SearchDeadCode

A blazingly fast CLI tool written in Rust to detect and safely remove dead/unused code in Android projects (Kotlin & Java).

Inspired by Periphery for Swift.

Features

Detection Capabilities

Category	Detection
Core	Unused classes, interfaces, methods, functions, properties, fields, imports
Advanced	Unused parameters, enum cases, type aliases
Smart	Assign-only properties (written but never read), dead branches, redundant public modifiers
Android-Aware	Respects Activities, Fragments, XML layouts, Manifest entries as entry points
Resources	Unused Android resources (strings, colors, dimens, styles, attrs)

Safe Delete

Interactive mode: Confirm each deletion individually
Batch mode: Review all candidates, confirm once
Dry-run: Preview what would be deleted
Undo support: Generate restore scripts

Quick Start

# Build from source
git clone https://github.com/KevinDoremy/SearchDeadCode
cd searchdeadcode
cargo build --release

# Analyze an Android project
./target/release/searchdeadcode /path/to/android/project

# Dry-run deletion preview
./target/release/searchdeadcode /path/to/project --delete --dry-run

Installation

# From source
git clone https://github.com/KevinDoremy/SearchDeadCode
cd searchdeadcode
cargo install --path .

# Or via cargo (when published)
cargo install searchdeadcode

Usage

Basic Analysis

# Analyze current directory
searchdeadcode .

# Analyze specific Android project
searchdeadcode ./my-android-app

# Analyze with verbose output
searchdeadcode ./app --verbose

# Quiet mode (only results)
searchdeadcode ./app --quiet

Output Formats

# Terminal (default) - colored, grouped output
searchdeadcode ./app

# JSON - for programmatic use
searchdeadcode ./app --format json --output report.json

# SARIF - for GitHub Actions / CI integration
searchdeadcode ./app --format sarif --output report.sarif

Hybrid Analysis (Static + Dynamic)

SearchDeadCode supports hybrid analysis by combining static code analysis with runtime coverage data. This significantly increases confidence in dead code findings and reduces false positives.

Using Runtime Coverage

# With JaCoCo coverage from CI tests
searchdeadcode ./app --coverage build/reports/jacoco/test/jacocoTestReport.xml

# With Kover coverage (Kotlin)
searchdeadcode ./app --coverage build/reports/kover/report.xml

# With LCOV coverage
searchdeadcode ./app --coverage coverage/lcov.info

# Multiple coverage files (merged)
searchdeadcode ./app \
  --coverage build/reports/unit-test.xml \
  --coverage build/reports/integration-test.xml

Confidence Levels

Each finding is assigned a confidence level:

Level	Indicator	Description
Confirmed	● (green)	Runtime coverage confirms code is never executed
High	◉ (bright green)	Private/internal code with no static references
Medium	○ (yellow)	Default for static-only analysis
Low	◌ (red)	May be false positive (reflection, dynamic dispatch)

# Only show high-confidence and confirmed findings
searchdeadcode ./app --min-confidence high

# Only show runtime-confirmed findings (safest)
searchdeadcode ./app --coverage coverage.xml --runtime-only

Runtime-Dead Code Detection

Find code that passes static analysis but is never executed in practice:

# Include reachable but never-executed code
searchdeadcode ./app --coverage coverage.xml --include-runtime-dead

This detects "zombie code" - code that exists in your codebase and appears to be used (passes static analysis) but is never actually executed during test runs.

ProGuard/R8 Integration

Leverage ProGuard/R8's usage.txt for confirmed dead code detection. R8 performs whole-program analysis during release builds and identifies code it will remove.

Generating usage.txt

Add to your proguard-rules.pro:

-printusage usage.txt

Then build your release APK:

./gradlew assembleRelease

The file will be at: app/build/outputs/mapping/release/usage.txt

Using with SearchDeadCode

# Analyze with ProGuard data
searchdeadcode ./app --proguard-usage path/to/usage.txt

# Combine with other options
searchdeadcode ./app \
  --proguard-usage usage.txt \
  --coverage coverage.xml \
  --detect-cycles

Real-World Example

# Full analysis with R8 usage.txt
./target/release/searchdeadcode /path/to/your/android-project \
  --exclude "**/build/**" \
  --exclude "**/test/**" \
  --exclude "**/Color.kt" \
  --exclude "**/Theme.kt" \
  --proguard-usage /path/to/your/android-project/app/usage.txt \
  --detect-cycles

# Output:
# 📋 ProGuard usage.txt: 106329 unused items (24593 classes, 55479 methods)
# 🧟 Zombie Code Detected: 1 dead cycle (2 declarations)
# Found 21 dead code issues:
#   ● 8 confirmed (matched with R8/ProGuard)
#   ○ 13 medium confidence

Sample Output with ProGuard Integration

📋 ProGuard usage.txt: 106329 unused items (24593 classes, 55479 methods)

Found 21 dead code issues:

Confidence Legend:
  ● Confirmed (runtime) ◉ High
  ○ Medium ◌ Low

/app/src/main/java/com/example/app/admin/ui/SingleLiveEvent.kt
  ● 22:1 warning [DC001] class 'SingleLiveEvent' is never used (confirmed by R8/ProGuard)
    → class 'SingleLiveEvent'

/base/src/main/java/com/example/common/text/HtmlFormatterHelper.kt
  ● 7:1 warning [DC001] class 'HtmlFormatterHelper' is never used (confirmed by R8/ProGuard)
    → class 'HtmlFormatterHelper'

────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Summary: 21 warnings

By Confidence:
  ● 8 confirmed (0 runtime-confirmed)
  ○ 13 medium confidence

What This Provides

Benefit	Description
Confirmed findings	Items in usage.txt are marked as `● Confirmed`
Cross-validation	Static analysis + R8 agreement = high confidence
Library dead code	R8 sees unused library code we can't analyze
False positive detection	`const val` objects may appear unused but are inlined

Important Notes

const val inlining: Kotlin constants are inlined at compile time. The Events object may show as "unused" in usage.txt because only its values (not the object) are accessed at runtime. This is NOT dead code.
Build variants: usage.txt is specific to release builds. Debug-only code won't appear.
Generated code: Filter out _Factory, _Impl, Dagger*, Hilt_* classes.

Zombie Code / Cycle Detection

Detect mutually dependent dead code - code that only references itself:

# Enable zombie code cycle detection
searchdeadcode ./app --detect-cycles

This finds patterns like:

Class A uses Class B
Class B uses Class A
Neither A nor B is used by anything else

Example output:

🧟 Zombie Code Detected:
  2 dead cycles found (15 declarations)
  Largest cycle: 8 mutually dependent declarations
  3 zombie pairs (A↔B mutual references)

  Cycle #1 (8 items):
    • class 'LegacyHelper'
    • class 'LegacyProcessor'
    • method 'process'
    • method 'handle'
    ... and 4 more

Unused Function Parameters Detection

Detect function parameters that are declared but never used within the function body:

# Enable unused parameter detection
searchdeadcode ./app --unused-params

This detector is conservative to minimize false positives:

Skips underscore-prefixed parameters (_unused) - Kotlin convention for intentionally unused params
Skips override methods - Parameters may be required by the interface
Skips abstract/interface methods - No body to analyze
Skips @Composable functions - Parameters used for recomposition
Skips constructors - Parameters often used for property initialization
Skips callbacks/listeners - onXxx, *Listener, *Callback patterns

Unused Android Resources Detection

Detect Android resources (strings, colors, dimensions, styles, etc.) that are defined but never referenced in code or XML:

# Enable unused resource detection
searchdeadcode ./app --unused-resources

How It Works

Parses resource definitions from all res/values/*.xml files:
- strings.xml → R.string.*
- colors.xml → R.color.*
- dimens.xml → R.dimen.*
- styles.xml → R.style.*
- attrs.xml → R.attr.*
Scans for references in all Kotlin, Java, and XML files:
- Code references: R.string.app_name, R.color.primary
- XML references: @string/app_name, @color/primary
Reports unused resources with file location and resource type

