Warn about and skip non-regular and .zfs operands, keeping their records (closes #9)

A symlink, socket, FIFO or device-node operand, or a directory operand
named .zfs, was ignored without a word and stayed in the scanned
operands, so the update phase deleted every record stored beneath it.
Such an operand now gets a one-line warning naming the path and what it
is, counts as skipped in the summary, and is dropped before the
database index is loaded, so the records beneath it are left alone
unless it lies under another operand. The exit status stays 0. An
operand that turns into one of these between that check and the walk
is warned about and skipped by the walk instead. README "scan mode"
and "Rules for the walk" say so.

Model: opus-5-5

.dockerignore

@@ -1,4 +1,9 @@
-.git
+# .git is sent without its config. Without a VERSION build argument the
+# stage that compiles runs `git describe --tags --always` on .git, which
+# does not need .git/config; that file can hold a credential, such as a
+# password in a remote URL or the token the CI checkout step stores there.
+.git/config
+
 .claude
 .DS_Store
 sfdupes

.gitea/workflows/check.yml

@@ -6,4 +6,6 @@ jobs:
         steps:
             # actions/checkout v4.2.2, 2026-02-22
             - uses: actions/checkout@11bd71901bbe5b1630ceea73d27597364c9af683
+              with:
+                  fetch-depth: 0
             - run: script/cibuild

Dockerfile

@@ -108,7 +108,19 @@ ARG CHECK_EPOCH
 RUN echo "gate test, epoch ${CHECK_EPOCH}" && make test
 RUN echo "gate fmt-check, epoch ${CHECK_EPOCH}" && make fmt-check
 
-RUN make build
+# The version stamped into the binary: the VERSION build argument when
+# one is given, otherwise `git describe --tags --always` of the .git in
+# the build context (git is installed by script/bootstrap above). A
+# context that carries .git and still yields no version fails the build;
+# with neither, as from a source tarball, it is "dev".
+ARG VERSION
+RUN version="${VERSION:-$(git describe --tags --always || echo dev)}"; \
+    if [ -e .git ] && { [ -z "$version" ] || [ "$version" = dev ] || \
+        [ "$version" = unknown ]; }; then \
+        echo "no version could be derived although the build context carries .git" >&2; \
+        exit 1; \
+    fi; \
+    make build VERSION="$version"
 
 # Runtime stage
 # alpine:3.22, 2026-07-23

README.md

@@ -251,6 +251,16 @@ duplicates another or lies under another is dropped before walking,
 so every file is reached exactly once and produces one database
 record.
 
+An operand that is a symlink (never followed, not even as an operand),
+socket, FIFO, or device node, or a directory named `.zfs`, is not
+scanned. `scan` prints a one-line warning naming the path and what it
+is, counts it as skipped, and drops it from the scanned operands before
+reading the database. The records stored beneath it are left as they
+are, unless it lies under another operand: then they are deleted like
+any other record under that operand that this scan did not verify.
+This is not an error: a scan whose every operand is dropped walks
+nothing and exits 0.
+
 `scan` synchronizes the database with the filesystem state under the
 scanned operands:
 
@@ -356,9 +366,12 @@ during the hash phase:
 Rules for the walk:
 
 -   Only regular files. Skip directories, symlinks (do not follow,
-    including symlink operands), sockets, FIFOs, and device nodes.
+    including symlink operands), sockets, FIFOs, and device nodes. An
+    operand that is a symlink, socket, FIFO, or device node is dropped
+    as described in "`scan` mode" above.
 -   Never descend into a directory named `.zfs` (ZFS snapshot pseudo-dirs;
-    walking them would list every file once per snapshot).
+    walking them would list every file once per snapshot), not even
+    when it is an operand; such an operand is dropped the same way.
 -   Filesystem boundaries are crossed by default. With `-x`
     (long form `--one-file-system`, following the GNU `du`/`rsync`
     convention), never descend into a directory on a different
@@ -369,7 +382,9 @@ Rules for the walk:
     path, and continue. Per-file errors never abort the run; the final
     summary reports how many were skipped. As specified above, a
     skipped path that has a database record from an earlier scan loses
-    that record, unless it failed only in the content phase; an
+    that record, unless it failed only in the content phase, or is an
+    operand dropped before the database was read that lies under no
+    other operand; an
     unreadable directory subtree likewise loses its records (accepted:
     the database mirrors what the latest scan could actually verify).
 
