Finding Orphan Files

Orphan File Finder

Detects "orphan" source files—those with no inbound references—to surface potentially unused code.

Why This Matters

• Reduce Technical Debt: Unused files rot over time and mislead developers.
• Shrink Bundle Size: Dead code might still be bundled or deployed.
• Security: Forgotten endpoints or scripts can be attack vectors.

Quick Start

Orphan File Cleanup:
- [ ] Step 1: Scan codebase for orphans
- [ ] Step 2: Review and whitelist entry points
- [ ] Step 3: Archive or delete verified dead files

Workflow

Step 1: Scan for Orphans

Analyze the dependency graph to find files with 0 inbound imports:

python scripts/find_orphans.py <directory>

What it does:

1. Indexes all source files (.js, .ts, .py).
2. Parses imports to build a directed graph.
3. Reports files that no other file imports.

Step 2: Review & Verify

The script output splits findings into:

• Potential Orphans: Files with no imports.
• Likely Entry Points: Files matching patterns like index.js, main.py, server.ts.

Example output:

Found 12 potential orphan files.

Likely Entry Points (whitelist these?):
- src/index.ts
- src/cli.ts

Potential True Orphans:
- src/legacy/OldHelper.ts
- src/utils/Deprecated.js

Step 3: Archive or Delete

Once verified:

1. Move to a _archive/ folder if unsure.
2. Or delete: rm src/legacy/OldHelper.ts

Configuration

Auto-Whitelisted Patterns:

• index.js/ts/jsx/tsx
• main.py/js/ts
• server.js/ts
• app.js/ts
• cli.js/py
• setup.py
• manage.py (Django)
• vite.config.*, webpack.config.*

Supported Import Styles:

• JS/TS: import ... from, require(...), export ... from
• Python: import module, from module import ...

Utility Scripts

Related Skills

• stale-todo-finder — Clean up old comments while cleaning up old files.
• codebase-onboarding — Understanding the graph helps with onboarding.