Excluding Paths

Sometimes it is necessary to skip paths from being checked. For example, you might want to skip the node_modules directory or a vendor directory.

You might think that you can just put the path in the .lycheeignore file, but that won’t work. The .lycheeignore file is only used for excluding URLs, not paths.

Instead, you can use the --exclude-path flag to exclude paths from being checked. Example: --exclude-path node_modules or --exclude-path example\.(com|org).

Alternatively, you can also use the exclude_path key in the configuration file:

lychee.toml

exclude_path = ["node_modules"]

Regular expressions are also supported.

lychee.toml

exclude_path = ["node_modules", "^./dir/", ".*/dev/.*"]

Here is an example config file.

Examples

Here are some more helpful use-cases for excluding paths to get you started.

Dependency Management

Exclude third-party dependencies as they’re not typically user-maintained.

lychee --exclude-path node_modules
lychee --exclude-path vendor

Build and Distribution Directories

Skip generated or compiled directories.

lychee --exclude-path dist
lychee --exclude-path build
lychee --exclude-path out

Temporary Files and Directories

Avoid checking transient or temporary storage.

lychee --exclude-path .tmp --exclude-path .cache

Version Control

Exclude version control directories.

lychee --exclude-path .git
lychee --exclude-path .svn
lychee --exclude-path "\.git|\.svn"

Documentation and Non-Code Assets

Skip documentation and non-code related directories.

lychee --exclude-path docs --exclude-path assets/images

Backup Files

Avoid checking backup files created by editors or tools.

lychee --exclude-path "*.bak"

Logs and Databases

Exclude directories or files storing logs or databases.

lychee --exclude-path logs