cmp

cmp [option]... file1 [file2 [skip1 [skip2]]]

cmp compares two files byte by byte and reports the location of the first difference. By default, it prints the byte number and line number where the files diverge, or produces no output if they are identical.Unlike diff, which operates on text lines, cmp works at the byte level, making it more efficient and appropriate for binary files. The -s (silent) mode is commonly used in scripts where only the exit status matters: 0 for identical files, 1 for differences, and 2 for errors.The -l option lists all byte positions where the files differ, along with the differing byte values in octal. The tool can also skip initial bytes in one or both files and limit the comparison to a specified number of bytes.

-b, --print-bytes

Print differing bytes

Skip first bytes of both files

Skip different amounts per file

Output all byte differences

Compare at most limit bytes

Suppress output, exit code only

Display help

Show version

0: Files are identical1: Files differ2: Error occurred

K (1024), M (1048576), G (1073741824)kB (1000), MB (1000000), GB (1000000000)

Cannot compare directories, only files. For text file differences, use diff instead. Reading from stdin use - as filename.

diff(1), comm(1), md5sum(1)

Source code · Documentation