Example Output

$ searchdeadcode ./my-android-app --unused-resources

📦 Unused Android Resources:
  ○ app/src/main/res/values/strings.xml:21 - string 'unused_feature_text'
  ○ app/src/main/res/values/strings.xml:45 - string 'legacy_error_message'
  ○ app/src/main/res/values/colors.xml:12 - color 'deprecated_accent'
  ○ app/src/main/res/values/dimens.xml:8 - dimen 'old_margin_large'
  ○ app/src/main/res/values/styles.xml:15 - style 'LegacyButton'
  ○ base/src/main/res/values/attrs.xml:3 - attr 'customAttribute'

Found 6 unused resources (150 total defined, 320 referenced)

Real-World Results

$ searchdeadcode /path/to/android-project --unused-resources

📦 Unused Android Resources:
  ○ app/src/main/res/values/admin_strings.xml:21 - string 'admin_apiMockAddressSaved'
  ○ app/src/main/res/values/appboy.xml:3 - string 'com_braze_api_key'
  ○ app/src/main/res/values/dimens.xml:8 - dimen 'card_sticky_audio_bottom_margin'
  ○ app/src/main/res/values/styles.xml:2 - style 'AppTheme.AppBarOverlay'
  ○ base/src/main/res/values/base_strings.xml:46 - string 'donation_button_text'
  ○ component-feed/src/main/res/values/feed_colors.xml:31 - color 'dates_light'
  ... and 47 more

Found 53 unused resources (672 total defined, 1142 referenced)

Common False Positives to Ignore

Some resources may appear unused but are actually required:

Braze/Firebase SDK configs (com_braze_*, google_*) - Read via reflection
Theme attributes - May be referenced by parent themes
Build variant resources - Only used in specific flavors

Use --exclude patterns or add to your config file:

exclude:
  - "**/appboy.xml"
  - "**/google-services.xml"

Deep Analysis Mode

For more aggressive dead code detection that analyzes individual members within classes:

# Enable deep analysis
searchdeadcode ./app --deep

Terminal Output Example

Dead Code Analysis Results
==========================

com/example/app/utils/DeadHelper.kt
  ├─ class DeadHelper (line 5)
  │  Never instantiated or referenced
  └─ function unusedFunction (line 12)
     Never called

com/example/app/models/LegacyModel.kt
  └─ property debugFlag (line 8)
     Assigned but never read

Summary: 3 issues found
  - 1 unused class
  - 1 unused function
  - 1 assign-only property

JSON Output Format

{
  "version": "1.1",
  "total_issues": 21,
  "issues": [
    {
      "code": "DC001",
      "severity": "warning",
      "confidence": "confirmed",
      "confidence_score": 1.0,
      "runtime_confirmed": true,
      "message": "class 'DeadHelper' is never used (confirmed by R8/ProGuard)",
      "file": "com/example/app/utils/DeadHelper.kt",
      "line": 5,
      "column": 1,
      "declaration": {
        "name": "DeadHelper",
        "kind": "class",
        "fully_qualified_name": "com.example.app.utils.DeadHelper"
      }
    }
  ],
  "summary": {
    "errors": 0,
    "warnings": 21,
    "infos": 0,
    "by_confidence": {
      "confirmed": 8,
      "high": 0,
      "medium": 13,
      "low": 0
    },
    "runtime_confirmed_count": 8
  }
}

Field	Description
`code`	Issue code (DC001-DC007)
`confidence`	low, medium, high, confirmed
`confidence_score`	0.25 to 1.0 for sorting
`runtime_confirmed`	True if coverage data confirms unused
`fully_qualified_name`	Package path when available

Filtering

# Exclude patterns (glob syntax)
searchdeadcode ./app --exclude "**/test/**" --exclude "**/generated/**"

# Retain patterns (never report as dead)
searchdeadcode ./app --retain "*Activity" --retain "*ViewModel"

# Combine multiple filters
searchdeadcode ./app \
  --exclude "**/build/**" \
  --exclude "**/*Test.kt" \
  --retain "*Repository" \
  --retain "*UseCase"

Safe Delete

# Interactive deletion (confirm each item)
searchdeadcode ./app --delete --interactive

# Batch deletion (select from list, confirm once)
searchdeadcode ./app --delete

# Dry run (preview only, no changes)
searchdeadcode ./app --delete --dry-run

# Generate undo script for recovery
searchdeadcode ./app --delete --undo-script restore.sh

Dry-Run Output Example

Dry run - would delete:
  class DeadHelper at com/example/utils/DeadHelper.kt:5
  function unusedMethod at com/example/Service.kt:42
  property debugFlag at com/example/Config.kt:8

Total: 3 items would be deleted

Configuration

Configuration File

SearchDeadCode looks for configuration in these locations (in order):

Path specified via --config flag
.deadcode.yml / .deadcode.yaml in project root
.deadcode.toml in project root
deadcode.yml / deadcode.yaml / deadcode.toml in project root

YAML Configuration Example

# .deadcode.yml

# Directories to analyze (relative to project root)
targets:
  - "app/src/main/kotlin"
  - "app/src/main/java"
  - "feature/src/main/kotlin"
  - "core/src/main/kotlin"

# Patterns to exclude from analysis (glob syntax)
exclude:
  - "**/generated/**"      # Generated code
  - "**/build/**"          # Build outputs
  - "**/.gradle/**"        # Gradle cache
  - "**/.idea/**"          # IDE files
  - "**/test/**"           # Test files (see note below)
  - "**/*Test.kt"          # Test classes
  - "**/*Spec.kt"          # Spec classes

# Patterns to retain - never report as dead (glob syntax)
# Use for code accessed via reflection, external libraries, etc.
retain_patterns:
  - "*Adapter"             # RecyclerView adapters
  - "*ViewHolder"          # ViewHolders
  - "*Callback"            # Callback interfaces
  - "*Listener"            # Event listeners
  - "*Binding"             # View bindings

# Explicit entry points (fully qualified class names)
entry_points:
  - "com.example.app.MainActivity"
  - "com.example.app.MyApplication"
  - "com.example.api.PublicApi"

# Report configuration
report:
  format: "terminal"       # terminal | json | sarif
  group_by: "file"         # file | type | severity
  show_code: true          # Show code snippets in output

# Detection configuration - enable/disable specific detectors
detection:
  unused_class: true       # Unused classes and interfaces
  unused_method: true      # Unused methods and functions
  unused_property: true    # Unused properties and fields
  unused_import: true      # Unused import statements
  unused_param: true       # Unused function parameters
  unused_enum_case: true   # Unused enum values
  assign_only: true        # Write-only properties
  dead_branch: true        # Unreachable code branches
  redundant_public: true   # Public members only used internally

# Android-specific configuration
android:
  parse_manifest: true           # Parse AndroidManifest.xml for entry points
  parse_layouts: true            # Parse layout XMLs for class references
  auto_retain_components: true   # Auto-retain Android lifecycle components
  component_patterns:            # Additional patterns to auto-retain
    - "*Activity"
    - "*Fragment"
    - "*Service"
    - "*BroadcastReceiver"
    - "*ContentProvider"
    - "*ViewModel"
    - "*Application"
    - "*Worker"                  # WorkManager workers

TOML Configuration Example

# .deadcode.toml

targets = [
  "app/src/main/kotlin",
  "app/src/main/java",
]

exclude = [
  "**/generated/**",
  "**/build/**",
  "**/test/**",
]

retain_patterns = [
  "*Adapter",
  "*ViewHolder",
]

entry_points = [
  "com.example.app.MainActivity",
]

[report]
format = "terminal"
group_by = "file"
show_code = true

[detection]
unused_class = true
unused_method = true
unused_property = true
unused_import = true
unused_param = true
unused_enum_case = true
assign_only = true
dead_branch = true
redundant_public = true

[android]
parse_manifest = true
parse_layouts = true
auto_retain_components = true
component_patterns = [
  "*Activity",
  "*Fragment",
  "*ViewModel",
]

CLI Reference

searchdeadcode [OPTIONS] [PATH]

Arguments:
  [PATH]  Path to the project directory to analyze [default: .]