@@ -428,6 +443,15 @@ first	dupe	size
 /srv/a/big.iso	/srv/c/big-copy2.iso	4294967296
 ```
 
+Paths are raw bytes and may hold any byte except NUL, so the path
+columns (`first` and `dupe`) are escaped to keep every row one line of
+tab-separated fields: a backslash is written as `\\`, a tab as `\t`, a
+newline as `\n`, and a carriage return as `\r`. Every other byte is
+written unchanged, including bytes that are not valid UTF-8. Undoing
+those four escapes gives back the stored path. Grouping and ordering
+use the stored path, not the escaped one. The warnings `scan` prints on
+stderr are escaped the same way, so each warning is one line.
+
 Summary to stderr: records read, number of duplicate groups, number of
 dupe files, and total reclaimable bytes (sum of `size` over all dupe
 rows) in human units.
@@ -499,6 +523,9 @@ first	dupe	files	size
 /srv/a/project	/srv/backup/project	3417	104857600
 ```
 
+The `first` and `dupe` paths are escaped as described under "Report
+output format". The root directory's path is `/`.
+
 Summary to stderr: records read, number of duplicate-tree groups,
 number of dupe trees, and total reclaimable bytes (sum of `size` over
 all dupe rows) in human units.

TODO.md

@@ -29,6 +29,25 @@
 
 # Completed Steps
 
+- warn about and skip symlink, socket, FIFO, device and `.zfs`
+  operands, keeping the records beneath them (2026-10-03,
+  https://git.eeqj.de/sneak/sfdupes/issues/9)
+
+- escape tabs, newlines, carriage returns and backslashes in report,
+  trees and warning paths; the root directory's path is `/`
+  (2026-10-03, https://git.eeqj.de/sneak/sfdupes/issues/7)
+
+- stamp the git tag or short commit in a plain `docker build .`
+  instead of `dev` (2026-10-02, branch `next`, closes
+  https://git.eeqj.de/sneak/sfdupes/issues/67): `.dockerignore` now
+  sends `.git`, without `.git/config`, and the `Dockerfile` build
+  stage takes the `VERSION` build argument when one is given,
+  otherwise `git describe --tags --always` of that `.git`. The build
+  fails if the context carries `.git` and the version still comes out
+  empty, `dev` or `unknown`. The CI checkout step fetches the full
+  history (`fetch-depth: 0`) so CI sees the tag and stamps the same
+  value as `make build`.
+
 - replace the 1 KiB end-window sampling with the head/tail plus
   content-hash ladder (2026-09-22, branch `next`, closes
   https://git.eeqj.de/sneak/sfdupes/issues/61): a file under 10 MiB is

main_test.go

@@ -51,16 +51,25 @@ func assertNoSidecars(t *testing.T, path string) {
 func captureStdout(t *testing.T) func() string {
 	t.Helper()
 
-	f, err := os.Create(filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "stdout"))
+	return captureStream(t, &os.Stdout)
+}
+
+// captureStream redirects *stream (os.Stdout or os.Stderr) to a file
+// for the rest of the test and returns a function reading back
+// everything written to it.
+func captureStream(t *testing.T, stream **os.File) func() string {
+	t.Helper()
+
+	f, err := os.Create(filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "capture"))
 	if err != nil {
 		t.Fatal(err)
 	}
 
