# Correct syntax for vfs refreshing just a set of directories

**URL:** <https://forum.rclone.org/t/correct-syntax-for-vfs-refreshing-just-a-set-of-directories/21566>\
**Category:** Help and Support\
**Created:** [January 10, 2021, 6:12pm UTC](https://forum.rclone.org/t/correct-syntax-for-vfs-refreshing-just-a-set-of-directories/21566 "2021-01-10T18:12:26Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![ashlar](https://forum.rclone.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/a/9d8465/32.png) [@ashlar](https://forum.rclone.org/u/ashlar)\
**Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 6:12pm UTC](https://forum.rclone.org/t/correct-syntax-for-vfs-refreshing-just-a-set-of-directories/21566/1 "2021-01-10T18:12:26Z")

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A simple question (hopefully). I have my HTPC sleeping for most of the time, woken up by remote control.

As such, when it wakes up, content added on mounted Google Drive resource is not necessarily updated.

To updated a given set of resources which command line is correct between these two?

rclone rc vfs/refresh dir="Movies" dir2="Movies 2" dir3="TV Shows" dir4="Movies 4k" dir5="Anime" dir6="Documentaries" dir7="Documentaries 4K" recursive=true

rclone rc vfs/refresh dir="Movies" dir2="Movies 2" dir3="TV Shows" dir4="Movies 4k" dir5="Anime" dir6="Documentaries" dir7="Documentaries 4K"

Basically, is recursive=true needed to refresh all the content of directories give with the argument dir#= or not? Documentation could be clearer on this, for instance the need to use dir, dir2, dir3, dir4, etc. has to be guessed by the example provided, it's not in the documentation, only in the example.

"If the parameter recursive=true is given the whole directory tree will get refreshed" is meant for the whole directory tree _below_ the dir= provided or for everything?

Also, it says "This refresh will use --fast-list if enabled."  
The Google Drive storage system supports --fast-list, is it something that would make the above refresh significantly faster? Again, reading the documentation I could not come up with a sure answer.

Sorry, everything I say about documentation is not meant as a criticism, I just might be thicker than the average user. 🙂

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**Author:** ![asdffdsa](https://forum.rclone.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@asdffdsa](https://forum.rclone.org/u/asdffdsa)\
**Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 6:17pm UTC](https://forum.rclone.org/t/correct-syntax-for-vfs-refreshing-just-a-set-of-directories/21566/2 "2021-01-10T18:17:05Z")

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the folder is relative to the root folder of the mount.

in my case i use this, including the leading slash.

`rc vfs/refresh dir=/en07data/data/rclone/backup recursive=true`  
that would refresh that dir and everything below it

`rc vfs/refresh recursive=true`  
the dir is implied as `/`, the root of the mount.

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**Author:** ![ashlar](https://forum.rclone.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/a/9d8465/32.png) [@ashlar](https://forum.rclone.org/u/ashlar)\
**Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 6:26pm UTC](https://forum.rclone.org/t/correct-syntax-for-vfs-refreshing-just-a-set-of-directories/21566/3 "2021-01-10T18:26:26Z")

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Ok, thank you. So to get the result I want I would need to use the recursive option. Can it be used with multiple directories the way I did it? Is the syntax correct?

I use " because of spaces in directory names (under Windows OS).

Also I'd like to understand if --fast--list would be helpful or detrimental in this use case.

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**Author:** ![asdffdsa](https://forum.rclone.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@asdffdsa](https://forum.rclone.org/u/asdffdsa)\
**Post date:** [January 10, 2021, 6:31pm UTC](https://forum.rclone.org/t/correct-syntax-for-vfs-refreshing-just-a-set-of-directories/21566/4 "2021-01-10T18:31:43Z")

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> [@ashlar](#):
>
> Can it be used with multiple directories

yes

always use `--fast-list`

if not sure, then run the command with debug output and read the output.

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**Author:** ![system](https://forum.rclone.org/uploads/default/original/2X/3/39ad3235f6ffec76ccd0c81616bd55697b4c300d.png) [@system](https://forum.rclone.org/u/system)\
**Post date:** [March 12, 2021, 2:31pm UTC](https://forum.rclone.org/t/correct-syntax-for-vfs-refreshing-just-a-set-of-directories/21566/5 "2021-03-12T14:31:44Z")

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Closed on March 12, 2021, 2:31pm UTC

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