Options:
  -c, --config <FILE>      Path to configuration file
  -t, --target <DIR>       Target directories to analyze (can be repeated)
  -e, --exclude <PATTERN>  Patterns to exclude (can be repeated)
  -r, --retain <PATTERN>   Patterns to retain as entry points (can be repeated)
  -f, --format <FORMAT>    Output format [default: terminal]
                           [possible values: terminal, json, sarif]
  -o, --output <FILE>      Output file for json/sarif formats
      --delete             Enable safe delete mode
      --interactive        Interactive deletion (confirm each item)
      --dry-run            Preview deletions without making changes
      --undo-script <FILE> Generate undo/restore script
      --detect <TYPES>     Detection types (comma-separated)

  Analysis Options:
      --deep                  Deep analysis mode - analyzes individual members
                              within classes for more aggressive detection
      --unused-params         Detect unused function parameters
      --unused-resources      Detect unused Android resources (strings, colors, etc.)

  Hybrid Analysis Options:
      --coverage <FILE>       Coverage file (JaCoCo XML, Kover XML, or LCOV)
                              Can be specified multiple times for merged coverage
      --proguard-usage <FILE> ProGuard/R8 usage.txt file for enhanced detection
      --min-confidence        Minimum confidence level to report
                              [possible values: low, medium, high, confirmed]
      --runtime-only          Only show findings confirmed by runtime coverage
      --include-runtime-dead  Include reachable but never-executed code
      --detect-cycles         Detect zombie code cycles (mutually dependent dead code)

  -v, --verbose            Verbose output
  -q, --quiet              Quiet mode - only output results
  -h, --help               Print help
  -V, --version            Print version

Complete Command Examples

# Basic analysis
searchdeadcode /path/to/android/project

# Deep analysis (more aggressive, analyzes individual members)
searchdeadcode ./app --deep

# With exclusions
searchdeadcode ./app \
  --exclude "**/build/**" \
  --exclude "**/test/**" \
  --exclude "**/generated/**"

# Full hybrid analysis (static + dynamic + R8)
searchdeadcode ./app \
  --deep \
  --coverage build/reports/jacoco.xml \
  --proguard-usage app/build/outputs/mapping/release/usage.txt \
  --detect-cycles \
  --min-confidence high

# JSON output for CI/CD
searchdeadcode ./app \
  --format json \
  --output dead-code-report.json

# SARIF for GitHub Code Scanning
searchdeadcode ./app \
  --format sarif \
  --output results.sarif

# Safe delete with dry-run preview
searchdeadcode ./app --delete --dry-run

# Detect unused Android resources
searchdeadcode ./app --unused-resources

# Detect unused function parameters
searchdeadcode ./app --unused-params

# Full analysis with all enhanced detection
searchdeadcode ./app \
  --deep \
  --unused-params \
  --unused-resources \
  --detect-cycles

# Interactive deletion with undo script
searchdeadcode ./app \
  --delete \
  --interactive \
  --undo-script restore.sh

# Only show confirmed dead code (highest confidence)
searchdeadcode ./app \
  --coverage coverage.xml \
  --proguard-usage usage.txt \
  --runtime-only \
  --min-confidence confirmed

Detection Types

1. Unused Classes/Interfaces

Classes or interfaces that are never instantiated, extended, or referenced.

// DEAD: Never used anywhere
class OrphanHelper {
    fun doSomething() {}
}

2. Unused Methods/Functions

Methods that are never called, including extension functions.

class UserService {
    fun getUser(id: String) = // used

    // DEAD: Never called
    fun legacyGetUser(id: Int) = // ...
}

// Extension functions are also detected
fun String.deadExtension(): String = this  // DEAD: Never called

3. Unused Properties/Fields

Properties declared but never read.

class Config {
    val apiUrl = "https://api.example.com"  // used
    val debugMode = true                     // DEAD: never read
}

4. Assign-Only Properties

Properties that are written to but never read.

class Analytics {
    var lastEventTime: Long = 0  // DEAD: assigned but never read

    fun track(event: Event) {
        lastEventTime = System.currentTimeMillis()  // write-only
        send(event)
    }
}

5. Unused Parameters

Function parameters that are never used in the body.

// DEAD: 'context' parameter never used
fun formatDate(date: Date, context: Context): String {
    return SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").format(date)
}

6. Unused Imports

Import statements with no corresponding usage.

import com.example.utils.StringUtils  // DEAD: never used
import com.example.models.User        // used

class UserProfile {
    fun display(user: User) {}
}

7. Unused Enum Cases

Individual enum values that are never referenced.

enum class Status {
    ACTIVE,     // used
    INACTIVE,   // used
    LEGACY,     // DEAD: never referenced
    DEPRECATED  // DEAD: never referenced
}

8. Redundant Public Modifiers

Public declarations only used within the same module.

// DEAD visibility: only used internally, could be internal/private
public class InternalHelper {
    public fun process() {}  // only called within this module
}

9. Dead Branches

Code paths that can never be executed.

fun process(value: Int) {
    if (value > 0) {
        // reachable
    } else if (value <= 0) {
        // reachable
    } else {
        // DEAD: impossible to reach
        handleImpossible()
    }
}

Android-Specific Handling

Auto-Retained Entry Points

The tool automatically retains (never reports as dead):

Category	Patterns / Annotations
Lifecycle Components	`Activity`, `Fragment`, `Service`, `BroadcastReceiver`, `ContentProvider`, `Application`
Jetpack Compose	`@Composable`, `@Preview`
ViewModels	`*ViewModel`, `@HiltViewModel`
Dependency Injection	`@Inject`, `@Provides`, `@Binds`, `@BindsOptionalOf`, `@BindsInstance`, `@IntoMap`, `@IntoSet`, `@Module`, `@Component`, `@HiltAndroidApp`, `@AndroidEntryPoint`, `@AssistedInject`, `@AssistedFactory`
Serialization	`@Serializable`, `@Parcelize`, `@JsonClass`, `@Entity`, `@SerializedName`, `@SerialName`
Data Binding	`@BindingAdapter`, `@InverseBindingAdapter`, `@BindingMethod`, `@BindingMethods`, `@BindingConversion`
Room Database	`@Dao`, `@Database`, `@Query`, `@Insert`, `@Update`, `@Delete`, `@RawQuery`, `@Transaction`, `@TypeConverter`
Retrofit	`@GET`, `@POST`, `@PUT`, `@DELETE`, `@PATCH`, `@HEAD`, `@OPTIONS`, `@HTTP`, `@Path`, `@Body`, `@Field`, `@Header`
Testing	`@Test`, `@Before`, `@After`, `@BeforeEach`, `@AfterEach`, `@BeforeAll`, `@AfterAll`, `@ParameterizedTest`, `@RunWith`
Reflection	`@JvmStatic`, `@JvmOverloads`, `@JvmField`, `@JvmName`, `@Keep`
WorkManager	`@HiltWorker`
Lifecycle	`@OnLifecycleEvent`
Koin DI	`@Factory`, `@Single`, `@KoinViewModel`
Event Bus	`@Subscribe`
Coroutines	`suspend` functions (in reachable classes), `@FlowPreview`, `@ExperimentalCoroutinesApi`
Entry Functions	`main()` functions

XML Parsing

The tool parses Android XML files to detect additional entry points:

