions to extract text content from. Other files are indexed by filename only.

Default:

text_extensions = [
    ".txt", ".md", ".go", ".py", ".js", ".ts",
    ".jsx", ".tsx", ".json", ".yaml", ".yml",
    ".toml", ".html", ".css", ".rs", ".c",
    ".cpp", ".h", ".java", ".rb", ".php", ".sh",
]

Index Paths​

Index multiple directories with individual settings using [[index_paths]] blocks. Each path can have its own depth limit and exclusion rules.

Basic Example​

[[index_paths]]
path = "/home/brandon"
max_depth = 6
exclude_hidden = true
exclude_dirs = ["node_modules", "venv", "target"]

Configuration Options​

path​

Directory to index.

max_depth​

Maximum directory depth to traverse. Set to 0 for unlimited depth.

Example:

max_depth = 6  # Go 6 levels deep
max_depth = 0  # No limit

exclude_hidden​

Skip hidden files and directories (starting with .).

Default: true

exclude_hidden = true

watch​

Enable or disable inotify file watchers for this path. When disabled, the path is indexed but changes won't be detected automatically.

Default: true

watch = false  # Disable watchers (useful for network mounts)

exclude_dirs​

List of directory names to skip during indexing.

Default excludes:

exclude_dirs = [
    # JavaScript/Node.js
    "node_modules", "bower_components", ".npm", ".yarn",

    # Python
    "site-packages", "__pycache__", ".venv", "venv", ".tox",
    ".pytest_cache", ".eggs",

    # Build outputs
    "dist", "build", "out", "bin", "obj",

    # Rust
    "target",

    # Go
    "vendor",

    # Java/JVM
    ".gradle", ".m2",

    # Ruby
    "bundle",

    # Cache directories
    ".cache", ".parcel-cache", ".next", ".nuxt",

    # OS specific
    "Library", ".Trash-1000",

    # Databases
    ".postgresql", ".mysql", ".mongodb", ".redis",

    # Package manager caches
    "go", ".cargo", ".pyenv", ".rbenv", ".nvm", ".rustup",

    # IDE/Editor
    ".idea", ".vscode",
]

Multiple Index Paths​

Configure different indexing strategies for different directories:

# Index home with moderate depth
[[index_paths]]
path = "/home/brandon"
max_depth = 6
exclude_hidden = true
exclude_dirs = ["node_modules", "venv", "target", "dist"]

# Index repos with more depth, exclude VCS
[[index_paths]]
path = "/home/brandon/repos"
max_depth = 8
exclude_hidden = true
exclude_dirs = ["node_modules", "venv", "target", ".git"]

# Index documents fully, including hidden files
[[index_paths]]
path = "/home/brandon/Documents"
max_depth = 0  # No limit
exclude_hidden = false
exclude_dirs = []

# Index network mount without watchers
[[index_paths]]
path = "/mnt/nfs/documents"
max_depth = 5
watch = false  # Disable inotify (not supported on NFS)

Example Configuration​

Here's a complete example config:

# DankSearch Configuration
index_path = "/home/brandon/.cache/danksearch/index"
listen_addr = ":43654"
max_file_bytes = 2097152  # 2MB
worker_count = 4
index_all_files = true
auto_reindex = false
reindex_interval_hours = 24

text_extensions = [
    ".txt", ".md", ".go", ".py", ".js", ".ts",
    ".jsx", ".tsx", ".json", ".yaml", ".yml",
    ".toml", ".html", ".css", ".rs", ".c",
    ".cpp", ".h", ".java", ".rb", ".php", ".sh",
]

[[index_paths]]
path = "/home/brandon"
max_depth = 6
exclude_hidden = true
exclude_dirs = [
    "node_modules", "__pycache__", "venv", "target",
    "dist", "build", ".cache"
]

Tips​

Speed up indexing: Increase worker_count if you have CPU cores to spare.

Reduce index size: Lower max_file_bytes, add more directories to exclude_dirs, or limit max_depth.

Index everything: Set max_depth = 0 and exclude_dirs = [] for a path you want fully indexed.

Skip binary files: Set index_all_files = false to index only text files.

Troubleshooting​

Indexing is slow:

  • Check worker_count - try increasing it
  • Add common build/cache directories to exclude_dirs
  • Reduce max_depth for large directory trees

Search isn't finding files:

  • Run dsearch index generate to rebuild the index
  • Check if the file's directory is in an index_paths block
  • Verify the file isn't in an excluded directory
  • Check that exclude_hidden = false if searching for hidden files

Port already in use:

  • Change listen_addr to a different port
  • Check what's using the port: netstat -tlnp | grep :43654

Next Steps​

  • Usage - Learn CLI commands and API usage