-	saved := os.Stdout
+	saved := *stream
-	os.Stdout = f
+	*stream = f
 
 	t.Cleanup(func() {
-		os.Stdout = saved
+		*stream = saved
 
 		_ = f.Close()
 	})
@@ -320,21 +329,30 @@ func scanFixture(t *testing.T) []string {
 		t.Fatal(err)
 	}
 
-	var stderr bytes.Buffer
+	scanOK(t, dir)
+
+	return dupes
+}
+
+// scanOK runs scan over operands, fails the test unless it exits 0 with
+// nothing on stdout, and returns everything it printed to stderr.
+func scanOK(t *testing.T, operands ...string) string {
+	t.Helper()
 
 	stdout := captureStdout(t)
+	stderr := captureStream(t, &os.Stderr)
 
-	code := run([]string{cmdScan, dir}, &stderr)
+	code := run(append([]string{cmdScan}, operands...), os.Stderr)
 	if code != exitOK {
-		t.Fatalf("run(scan) = %d, want %d; stderr: %s",
+		t.Fatalf("run(scan %q) = %d, want %d; stderr: %s",
-			code, exitOK, stderr.String())
+			operands, code, exitOK, stderr())
 	}
 
 	if got := stdout(); got != "" {
 		t.Errorf("scan stdout = %q, want nothing (data only)", got)
 	}
 
-	return dupes
+	return stderr()
 }
 
 func TestRunScanSucceedsDespiteWarnings(t *testing.T) {
@@ -345,6 +363,75 @@ func TestRunScanSucceedsDespiteWarnings(t *testing.T) {
 	assertNoSidecars(t, path)
 }
 
+func TestRunScanSkipsSymlinkOperand(t *testing.T) {
+	path := testDBPath(t)
+	t.Setenv(databaseEnv, path)
+
+	dir := t.TempDir()
+	writeFile(t, dir, "target/sub/f", pattern(1, 10))
+
+	link := filepath.Join(dir, "link")
+
+	err := os.Symlink(filepath.Join(dir, "target"), link)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+
+	// Scanning a directory through the symlink stores a record beneath
+	// the symlink's own path for a file beneath its target.
+	scanOK(t, filepath.Join(link, "sub"))
+
+	assertOperandSkipped(t, path, link, "symlink",
+		filepath.Join(link, "sub", "f"))
+}
+
+func TestRunScanSkipsZFSOperand(t *testing.T) {
+	path := testDBPath(t)
+	t.Setenv(databaseEnv, path)
+
+	zfs := filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), ".zfs")
+	snapshot := filepath.Join(zfs, "snapshot", "hourly")
+	f := writeFile(t, snapshot, "f", pattern(1, 10))
+
+	// An operand beneath a .zfs directory is walked, because it is not
+	// itself named .zfs.
+	scanOK(t, snapshot)
+
+	assertOperandSkipped(t, path, zfs, ".zfs directory", f)
+}
+
+// assertOperandSkipped scans operand alone and checks that it is skipped
+// as kind: a warning naming it, one skip in the summary, exit 0, and the
+// record for kept, which an earlier scan stored beneath operand, still
+// in the database at dbPath.
+func assertOperandSkipped(t *testing.T, dbPath, operand, kind,
+	kept string,
+) {
+	t.Helper()
+
+	stderr := scanOK(t, operand)
+
+	warning := "walk " + operand + ": skipping " + kind + " operand\n"
+	if !strings.Contains(stderr, warning) {
+		t.Errorf("stderr = %q, want %q", stderr, warning)
+	}
+
+	summary := "scan: 0 files seen (0 added, 0 updated, 0 removed, " +
+		"0 unchanged), 1 skipped\n"
+	if !strings.Contains(stderr, summary) {
+		t.Errorf("stderr = %q, want %q", stderr, summary)
+	}
+
+	db, err := openDB(dbPath)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+
+	t.Cleanup(func() { _ = db.Close() })
+
+	recordByPath(t, dbRecords(t, db), kept)
+}
+
 func TestRunReportSucceeds(t *testing.T) {
 	path := testDBPath(t)
 	t.Setenv(databaseEnv, path)