AndroidManifest.xml

<activity android:name=".MainActivity">
<service android:name=".MyService">
<receiver>, <provider>, <application> components

Layout XMLs (res/layout/*.xml)

Custom views: <com.example.CustomView>
Context references: tools:context=".MyActivity"
Data binding: app:viewModel="@{viewModel}"

Test Code Handling

Code that is only used in tests is considered dead code. This is intentional because:

Test-only utilities should be in test directories
Production code shouldn't exist solely for testing
Such code adds maintenance burden without production value

To exclude test files from analysis:

exclude:
  - "**/test/**"
  - "**/androidTest/**"
  - "**/*Test.kt"
  - "**/*Spec.kt"

Architecture

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                        CLI Interface                             │
│                    (clap + YAML config)                          │
└──────────────────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┘
                               │
                               ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                      File Discovery                              │
│              (ignore crate, respects .gitignore)                 │
│                    .kt  .java  .xml files                        │
└──────────────────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┘
                               │
                               ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                    Parsing Phase (Parallel)                      │
│  ┌─────────────────┐  ┌─────────────────┐  ┌─────────────────┐  │
│  │ tree-sitter-    │  │ tree-sitter-    │  │   quick-xml     │  │
│  │     kotlin      │  │      java       │  │  (AndroidXML)   │  │
│  └─────────────────┘  └─────────────────┘  └─────────────────┘  │
└──────────────────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┘
                               │
                               ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                   Declaration Registry                           │
│                                                                   │
│  HashMap<DeclarationId, Declaration>                             │
│  • Fully qualified names (com.example.MyClass.myMethod)          │
│  • Location: file:line:column                                    │
│  • Kind: class | method | property | function | enum | etc.      │
└──────────────────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┘
                               │
                               ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                     Reference Graph                              │
│                                                                   │
│  petgraph::DiGraph<Declaration, Reference>                       │
│  • Nodes = all declarations                                      │
│  • Edges = usages/references between declarations                │
└──────────────────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┘
                               │
                               ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                  Entry Point Detection                           │
│                                                                   │
│  Android Roots (auto-retained):                                  │
│  • Activity, Fragment, Service, BroadcastReceiver, Provider      │
│  • @Composable functions                                         │
│  • Classes in AndroidManifest.xml                                │
│  • Views referenced in layout XMLs                               │
│  • @Serializable, @Parcelize data classes                        │
│  • main() functions, @Test methods                               │
└──────────────────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┘
                               │
                               ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                  Reachability Analysis                           │
│                                                                   │
│  DFS/BFS from entry points → mark reachable nodes                │
│  Unreachable declarations = dead code candidates                 │
└──────────────────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┘
                               │
                               ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                        Output                                    │
│  ┌──────────┐  ┌──────────┐  ┌──────────┐  ┌──────────────────┐ │
│  │ Terminal │  │   JSON   │  │  SARIF   │  │   Safe Delete    │ │
│  │ (colored)│  │ (export) │  │  (CI)    │  │  (interactive)   │ │
│  └──────────┘  └──────────┘  └──────────┘  └──────────────────┘ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Technology Stack

Crate	Purpose	Why
`tree-sitter`	Core parsing	Incremental, error-tolerant parsing
`tree-sitter-kotlin` (v0.3.6)	Kotlin grammar	Official tree-sitter grammar
`tree-sitter-java` (v0.21)	Java grammar	Official tree-sitter grammar
`petgraph`	Graph data structure	Fast graph algorithms (DFS/BFS)
`ignore`	File discovery	Same as ripgrep, respects .gitignore
`rayon`	Parallelism	Parse files in parallel
`clap`	CLI parsing	Industry standard, derive macros
`serde`	Config parsing	YAML/TOML support
`quick-xml`	XML parsing	Fast AndroidManifest/layout parsing
`indicatif`	Progress bars	User feedback for large codebases
`colored`	Terminal colors	Readable output
`miette`	Error reporting	Beautiful diagnostics with code snippets
`dialoguer`	Interactive prompts	Safe delete confirmations

Project Structure

searchdeadcode/
├── Cargo.toml
├── src/
│   ├── main.rs                  # CLI entry point
│   ├── lib.rs                   # Library exports
│   │
│   ├── config/
│   │   ├── mod.rs
│   │   └── loader.rs            # YAML/TOML config loading
│   │
│   ├── discovery/
│   │   ├── mod.rs
│   │   └── file_finder.rs       # Parallel file discovery
│   │
│   ├── parser/
│   │   ├── mod.rs
│   │   ├── kotlin.rs            # Kotlin AST → declarations
│   │   ├── java.rs              # Java AST → declarations
│   │   ├── xml/
│   │   │   ├── mod.rs
│   │   │   ├── manifest.rs      # AndroidManifest.xml
│   │   │   └── layout.rs        # Layout XMLs
│   │   └── common.rs            # Shared types
│   │
│   ├── graph/
│   │   ├── mod.rs
│   │   ├── declaration.rs       # Declaration types
│   │   ├── reference.rs         # Reference types
│   │   └── builder.rs           # Graph construction
│   │
│   ├── analysis/
│   │   ├── mod.rs
│   │   ├── entry_points.rs      # Entry point detection
│   │   ├── reachability.rs      # DFS/BFS traversal
│   │   └── detectors/
│   │       ├── mod.rs
│   │       ├── unused_class.rs
│   │       ├── unused_method.rs
│   │       ├── unused_property.rs
│   │       ├── unused_import.rs
│   │       ├── unused_param.rs
│   │       ├── unused_enum_case.rs
│   │       ├── assign_only.rs
│   │       ├── dead_branch.rs
│   │       └── redundant_public.rs
│   │
│   ├── refactor/
│   │   ├── mod.rs
│   │   ├── safe_delete.rs       # Interactive deletion
│   │   ├── undo.rs              # Restore script generation
│   │   └── editor.rs            # File modification
│   │
│   └── report/
│       ├── mod.rs
│       ├── terminal.rs          # Colored CLI output
│       ├── json.rs              # JSON export
│       └── sarif.rs             # SARIF for CI
│
├── tests/
│   ├── fixtures/
│   │   ├── kotlin/              # Test Kotlin files
│   │   ├── java/                # Test Java files
│   │   └── android/             # Full Android project
│   └── integration/
│
└── benches/
    └── parsing_bench.rs         # Performance benchmarks

Implementation Status

All major features are implemented and tested:

Core Analysis

Project setup with Cargo
CLI with clap (all options)
Config file loading (YAML + TOML)
File discovery with ignore crate
tree-sitter-kotlin integration
tree-sitter-java integration
Declaration extraction (classes, methods, properties, extension functions)
Fully-qualified name resolution
Generic type handling (Foo<T> → Foo)
Declaration registry
Reference extraction (including navigation expressions)
Graph construction with petgraph
AndroidManifest.xml parsing
Layout XML parsing
Entry point detection (annotations, inheritance, XML references)
Reachability analysis (DFS)
All detection types (9 detectors)

Hybrid Analysis (Static + Dynamic)

JaCoCo XML coverage parsing
Kover XML coverage parsing
LCOV coverage parsing
ProGuard/R8 usage.txt parsing
Confidence scoring (low/medium/high/confirmed)
Runtime-dead code detection (reachable but never executed)
Zombie code cycle detection (Tarjan's algorithm)

Deep Analysis Mode

Individual member analysis within classes
Interface implementation tracking
Sealed class subtype tracking
Suspend function detection
Flow/StateFlow/SharedFlow pattern detection
Companion object member analysis
Lazy/delegated property detection
Generic type argument tracking
Class delegation pattern detection
Const val skip (compile-time inlining)
Data class generated method skip
Comprehensive DI annotation support (Dagger, Hilt, Koin, Room, Retrofit)

Output & Refactoring

Terminal reporter (colored with confidence indicators)
JSON reporter (v1.1 with confidence data)
SARIF reporter
Interactive deletion mode
Batch deletion mode
Dry-run mode
Undo script generation

Known Limitations

Reflection: Code accessed via reflection (e.g., Class.forName()) cannot be detected as used. Use retain_patterns for such cases.
Multi-module Projects: Each module is analyzed independently. Cross-module references work but require all modules to be in the analysis path.
Annotation Processors: Generated code (Dagger, Room, etc.) should be excluded as it may reference declarations in ways not visible to static analysis. However, the tool now properly recognizes most DI annotations (@Provides, @Binds, @Query, etc.) as entry points.
const val Inlining: Kotlin compile-time constants are inlined by the compiler. The tool now automatically skips const val properties to avoid false positives.
ProGuard Keep Rules: The tool doesn't parse ProGuard -keep rules. Use retain_patterns for kept classes, or verify against usage.txt output.
R. Resource References*: Android resource references (R.drawable.*, R.string.*, etc.) are compile-time constants and don't create trackable references in the code graph.

