A modern diff utility
Command Line – diffoscope

© Lead Image © Vlad Kochelaevskiy, 123RF.com
With support for more than 60 file formats, diffoscope extends the power of diff beyond the plain text or HTML file.
The first command in Unix-like systems for comparing files and directories was diff
. Originally written by Douglas McIlroy and first appearing in Unix 5th Edition in 1974, diff
rapidly became an essential programming tool. Today, the original command is still available, and most programming languages have their own versions of diff
. However, diff
and its derivatives generally have one limitation: With few exceptions, most of them work only with plain text or markup languages like HTML. A new variation called diffoscope [1], which was released in mid-2020, brings a new level of functionality to file comparison.
Diffoscope is developed primarily by Debian's Reproducible Builds project [2], which aims to increase the robustness and security of Debian packages by ensuring that they always build the same way. Given Debian's nearly 60,000 packages and the variety of hardware available, this is no small task, especially considering that small errors in code can be hard to trace. Diffoscope was written to make this task easier by quickly tracking down differences between two files that are supposed to be identical but perform differently. As a side effect, diffoscope provides a modern diff
utility that works across most programing languages and brings the power of diff
to desktop users and non-programmers, especially writers who wish to compare drafts. Already, diffoscope supports over 60 binary formats that range from files and filesystems to audio and text files, including MS Word, LibreOffice Writer, and PDF (Table 1). And more seem likely to follow.
Diffoscope's basic command structure is:
[...]
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.

News
-
Akamai Will Host kernel.org
The organization dedicated to cloud-based solutions has agreed to host kernel.org to deliver long-term stability for the development team.
-
Linux Kernel 6.14 Released
The latest Linux kernel has arrived with extra Rust support and more.
-
EndeavorOS Mercury Neo Available
A new release from the EndeavorOS team ships with Plasma 6.3 and other goodies.
-
Fedora 42 Beta Has Arrived
The Fedora Project has announced the availability of the first beta release for version 42 of the open-source distribution.
-
Dash to Panel Maintainer Quits
Charles Gagnon has stepped away as maintainer of the popular Dash to Panel Gnome extension.
-
CIQ Releases Security-Hardened Version of Rocky Linux
If you're looking for an enterprise-grade Linux distribution that is hardened for business use, there's a new version of Rocky Linux that's sure to make you and your company happy.
-
Gnome’s Dash to Panel Extension Gets a Massive Update
If you're a fan of the Gnome Dash to Panel extension, you'll be thrilled to hear that a new version has been released with a dock mode.
-
Blender App Makes it to the Big Screen
The animated film "Flow" won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature at the 97th Academy Awards held on March 2, 2025 and Blender was a part of it.
-
Linux Mint Retools the Cinnamon App Launcher
The developers of Linux Mint are working on an improved Cinnamon App Launcher with a better, more accessible UI.
-
New Linux Tool for Security Issues
Seal Security is launching a new solution to automate fixing Linux vulnerabilities.