[Application] How to clean untracked and ignored files in Unity Version Control (Plastic SCM equivalent to git clean -fdx)

Overview:

Unity Version Control (formerly Plastic SCM) does not include a built-in command equivalent to git clean -fdx from Git.

However, you can achieve the same result by combining the cm status command with shell deletion tools.

This approach allows you to remove:

• Untracked files (--private)
• Ignored files (--ignored)
• Including directories (similar to -d in Git)

Solution:

1. Preview files to be deleted (Dry run)

We strongly recommend reviewing the files before deleting them:

cm status --private --ignored --short --fp --cutignored

Parameters explained:

• --private → untracked files
• --ignored → files matched by ignore.conf
• --short → compact output
• --fp → full paths
• --cutignored → avoids recursion into ignored directories (important for large folders like Library/ in Unity projects)

2. Delete files (Equivalent to git clean -fdx)

macOS / Linux

cm status --private --ignored --short --fp --cutignored | xargs -I {} rm -rf "{}"

Windows (PowerShell)

cm status --private --ignored --short --fp --cutignored | % { Remove-Item -Recurse -Force $_ }

Important considerations

• This operation is destructive and cannot be undone
• No confirmation prompt is shown
• Make sure to review the dry run output before executing deletion

Common use cases:

• Cleaning Unity project folders (Library/, Temp/, build artifacts)
• Resetting workspace to a clean state
• Preparing environments for CI/CD pipelines