Troubleshooting

"No Kotlin or Java files found"

Check that your target path is correct
Ensure files aren't excluded by .gitignore or --exclude patterns
Verify the project structure has .kt or .java files

False Positives

If code is incorrectly reported as dead:

Check entry points: Add to entry_points in config
Check patterns: Add to retain_patterns for reflection/framework usage
Check annotations: Ensure framework annotations are recognized
Check XML: Verify AndroidManifest.xml and layouts are being parsed

# Common false positive fixes
retain_patterns:
  - "*Adapter"           # RecyclerView adapters
  - "*ViewHolder"        # ViewHolders
  - "*Callback"          # Callback interfaces
  - "*Binding"           # Generated bindings
  - "Dagger*"            # Dagger components

Extension Functions Named `<anonymous>`

This was fixed in v0.1.0. If you see this, ensure you're using the latest version.

Generic Types Not Matching

Generic type references like Foo<Bar> now correctly match declarations Foo. This was fixed in v0.1.0.

Glob Patterns Matching Wrong Paths

Patterns like **/test/** now only match complete directory names, not substrings. /test/ matches, but /testproject/ does not.

Changelog

v0.4.0 (Current)

Enhanced Detection (Phase 6)

--unused-resources flag: Detect unused Android resources (strings, colors, dimens, styles, attrs)
- Parses all res/values/*.xml files for resource definitions
- Scans Kotlin, Java, and XML files for R.type.name and @type/name references
- Real-world test: Found 53 unused resources in a 1800-file project
--unused-params flag: Detect unused function parameters
- Conservative detection to minimize false positives
- Skips override methods, abstract methods, @Composable functions, constructors

Performance & CI Features (Phase 5)

--incremental flag: Incremental analysis with file caching
- Caches parsed AST data to skip re-parsing unchanged files
- Uses file hash + mtime for change detection
--watch flag: Watch mode for continuous monitoring
- Automatically re-runs analysis when source files change
- Debounced to avoid excessive re-runs
--baseline <FILE> flag: Baseline support for CI adoption
- Generate baseline with --generate-baseline <FILE>
- Only report new issues not in baseline
- Perfect for gradual adoption in existing projects
Optimized reachability analysis: ~8% faster on large codebases

CLI Additions

--unused-resources - Detect unused Android resources
--unused-params - Detect unused function parameters
--incremental - Enable incremental analysis with caching
--clear-cache - Clear the analysis cache
--cache-path <FILE> - Custom cache file path
--baseline <FILE> - Use baseline to filter existing issues
--generate-baseline <FILE> - Generate baseline from current results
--watch - Watch mode for continuous monitoring

v0.3.0

Deep Analysis Mode

--deep flag: More aggressive dead code detection that analyzes individual members within classes
Suspend function detection: Properly handles Kotlin suspend functions and marks them as reachable when containing class is reachable
Flow pattern detection: Recognizes Kotlin Flow, StateFlow, SharedFlow patterns
Interface implementation tracking: Classes implementing reachable interfaces are now marked as reachable
Sealed class subtype tracking: All subtypes of reachable sealed classes are marked as reachable

Enhanced DI/Framework Support

Comprehensive annotation detection for Dagger, Hilt, Koin, Room, Retrofit
Methods with @Provides, @Binds, @Query, @GET, etc. are properly recognized as entry points
Skips DI entry points in deep analysis to avoid false positives

Kotlin Language Features

Companion object analysis: Properly tracks companion objects and their members
Lazy/delegated property detection: Properties using by lazy, by Delegates.observable(), etc.
Generic type argument tracking: Properly extracts and tracks type arguments from List<MyClass>, Map<K, V>, etc.
Class delegation: Detects class Foo : Bar by delegate patterns
Const val handling: Skips const val properties (inlined at compile time)
Data class methods: Skips auto-generated copy(), componentN(), equals(), hashCode(), toString()

Results

~23% reduction in false positives on real-world Android projects (deep mode)
~15% reduction in false positives (standard mode)

v0.2.0

New Features

ProGuard/R8 Integration: Use --proguard-usage to load R8's usage.txt for confirmed dead code detection
Hybrid Analysis: Combine static analysis with runtime coverage (JaCoCo, Kover, LCOV)
Confidence Scoring: Findings now have confidence levels (low/medium/high/confirmed)
Zombie Code Detection: Find mutually dependent dead code cycles with --detect-cycles
Runtime-Dead Code: Detect code that's reachable but never executed with --include-runtime-dead

CLI Additions

--proguard-usage <FILE> - Load ProGuard/R8 usage.txt
--coverage <FILE> - Load coverage data (can be repeated)
--min-confidence <LEVEL> - Filter by confidence level
--runtime-only - Only show runtime-confirmed findings
--include-runtime-dead - Include reachable but never-executed code
--detect-cycles - Enable zombie code cycle detection

Output Improvements

Confidence indicators in terminal output: ● ◉ ○ ◌
JSON schema v1.1 with confidence_score and runtime_confirmed fields
Better grouping and summary statistics

v0.1.0

Bug Fixes

Fixed extension function name extraction (no longer reported as <anonymous>)
Fixed generic type resolution (Focusable<T> now matches Focusable)
Fixed navigation expression references (obj.method() calls now detected)
Fixed ambiguous reference resolution (overloaded functions all marked as used)
Fixed glob pattern matching (**/test/** no longer matches /testproject/)
Fixed dry-run mode (no longer requires interactive terminal)

Improvements

Reduced false positives by ~51% on real-world Android projects
Better handling of Kotlin extension functions
Improved method call detection via navigation_suffix nodes
All CLI options working and tested

Performance

Target performance goals (achieved):

Codebase Size	Parse Time	Analysis Time
1,000 files	< 1s	< 0.5s
10,000 files	< 5s	< 2s
100,000 files	< 30s	< 10s

CI/CD Integration

GitHub Actions

name: Dead Code Check

on: [push, pull_request]

jobs:
  deadcode:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4

      - name: Install SearchDeadCode
        run: cargo install searchdeadcode

      - name: Run Dead Code Analysis
        run: searchdeadcode . --format sarif --output deadcode.sarif

      - name: Upload SARIF
        uses: github/codeql-action/upload-sarif@v2
        with:
          sarif_file: deadcode.sarif

GitLab CI

deadcode:
  stage: analyze
  script:
    - cargo install searchdeadcode
    - searchdeadcode . --format json --output deadcode.json
  artifacts:
    paths:
      - deadcode.json

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please:

Fork the repository
Create a feature branch
Write tests for new functionality
Ensure all tests pass (cargo test)
Submit a pull request

See AGENTS.md for the full contributor guide covering module layout, workflows, and review expectations.

References

Periphery - Swift dead code detector (architecture inspiration)
tree-sitter - Incremental parsing library
ripgrep - Fast file search (ignore crate)
ast-grep - Structural code search
rust-code-analysis - Mozilla's code analysis library

Dead Code Detection Paradigms & Research

This section documents the various paradigms and techniques used for dead code detection, based on research across industry tools and academic literature.