progress.go

@@ -106,6 +106,8 @@ func (p *progress) increment() {
 }
 
 // warnf prints a one-line warning to stderr without corrupting the bar.
+// The whole message is escaped like a report's path columns, so a path
+// holding a newline cannot split the warning.
 func (p *progress) warnf(format string, args ...any) {
 	if p == nil {
 		return
@@ -115,7 +117,7 @@ func (p *progress) warnf(format string, args ...any) {
 		_ = p.bar.Clear()
 	}
 
-	fmt.Fprintf(os.Stderr, format+"\n", args...)
+	fmt.Fprintln(os.Stderr, escapePath(fmt.Sprintf(format, args...)))
 }
 
 // finish terminates the pass's display.

report.go

@@ -87,7 +87,7 @@ func runReport(ctx context.Context) error {
 	for _, g := range dupes {
 		for _, p := range g.paths[1:] {
 			_, err = fmt.Fprintf(out, "%s\t%s\t%d\n",
-				g.paths[0], p, g.size)
+				escapePath(g.paths[0]), escapePath(p), g.size)
 			if err != nil {
 				return fmt.Errorf("write stdout: %w", err)
 			}
@@ -156,6 +156,21 @@ func collectDupeGroups(recs []scanRec) []dupeGroup {
 	return dupes
 }
 
+// escapePath returns a path as it is written in a report column (README
+// "Report output format"): a backslash, tab, newline or carriage return
+// becomes \\, \t, \n or \r, and every other byte is kept as it is.
+// Grouping and sorting use the raw path, never this form.
+func escapePath(p string) string {
+	// Most paths need no escaping; skip building a replacer for them.
+	if !strings.ContainsAny(p, "\\\t\n\r") {
+		return p
+	}
+
+	return strings.NewReplacer(
+		`\`, `\\`, "\t", `\t`, "\n", `\n`, "\r", `\r`,
+	).Replace(p)
+}
+
 // humanBytes formats a byte count in human units (binary prefixes).
 func humanBytes(n int64) string {
 	const unit = 1024

report_test.go

@@ -1,10 +1,128 @@
 package main
 
 import (
+	"bytes"
+	"io"
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
 	"slices"
 	"testing"
 )
 
