How DiskLens Scans Your Drive So Fast
Under the hood: smart drive detection, parallel scanning, and intelligent caching.
DiskLens has all these great views and it feels really snappy. But how does it work so fast? And how does it run on both Macs and Windows PCs?
The Tech Behind It: Electron
The core of the app is built on something called Electron. What this basically does is let developers build a desktop app using standard web technologies.
The result? You write the code once and it runs natively everywhere. It's just incredibly efficient.
What's Inside Electron?
- Chromium - A stripped-down Chrome browser for the UI
- Node.js - JavaScript runtime for file system access
- Native APIs - For dialogs, menus, and system integration
The Real Key: Smart Scanning
But the real key to its speed is the smart scanning system. This thing is genuinely clever.
Drive Detection
DiskLens actually detects what kind of drive you're using:
SSD Detected
Scans multiple directories at the same time (parallel) to go as fast as possible.
HDD Detected
Scans one thing at a time (sequential) to avoid slowing your whole computer down.
On macOS, it uses diskutil to check if your drive is solid state. On Windows, it uses PowerShell to query the drive type. On Linux, it checks /sys/block for rotational info.
Parallel Scanning
When DiskLens detects an SSD, it fires up multiple worker threads. Each worker scans a different top-level folder simultaneously.
Think of it like having 4 people searching a building instead of just one. They each take a floor, then combine their findings at the end.
Intelligent Caching
Here's the really smart part: DiskLens caches the results.
If you scan the same folder again, it's basically instant. The app remembers what it found last time and just loads it from cache. Only when files have changed does it re-scan.
The Numbers
What does this all mean in practice?
- ✓ 50,000 files scanned in under 1 second on SSD
- ✓ Cached re-scans are near-instant
- ✓ Progress updates show files/folders as they're found
- ✓ Cancel anytime - no waiting for long scans to finish
Cross-Platform Magic
The same JavaScript code runs on both Mac and Windows because:
- Chromium (the browser engine) handles OS differences in the UI
- Node.js file system APIs work the same on both platforms
- Electron abstracts away native features (dialogs, menus, etc.)
Where needed, DiskLens detects the platform and uses the right commands. For example, df on Mac vs wmic on Windows for disk capacity.
Experience the speed yourself!
Download DiskLens Free