Overview of Detection Techniques

According to systematic literature reviews, there are two main approaches for automating dead code detection:

Approach	Description	Tools
Accessibility Analysis	Build dependency graph, traverse from entry points, mark unreachable as dead	Periphery, SearchDeadCode, R8/ProGuard
Data Flow Analysis	Track how data flows through program, identify unused computations	Compilers (DCE), Static analyzers

1. Graph-Based Reachability Analysis

This is the approach used by SearchDeadCode, inspired by Periphery:

Entry Points → Build Dependency Graph → DFS/BFS Traversal → Mark Reachable → Report Unreachable

How Periphery works:

Build project to generate the "index store" with declaration/reference info
Build in-memory graph of relational structure
Mutate graph to mark entry points
Traverse graph from roots to identify unreferenced declarations

Key insight: The index store contains detailed information about declarations and their references, enabling accurate cross-file analysis.

2. Static + Dynamic Hybrid Analysis (Meta's SCARF)

Meta's SCARF system combines multiple analysis techniques:

Capabilities:

Multi-language support: Java, Objective-C, JavaScript, Hack, Python
Symbol-level analysis: Analyzes individual variables, not just files/classes
Static analysis via Glean: Indexed, standardized format for static facts
Runtime monitoring: Observes actual code execution in production
Cycle detection: Detects mutually dependent dead code subgraphs

Impact at Meta:

Deleted 104+ million lines of code
Removed petabytes of deprecated data
370,000+ automated change requests

Key technique: SCARF tracks two metrics - static usage (code that appears to use data) and runtime usage (actual access patterns in production).

3. Tree Shaking (JavaScript Bundlers)

Webpack and Rollup popularized tree shaking:

"Start with what you need, and work outwards" vs "Start with everything, and work backwards"

Algorithm:

Build dependency graph from entry points
Identify all exports in modules
Trace which exports are actually imported/used
Eliminate code not reached during traversal

Requirements:

ES6 module syntax (import/export) - static structure required
CommonJS (require) cannot be tree-shaken due to dynamic nature

Webpack's implementation:

usedExports optimization marks unused exports
Terser performs final dead code elimination
Works at module boundary level

4. Compiler-Based Dead Code Elimination

R8/ProGuard for Android:

Process:

Entry points declared in ProGuard config
Search for all reachable code from entry points
Build list of reachable tokens
Strip anything not in the list

R8 advantages over ProGuard:

Faster (single-pass: shrink + optimize + dex)
Better Kotlin support
More aggressive inlining and class merging
~10% size reduction vs ProGuard's ~8.5%

5. Scope & Namespace Tracking

Tools like ReSharper use solution-wide analysis:

Capabilities:

Detect unused non-private members (requires whole-solution analysis)
Track namespace imports across files
Identify redundant type casts and unused variables
Real-time analysis during development

Key insight: Some dead code can only be detected at solution/project scope, not file scope.

6. Transitive Dependency Analysis

Tools like deptry (Python) and Knip (TypeScript):

Detects:

Unused dependencies (declared but not imported)
Missing dependencies (imported but not declared)
Transitive dependencies (used but only available through other packages)

Multi-module support:

Analyze relationships between workspaces
Understand monorepo dependency structure
Detect cross-module dead code

7. Compiler Optimization Techniques

From compiler theory (Wikipedia - Dead Code Elimination):

Data Flow Analysis:

Build Control Flow Graph (CFG)
Perform liveness analysis
Identify variables written but never read
Remove unreachable basic blocks

Escape Analysis:

Determine dynamic scope of pointers
Enable stack allocation for non-escaping objects
Remove synchronization for thread-local objects

SSA-based DCE:

Static Single Assignment form simplifies analysis
Each variable assigned exactly once
Dead assignments easily identified

8. Incremental Analysis (Large Codebases)

For large codebases, incremental analysis is essential:

Techniques:

Caching: Store cryptographic hashes of analysis results
Memoization: Reuse unchanged computation results
Dependency tracking: Only re-analyze affected code
Index stores: Pre-computed declaration/reference indexes

Tools using incremental analysis:

Glean (Meta) - Incremental indexing
Roslyn - Incremental generators with aggressive caching
Periphery - Index store from compiler

Comparison of Approaches

Paradigm	Accuracy	Speed	Scope	Best For
Graph Reachability	High	Fast	Project	General dead code
Static + Dynamic	Highest	Slow	Organization	Production code
Tree Shaking	High	Fast	Bundle	JavaScript modules
Compiler DCE	Highest	Build-time	Binary	Release builds
Scope Analysis	Medium	Real-time	IDE	Development feedback
Coverage-based	Medium	Requires runtime	Executed paths	Test coverage gaps

Challenges & Limitations

Halting Problem: Theoretically impossible to find ALL dead code deterministically
Reflection: Dynamically invoked code cannot be detected statically
Polymorphism: Must know all possible types for method resolution
Configuration: Code referenced in XML, properties files, etc.
Dynamic Languages: Less static structure = harder analysis

Future Improvements for SearchDeadCode

Based on this research, potential enhancements include:

Feature	Description	Inspiration	Status
Symbol-level analysis	Track individual variables, not just declarations	Meta SCARF	✅ Done (v0.3.0 deep mode)
Cycle detection	Find mutually dependent dead code	Meta SCARF	✅ Done (v0.2.0)
Coverage integration	Augment static analysis with runtime data	Hybrid tools	✅ Done (v0.2.0)
Incremental mode	Cache results, only re-analyze changes	Glean, Roslyn	Planned
Transitive tracking	Track full reference chains	deptry, Knip	Partial
Cross-module analysis	Analyze multi-module projects holistically	Knip	Planned

Advanced Dead Code Patterns - Prioritized Implementation Roadmap

This section documents advanced dead code patterns beyond traditional "unreferenced code" detection. These patterns represent code that executes but serves no purpose - a more insidious form of technical debt.

Based on analysis of real-world Android codebases (1800+ files), we've prioritized these patterns by:

Detectability: How accurately can static analysis find this? (High/Medium/Low)
Frequency: How common is this pattern? (Based on real-world codebase analysis)
Impact: How much wasted code/resources? (High/Medium/Low)

Priority Tier 1: High Impact, High Detectability ⭐⭐⭐

These patterns are common, easy to detect, and represent significant waste.

#	Pattern	Detectability	Frequency	Description
1	Write-Only Variables	High	58+ occurrences	Variables assigned but never read (`private var x = 0` without reads)
2	Unused Sealed Class Variants	High	73 sealed classes	Sealed class/interface cases that are never instantiated
3	Override Methods That Only Call Super	High	284 overrides	`override fun onCreate() { super.onCreate() }` - adds no value
4	Ignored Return Values	High	Common	`list.map { transform(it) }` without using the result
5	Empty Catch Blocks	High	Common	`catch (e: Exception) { }` - swallowed errors
6	Unused Intent Extras	High	90 putExtra calls	`intent.putExtra("key", value)` where "key" is never read
7	Write-Only SharedPreferences	High	Medium	`prefs.edit().putString("x", y).apply()` where "x" is never read
8	Write-Only Database Tables	High	16 DAOs	`@Insert` without corresponding `@Query` usage
9	Redundant Null Checks	High	Common	`user?.let { if (it != null) }` - double null check
10	Dead Feature Flags	Medium	388 isEnabled	`if (RemoteConfig.isFeatureEnabled())` where flag is always true/false

Priority Tier 2: Medium Impact, High Detectability ⭐⭐

Detectable patterns with moderate frequency.