+// awkwardDir is a directory name holding every byte the reports escape.
+const awkwardDir = "/d/\tone\ntwo\rthree\\four"
+
+// awkwardPairRecs is a duplicate pair in sibling directories /d/A and
+// awkwardDir. A raw tab sorts before "A" but its escaped form `\t`
+// sorts after it, so awkwardDir coming first shows that sorting uses
+// the raw path.
+func awkwardPairRecs() []scanRec {
+	return []scanRec{
+		{size: 5, head: "h", tail: "t", content: "c", path: "/d/A/f"},
+		{size: 5, head: "h", tail: "t", content: "c", path: awkwardDir + "/f"},
+	}
+}
+
+// seedDatabase writes recs into a fresh database and returns its path.
+func seedDatabase(t *testing.T, recs []scanRec) string {
+	t.Helper()
+
+	path := testDBPath(t)
+
+	db, err := openScanDatabase(t.Context(), path)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+
+	err = applyChanges(t.Context(), db, recs, nil, nil)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+
+	err = db.Close()
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+
+	return path
+}
+
+func TestRunReportEscapesPaths(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Setenv(databaseEnv, seedDatabase(t, awkwardPairRecs()))
+
+	var stderr bytes.Buffer
+
+	stdout := captureStdout(t)
+
+	code := run([]string{cmdReport}, &stderr)
+	if code != exitOK {
+		t.Fatalf("run(report) = %d, want %d; stderr: %s",
+			code, exitOK, stderr.String())
+	}
+
+	want := "first\tdupe\tsize\n" +
+		`/d/\tone\ntwo\rthree\\four/f` + "\t/d/A/f\t5\n"
+	if got := stdout(); got != want {
+		t.Errorf("stdout = %q, want %q", got, want)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestEscapePath(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	cases := map[string]string{
+		"/srv/plain":    "/srv/plain",
+		"/a\tb":         `/a\tb`,
+		"/a\nb":         `/a\nb`,
+		"/a\rb":         `/a\rb`,
+		`/a\b`:          `/a\\b`,
+		`/a\tb`:         `/a\\tb`,
+		"/not-utf8\xff": "/not-utf8\xff",
+	}
+	for in, want := range cases {
+		if got := escapePath(in); got != want {
+			t.Errorf("escapePath(%q) = %q, want %q", in, got, want)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+// TestWarnfEscapes checks that a warning naming a path that holds a
+// newline is still one line.
+//
+//nolint:paralleltest // replaces the process-wide os.Stderr
+func TestWarnfEscapes(t *testing.T) {
+	f, err := os.Create(filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "stderr"))
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+
+	saved := os.Stderr
+	os.Stderr = f
+
+	t.Cleanup(func() {
+		os.Stderr = saved
+
+		_ = f.Close()
+	})
+
+	(&progress{}).warnf("stat %s: %s", "/d/a\nb", "gone")
+
+	_, err = f.Seek(0, io.SeekStart)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+
+	got, err := io.ReadAll(f)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+
+	want := `stat /d/a\nb: gone` + "\n"
+	if string(got) != want {
+		t.Errorf("warning = %q, want %q", got, want)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestCollectDupeGroups(t *testing.T) {
 	t.Parallel()
 

scan.go

@@ -210,14 +210,16 @@ type scanState struct {
 // in the content hash of every record of headTailMin or more whose
 // size, head, and tail match another record's). Records outside the
 // roots are never touched, except that the content phase fills in
-// their content hash.
+// their content hash. Operands the walk cannot start from are dropped
+// first, so the records beneath them count as outside the roots unless
+// they lie under another root.
 func syncScan(ctx context.Context, db *sql.DB, roots []string,
 	workers int, oneFS bool,
 ) (scanStats, error) {
-	roots = pruneRoots(roots)
-
 	s := &scanState{db: db}
 
+	roots = pruneRoots(s.walkableRoots(roots))
+
 	err := s.loadIndex(ctx, roots)
 	if err != nil {
 		return s.st, err
@@ -253,6 +255,35 @@ func syncScan(ctx context.Context, db *sql.DB, roots []string,
 	return s.st, s.contentPhase(ctx, workers)
 }
 
+// walkableRoots returns the operands the walk can start from: regular
+// files, and directories not named .zfs. Every other operand is warned
+// about, counted as skipped, and dropped. A dropped operand is no
+// longer a root, so the records stored beneath it are left as they are
+// instead of being deleted as unverified, unless it lies under another
+// root. An operand that fails lstat here is kept, and the walk warns
+// about it.
+func (s *scanState) walkableRoots(roots []string) []string {
+	kept := make([]string, 0, len(roots))
+
+	for _, root := range roots {
+		fi, err := os.Lstat(root)
+		if err == nil {
+			warn := operandWarning(root, fi)
+			if warn != "" {
+				s.st.skipped++
+
+				fmt.Fprintln(os.Stderr, escapePath(warn))
+
+				continue
+			}
+		}
+
+		kept = append(kept, root)
+	}
+
+	return kept
+}
+
 // loadIndex indexes the database records under the scan roots for
 // change detection and collects the sizes of every record outside
 // them: out-of-scope records join the size census so a scanned file
@@ -789,11 +820,43 @@ func sendEvent(ctx context.Context, events chan<- walkEvent,
 	}
 }
 
