(Guide/Review) DeadHash is an open-source file hashing utility for Windows and Linux

[Karlston]

DeadHash is an open-source file hashing utility for Windows and Linux

 

Do you use a file hashing program? It can be useful to check the integrity of files that you've downloaded from the internet, or to verify the integrity of backed up files.

 

 

I use it whenever possible to avoid broken or corrupted downloads, though this isn't always possible, as it depends on the availability of the file hash. Not every developer provides one.

 

DeadHash comes in an optional portable self-extracting archive. Unzip it to any folder and it's ready-to-use. The application has a modern interface with a toolbar at the top, that has a nice accent color.

 

The File tab is the first step in verifying your files. Click it and on the next screen, you can enter the file path box or use the select button, to navigate to the folder which contains the files that you want to verify. The utility does not have a Shell extension for adding files from the Windows Explorer context menu. To make up for this, DeadHash supports drag-and-drop. The caveat here is that the program does not support batch file processing, that means you can't use it with folders either.

 

 

When you have selected the file, hit the Calculate button and DeadHash will process it. The time taken for the task depends on the file size, if you're checking a very large file, it might take a quarter of a minute or so. The program doesn't tell you that it is done hashing the files. You'll need to scroll down the window to see the list of hash values of the file.

 

If you are cross-verifying the hash value with one that has been provided on the download page of a website, you should enable the Compare button, before hitting the Calculate option. DeadHash displays a checkmark next to the result to indicate a match. The symbol won't be displayed when no matches were found, nor does the tool alert you about the same.

 

 

The hash values are selectable, so it's easy to copy the data and paste it to/from other applications. You can export the data to a CSV file for future use. This is the faster way to get all the data.

 

DeadHash supports the following hashing algorithms: MD4, MD5, SHA1, SHA-224, SHA-256, SHA-384, SHA-512, RIPEMD160, and CRC32. It has four additional options that are not enabled by default. If you only want a specific hash algorithm, you may toggle the other options off from the program's settings page.

 

 

Click the gear icon at the top of the window to switch the light and the dark mode. DeadHash has a dozen themes that you can pick from, which changes the accent color of the interface.

 

The Text tab in DeadHash can be used to calculate text hashes. This is not something the average person may use, it's usually used for verifying whether some text content that you received is unmodified.

 

DeadHash is an open source utility. The Electron app is available for Windows, Linux, and Android. The installer version of the program is a bit buggy, it starts with a white screen and takes about half a minute for the interface to appear. The portable version does not suffer from this problem. That said, I think OpenHashTab is a better program overall.

 

Landing Page: https://codedead.com/software/deadhash

 

 

DeadHash is an open-source file hashing utility for Windows and Linux