#	Pattern	Detectability	Frequency	Description
11	Unobserved LiveData/StateFlow	Medium	64 collectors	`_state.value = x` where `_state` is never observed in UI
12	Unused Constructor Parameters	High	Medium	Parameters passed to constructor but never used
13	Middle-Man Classes	Medium	Low	Classes that only delegate to other classes with no added logic
14	Lazy Classes	Medium	Low	Classes with minimal logic that could be inlined
15	Invariants Always True/False	High	Common	`if (list.size >= 0)` - always true
16	Cache Write Without Read	Medium	Medium	`cache.save(data)` but always fetching from network
17	Analytics Events Never Analyzed	Low	253 log calls	Events tracked but no dashboard configured
18	Unused Type Parameters	High	Low	`class Foo<T>` where T is never used in the class
19	Dead Migrations	Medium	Low	Database migrations for versions no user has anymore
20	Listeners Never Triggered	Medium	Medium	`view.setOnClickListener { }` on views that can't be clicked

Priority Tier 3: High Impact, Lower Detectability ⭐

High-value patterns that require more sophisticated analysis.

#	Pattern	Detectability	Frequency	Description
21	Dormant Code Reactivated (Knight Capital Bug)	Low	Rare	Old code accidentally enabled by feature flags
22	Defensive Copies Never Modified	Medium	Low	`val copy = list.toMutableList()` but copy never mutated
23	Calculations Overwritten Immediately	Medium	Low	`var x = expensiveCalc(); x = otherValue`
24	Partially Dead Code	Medium	Medium	Code only used on some branches but computed on all
25	Recalculation of Available Values	Medium	Low	`val h1 = data.hash(); ... val h2 = data.hash()`
26	Audit Logs Never Queried	Low	Low	`auditDao.insert(log)` with no read methods
27	Breadcrumbs Without Consumer	Low	Low	Navigation history saved but never displayed
28	Event Bus Without Subscribers	Medium	Low	`eventBus.post(event)` with no `@Subscribe` for that event type
29	Coroutines Launched Then Cancelled	Low	Medium	Jobs cancelled before completing meaningful work
30	Workers That Produce Unused Output	Low	Low	WorkManager jobs whose results are never consumed

Priority Tier 4: Specialized Patterns ⭐

Domain-specific or less common patterns.

#	Pattern	Detectability	Frequency	Description
31	Annotations Without Effect	Medium	Low	`@Keep` when ProGuard isn't configured to use it
32	Validation After The Fact	Medium	Low	`db.insert(x); require(x.isValid)` - too late
33	Unused Debug Logging	High	253 Timber calls	Logs in production that output to nowhere
34	Semi-Dead Classes	Medium	Low	Classes used as types but never instantiated
35	Test-Only Code in Production	High	Medium	Code only referenced by tests, never production
36	Timestamps Never Used	Medium	Low	`updatedAt` field maintained but never queried
37	Serializable Without Serialization	Medium	Low	`@Serializable` on classes never serialized
38	Crashlytics Keys Never Filtered	Low	Low	Custom keys set but never used in dashboard
39	Threads Spawned Without Work	Low	Rare	Executor pools with empty task queues
40	Configuration Values Never Read	Medium	Medium	Properties defined but never accessed

Implementation Phases

Based on the priority analysis, here's the recommended implementation order:

Phase 9: Write-Only Detection (Highest ROI)

Priority: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Patterns: #1, #7, #8, #26
Estimated dead code found: 15-25% increase

Detectors to implement:

WriteOnlyVariableDetector - Variables assigned but never read
WriteOnlyPreferenceDetector - SharedPreferences written but never read
WriteOnlyDatabaseDetector - DAO methods with @Insert but no @Query callers

Algorithm:

For each variable/property, track all assignments (writes)
Track all reads (usages that don't assign)
If writes > 0 && reads == 0, report as write-only

Phase 10: Sealed Class & Override Analysis

Priority: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Patterns: #2, #3
Estimated dead code found: 10-15% increase

Detectors to implement:

UnusedSealedVariantDetector - Sealed subclasses never instantiated
RedundantOverrideDetector - Overrides that only call super

Algorithm for sealed variants:

Find all sealed class/interface definitions
Find all subclasses/implementations
For each subclass, check if it's ever instantiated (constructor called)
Report never-instantiated subclasses

Phase 11: Intent & Data Flow

Priority: ⭐⭐⭐
Patterns: #4, #6, #9
Estimated dead code found: 5-10% increase

Detectors to implement:

IgnoredReturnValueDetector - Function results not captured
UnusedIntentExtraDetector - putExtra without getExtra
RedundantNullCheckDetector - Double null checks

Phase 12: Observable State Analysis

Priority: ⭐⭐
Patterns: #10, #11, #16
Estimated dead code found: 5-8% increase

Detectors to implement:

DeadFeatureFlagDetector - Flags always true/false
UnobservedStateDetector - StateFlow/LiveData never collected
WriteOnlyCacheDetector - Cache writes without reads

Phase 13: Advanced Flow Analysis

Priority: ⭐
Patterns: #21-30
Estimated dead code found: 2-5% increase

Detectors to implement:

PartiallyDeadCodeDetector - Code used only on some paths
RecalculationDetector - Redundant recomputation
EventBusOrphanDetector - Events without subscribers

Pattern Detection Examples

Write-Only Variable (#1)

class Analytics {
    private var lastEventTime: Long = 0  // DEAD: never read

    fun track(event: Event) {
        lastEventTime = System.currentTimeMillis()  // write-only
        send(event)
    }
}

Unused Sealed Variant (#2)

sealed class UiState {
    object Loading : UiState()          // Used
    data class Success(val data: Data) : UiState()  // Used
    data class Error(val msg: String) : UiState()   // Used
    object Empty : UiState()            // DEAD: never emitted
}

Override Only Calling Super (#3)

override fun onCreateView(...): View {
    return super.onCreateView(inflater, container, savedInstanceState)
    // DEAD: If this is all it does, the override is unnecessary
}

Write-Only Database (#8)

@Dao
interface ReadHistoryDao {
    @Insert(onConflict = OnConflictStrategy.REPLACE)
    suspend fun saveReadArticle(history: ReadHistory)  // Called

    @Query("SELECT * FROM read_history ORDER BY timestamp DESC")
    fun getReadHistory(): Flow<List<ReadHistory>>  // DEAD: never called!
}

Ignored Return Value (#4)

// DEAD: The sorted list is never used
articles.sortedByDescending { it.date }
adapter.submitList(articles)  // Still the original unsorted list!

Dead Feature Flag (#10)

// The flag has been true for 2 years
if (RemoteConfig.isNewPlayerEnabled()) {  // Always true
    playWithExoPlayer()
} else {
    playWithMediaPlayer()  // DEAD: never executed
}

Codebase Analysis Results

From our analysis of a real-world Android project (1806 files):

Pattern Category	Occurrences	Potential Dead Code
Timber/Log calls	253	~50% may be production-silent
Override methods	284	~10-20% may only call super
Intent extras (putExtra)	90	~30% may be unread
Sealed classes	73	~5-10% may have unused variants
Feature flags	388	~20% may be dead branches
Flow collectors	64	~10% may be unobserved
Map operations	72	~5% may have ignored results
Private vars	58	~20% may be write-only
DAO @Insert methods	16	~10% may be write-only tables
DAO @Query methods	49	(Need cross-reference analysis)

Estimated additional dead code: Using these advanced detectors could identify 30-50% more dead code beyond current detection.