+// operandWarning returns the one-line warning for an operand the walk
+// does not start from, naming the path and what it is, or "" for one it
+// does: a regular file, or a directory not named .zfs. Symlinks are
+// never followed, including as operands.
+func operandWarning(root string, fi fs.FileInfo) string {
+	var kind string
+
+	switch mode := fi.Mode(); {
+	case mode.IsRegular():
+		return ""
+	case mode.IsDir():
+		if filepath.Base(root) != ".zfs" {
+			return ""
+		}
+
+		kind = ".zfs directory"
+	case mode&fs.ModeSymlink != 0:
+		kind = "symlink"
+	case mode&fs.ModeSocket != 0:
+		kind = "socket"
+	case mode&fs.ModeNamedPipe != 0:
+		kind = "FIFO"
+	case mode&fs.ModeDevice != 0:
+		kind = "device node"
+	default:
+		kind = "non-regular file"
+	}
+
+	return fmt.Sprintf("walk %s: skipping %s operand", root, kind)
+}
+
 // seedRoot turns one PATH operand into the walk's starting state: a
-// regular-file operand is statted and emitted directly, a directory
+// regular-file operand is statted and emitted directly, and a directory
-// operand becomes an initial job, and a symlink or other non-regular
+// operand becomes an initial job. walkableRoots has already dropped
-// operand yields nothing (symlinks are never followed, including as
+// every other operand. One that has changed into something else since
-// operands).
+// is warned about and skipped here; it is still a root, so the records
+// stored beneath it are deleted as unverified.
 func seedRoot(ctx context.Context, root string,
 	events chan<- walkEvent,
 ) []dirJob {
@@ -807,30 +870,30 @@ func seedRoot(ctx context.Context, root string,
 		return nil
 	}
 
-	switch {
+	warn := operandWarning(root, fi)
-	case fi.IsDir():
+	if warn != "" {
-		if filepath.Base(root) == ".zfs" {
+		sendEvent(ctx, events, walkEvent{warn: warn, fail: true})
-			return nil
-		}
 
+		return nil
+	}
+
+	if fi.IsDir() {
 		dev, ok := deviceOfInfo(fi)
 
 		return []dirJob{{path: root, rootDev: dev, rootDevOK: ok}}
-	case fi.Mode().IsRegular():
-		dev, ino := inodeOfInfo(fi)
-
-		sendEvent(ctx, events, walkEvent{rec: fileRec{
-			path:  root,
-			size:  fi.Size(),
-			mtime: fi.ModTime().Unix(),
-			dev:   dev,
-			ino:   ino,
-		}})
-
-		return nil
-	default:
-		return nil
 	}
+
+	dev, ino := inodeOfInfo(fi)
+
+	sendEvent(ctx, events, walkEvent{rec: fileRec{
+		path:  root,
+		size:  fi.Size(),
+		mtime: fi.ModTime().Unix(),
+		dev:   dev,
+		ino:   ino,
+	}})
+
+	return nil
 }
 
 // startWalkWorkers starts the walk worker pool. Each worker processes

scan_test.go

@@ -856,9 +856,11 @@ func TestWalkFileAndSymlinkOperands(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Fatalf("file operand: recs = %+v, errs = %d", recs, errs)
 	}
 
-	// A symlink operand is not followed and yields nothing.
+	// A symlink operand that reaches the walk (it became one after
+	// walkableRoots checked it) is not followed: it yields a warning and
+	// no records.
 	recs, errs = collectWalk(t, []string{link}, false, 2)
-	if errs != 0 || len(recs) != 0 {
+	if errs != 1 || len(recs) != 0 {
 		t.Fatalf("symlink operand: recs = %+v, errs = %d", recs, errs)
 	}
 }

