A Powershell script to remove files with specific patterns in a target directory.

cleaner.ps1

# Description:
#   A script to remove files with specific patterns in a target directory.
# 
# Usage:
#   1. Change line 10-11 properly according to the instruction beside them.
#   2. Run the script in PowerShell.
# Tips:
#    - Change "$false" to "$true" in line 6 to show the files to be deleted. 
#       This won't actually delete them.
#    - Use "*" in pattern strings to match any text.
#      e.g. "*abc*" matches "abc", "abc123", "123abc", etc.


# Arguments
$targetPath = "<target directory path>"
# Change the text in the quotes to the target directory path

$patterns = @("example.txt")
# Add or remove pattern strings to match the files you want to remove

$debugMode = $false
# Change to $true to show the files to be deleted without actually deleting them


# Code
try {
    $originalLocation = Get-Location
    Set-Location -Path $targetPath

    foreach ($pattern in $patterns) {
        $files = Get-ChildItem -Path $targetPath -Filter $pattern -Recurse -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
        if ($null -ne $files) {
            if ($debugMode) {
                Write-Host "Files to be deleted:"
                foreach ($file in $files) {
                    Write-Host "$file"
                }
            }
            else {
                Remove-Item -Force -Recurse -Path $files -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
            }
        }
    }

} catch {
    Write-Error "An error occurred: $_"
} finally {
    Set-Location -Path $originalLocation
}

This script was written with the help of Github Copilot.