Manual Investigation Results - Verified Examples

Through thorough manual investigation of a real-world Android codebase, we verified the following concrete examples:

Confirmed Write-Only Variables (Pattern #1)

Example 1: feedStartUpdatingTimestamp in NewsToolbarController.kt:65

private var feedStartUpdatingTimestamp = 0L  // Line 65

// Only written, never read:
feedStartUpdatingTimestamp = timeService.now().toInstant().toEpochMilli()  // Line 102

File: feature-news/src/main/java/com/example/feed/news/toolbar/NewsToolbarController.kt

Example 2: Same pattern in ShowcaseToolbarController.kt:50

private var feedStartUpdatingTimestamp = 0L  // Line 50

// Only written, never read:
feedStartUpdatingTimestamp = timeService.now().toInstant().toEpochMilli()  // Line 124

File: feature-showcase/src/main/java/com/example/feed/showcase/ui/toolbar/ShowcaseToolbarController.kt

Impact: 2 confirmed write-only variables that store timestamps but never use them.

Confirmed Empty Override Methods (Pattern #3)

Found 20+ empty override methods that add no value:

File	Line	Method
`ShowcaseToolbarController.kt`	137	`override fun onFragmentViewDestroyed() {}`
`ListViewsFactory.kt`	30	`override fun onCreate() {}`
`ListViewsFactory.kt`	46	`override fun onDestroy() {}`
`StartupAdController.kt`	248	`override fun onActivityStarted(activity: Activity) {}`
`StartupAdController.kt`	249	`override fun onActivityPaused(activity: Activity) {}`
`StartupAdController.kt`	250	`override fun onActivityStopped(activity: Activity) {}`
`StartupAdController.kt`	251	`override fun onActivitySaveInstanceState(activity: Activity, outState: Bundle) {}`
`TimeViewHolder.kt`	76	`override fun unbind() {}`
`MenuFeedDataSource.kt`	27	`override fun onAdapterViewBinded(position: Int) {}`
`SingleScrollDirectionEnforcer.kt`	44	`override fun onTouchEvent(rv: RecyclerView, e: MotionEvent) {}`
`SingleScrollDirectionEnforcer.kt`	46	`override fun onRequestDisallowInterceptTouchEvent(disallowIntercept: Boolean) {}`
`MultipleCardFragment.kt`	139, 149, 151	Empty animation listener methods

Impact: These are interface requirements but represent code that does nothing.

Patterns NOT Found (False Positives Avoided)

During investigation, these patterns were verified as properly used (NOT dead code):

GlucheStatusDao.get() - Initially looked write-only but is called via GlucheRepositoryImpl.getGluchePostStatus()
BannerDao.exists() - Called via BannerRepository.isDismissed()
beNotificationID/Secret preferences - Both written and read in BackEndNotificationService.kt
intervalCheckInMilliseconds - Assigned in init and read in scheduleVerifyIfServerHasNewPosts()
newDeepLinkIntent - Both getter and setter are used across multiple files

This validates that our detection algorithm must follow the full call chain through repositories and services.

Detection Algorithm Requirements

Based on the investigation, the Write-Only Variable detector must:

Track all assignments to private variables
Track all reads (usages that don't assign)
Exclude reads inside the assignment expression (x = x + 1 counts x as read)
Handle property delegates (by lazy, by BooleanPreferenceDelegate)
Handle backing fields with custom getters/setters
Report if: writes > 0 && reads == 0

The Empty Override detector must:

Find all override fun declarations
Check if body is empty or only contains super.method()
Exclude: Abstract implementations where empty is intentional (e.g., LifecycleObserver)
Report with confidence level based on interface type

What's Next

Planned features and improvements for future releases:

Completed Phases

Phase 5: Performance & Scale ✅

Incremental analysis - Cache parsed ASTs and only re-analyze changed files (--incremental)
Watch mode - Continuous analysis during development (--watch)
Optimized reachability - ~8% faster analysis on large codebases
Parallel graph construction - Parallelize reference resolution phase
Memory optimization - Reduce memory footprint for very large codebases (100k+ files)

Phase 6: Enhanced Detection ✅

Unused function parameters - Detect parameters that are never used in function body (--unused-params)
Dead string resources - Cross-reference R.string.* usage with strings.xml (--unused-resources)
Redundant null checks - Detect null checks on non-nullable types
Unused type parameters - Detect generic type parameters that aren't used
Unused Gradle dependencies - Detect declared but unused library dependencies

Phase 7: CI Integration ✅ (Partial)

Baseline support - Ignore existing dead code, only flag new issues (--baseline)
Language Server Protocol (LSP) - Real-time dead code highlighting in editors
IntelliJ/Android Studio plugin - Native IDE integration
GitHub Action - Pre-built action for easy CI setup
Pre-commit hook - Block commits introducing dead code

Upcoming Phases

Phase 8: Multi-Platform

iOS/Swift support - Extend to Swift/Objective-C projects
React Native - Analyze both native and JavaScript layers
Flutter/Dart - Support Dart language analysis
KMP (Kotlin Multiplatform) - Proper shared code analysis

Phase 9: Write-Only Detection ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Next Priority)

Write-only variables - Variables assigned but never read
Write-only SharedPreferences - prefs.putString() without getString()
Write-only database tables - @Insert without @Query consumers
Write-only cache - Cache writes that are never read

Phase 10: Sealed Class & Override Analysis ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Unused sealed variants - Sealed class cases never instantiated
Redundant overrides - Override methods that only call super

Phase 11: Intent & Data Flow ⭐⭐⭐

Ignored return values - list.map{} without capturing result
Unused intent extras - putExtra() without getExtra()
Redundant null checks - Double null checks after safe calls

Phase 12: Observable State ⭐⭐

Dead feature flags - Flags always true/false
Unobserved StateFlow/LiveData - State never collected in UI

Phase 13: Advanced Flow Analysis ⭐

Partially dead code - Code computed on all paths but used on some
Recalculation detection - Redundant recomputation of available values
Event bus orphans - Events posted without subscribers

Contributing to Future Development

Want to help? Here are good first issues:

Add new annotation support - Easy: add annotation names to entry_points.rs
Improve XML parsing - Medium: add support for more XML attributes
Write tests - Medium: add test cases for edge cases
Performance profiling - Advanced: identify and fix bottlenecks
LSP implementation - Advanced: implement language server protocol

See CONTRIBUTING.md for development setup and guidelines.

Research Sources

License

MIT

searchdeadcode 0.4.0

SearchDeadCode

Features

Detection Capabilities

Safe Delete

Quick Start

Installation

Usage

Basic Analysis

Output Formats

Hybrid Analysis (Static + Dynamic)

Using Runtime Coverage

Confidence Levels

Runtime-Dead Code Detection

ProGuard/R8 Integration

Generating usage.txt

Using with SearchDeadCode

Real-World Example

Sample Output with ProGuard Integration

What This Provides

Important Notes

Zombie Code / Cycle Detection

Unused Function Parameters Detection

Unused Android Resources Detection

How It Works

Example Output

Real-World Results

Common False Positives to Ignore

Deep Analysis Mode

Terminal Output Example

JSON Output Format

Filtering

Safe Delete

Dry-Run Output Example

Configuration

Configuration File

YAML Configuration Example

TOML Configuration Example

CLI Reference

Complete Command Examples

Detection Types

1. Unused Classes/Interfaces

2. Unused Methods/Functions

3. Unused Properties/Fields

4. Assign-Only Properties

5. Unused Parameters

6. Unused Imports

7. Unused Enum Cases

8. Redundant Public Modifiers

9. Dead Branches

Android-Specific Handling

Auto-Retained Entry Points

XML Parsing

Test Code Handling

Architecture

Technology Stack

Project Structure

Implementation Status

Core Analysis

Hybrid Analysis (Static + Dynamic)

Deep Analysis Mode

Output & Refactoring

Known Limitations

Troubleshooting

"No Kotlin or Java files found"

False Positives

Extension Functions Named <anonymous>

Generic Types Not Matching

Glob Patterns Matching Wrong Paths

Changelog

v0.4.0 (Current)

v0.3.0

v0.2.0

v0.1.0

Performance

CI/CD Integration

GitHub Actions

GitLab CI

Contributing

References

Extension Functions Named `<anonymous>`