script/cibuild

@@ -16,10 +16,10 @@
 # implies the repo is green.
 #
 # That implication holds only because of CHECK_EPOCH. A COPY layer is
-# invalidated by changed content, and a merge commit's tree is
+# invalidated only by changed content, and a rebuild of an unchanged
-# byte-identical to the branch head it merges, so without a fresh value
+# checkout sends the same content, so without a fresh value here Docker
-# here Docker serves the gate layers from cache and the build reports a
+# serves the gate layers from cache and the build reports a green it
-# green it never earned. Passing the current epoch invalidates the gate
+# never earned. Passing the current epoch invalidates the gate
 # layers on every run while leaving the pinned base images and
 # go mod download cached; see the Dockerfile for the placement.
 set -eu

trees.go

@@ -62,7 +62,8 @@ func runTrees(ctx context.Context) error {
 		first := g[0]
 		for _, n := range g[1:] {
 			_, err = fmt.Fprintf(out, "%s\t%s\t%d\t%d\n",
-				first.path, n.path, first.fileCount, first.totalSize)
+				escapePath(first.path), escapePath(n.path),
+				first.fileCount, first.totalSize)
 			if err != nil {
 				return fmt.Errorf("write stdout: %w", err)
 			}
@@ -87,8 +88,8 @@ func runTrees(ctx context.Context) error {
 
 // buildHierarchy reconstructs the directory hierarchy from the record
 // paths under a synthetic super-root. Paths are split on "/"; for
-// absolute paths the first component is empty, which simply becomes a
+// absolute paths the first component is empty, which becomes the
-// top-level node representing "/". It returns the super-root and every
+// top-level node with path "/". It returns the super-root and every
 // directory node created.
 func buildHierarchy(recs []scanRec) (*treeNode, []*treeNode) {
 	super := &treeNode{}
@@ -102,9 +103,17 @@ func buildHierarchy(recs []scanRec) (*treeNode, []*treeNode) {
 		for _, c := range comps[:len(comps)-1] {
 			child := node.dirs[c]
 			if child == nil {
-				childPath := c
+				childPath := node.path + "/" + c
-				if node != super {
+
-					childPath = node.path + "/" + c
+				// The root directory's path is "/", not empty, and its
+				// children's paths start with one slash, not two.
+				switch {
+				case node == super && c == "":
+					childPath = "/"
+				case node == super:
+					childPath = c
+				case node.path == "/":
+					childPath = "/" + c
 				}
 
 				child = &treeNode{path: childPath, parent: node}

trees_test.go

@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package main
 
 import (
+	"bytes"
 	"slices"
 	"testing"
 )
@@ -84,6 +85,46 @@ func TestBuildHierarchyCounts(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+func TestBuildHierarchyRootPath(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	// The root directory's path is "/", never empty, and its
+	// children's paths start with a single slash.
+	_, dirs := buildHierarchy([]scanRec{{path: "/f"}, {path: "/srv/g"}})
+
+	got := make([]string, 0, len(dirs))
+	for _, d := range dirs {
+		got = append(got, d.path)
+	}
+
+	slices.Sort(got)
+
+	want := []string{"/", "/srv"}
+	if !slices.Equal(got, want) {
+		t.Fatalf("directory paths = %q, want %q", got, want)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestRunTreesEscapesPaths(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Setenv(databaseEnv, seedDatabase(t, awkwardPairRecs()))
+
+	var stderr bytes.Buffer
+
+	stdout := captureStdout(t)
+
+	code := run([]string{cmdTrees}, &stderr)
+	if code != exitOK {
+		t.Fatalf("run(trees) = %d, want %d; stderr: %s",
+			code, exitOK, stderr.String())
+	}
+
+	want := "first\tdupe\tfiles\tsize\n" +
+		`/d/\tone\ntwo\rthree\\four` + "\t/d/A\t1\t5\n"
+	if got := stdout(); got != want {
+		t.Errorf("stdout = %q, want %q", got, want)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestTreeDigests(t *testing.T) {
 	t.Parallel()