Repository Analysis

RsyncProject/rsync

An open source utility that provides fast incremental file transfer. It also has useful features for backup and restore operations among many other use cases.

4.2 Likely human-written View on GitHub

Analysis Overview

This report presents the forensic synthetic code analysis of RsyncProject/rsync, a C project with 5,073 GitHub stars. SynthScan v2.0 examined 103,000 lines of code across 314 source files, recording 311 pattern matches distributed across 12 syntactic categories. The overall adjusted score of 4.2 places this repository in the Likely human-written band.

The scanner applied 160+ deterministic lexical heuristics, multi-line block detectors, abstract syntax tree depth profilers, and a cross-file Jaccard similarity matrix to construct a statistically normalised synthetic code estimate. All matches are individually weighted by severity coefficient and contextual multiplier before summation, and the resulting headline score is temporally discounted to account for the repository's development history relative to the commercial emergence of large language model coding tooling (November 2022 onward).

4.2
Adjusted Score
4.2
Raw Score
100%
Time Factor
2026-07-20
Last Push
5.1K
Stars
C
Language
103.0K
Lines of Code
314
Files
311
Pattern Hits
2026-08-02
Scan Date
0.04
HC Hit Rate

What These Metrics Mean

Adjusted Score
Primary synthetic code indicator. Raw score normalised per 1,000 lines of code and multiplied by the temporal discount factor. This is the definitive comparative metric — use it to rank repositories by AI authorship density.
Raw Score
The unmodified sum of all severity-weighted, context-multiplied pattern match scores before temporal discounting. Reflects the absolute signal strength independent of when the repository was last active.
Time Factor
The temporal discount multiplier (0–100%) applied to the raw score. Repositories last updated before ChatGPT's launch (Nov 2022) receive a 5% factor. Full signal is only assigned to repositories active in the post-adoption era (Jan 2024+).
Pattern Hits
Total count of individual pattern matches across all files and categories. A high hit count with a low score may indicate a very large codebase with isolated AI snippets; a low count with a high score indicates dense, concentrated AI signatures.
HC Hit Rate
High+Critical pattern hits per file, averaged across the repository. This orthogonal signal catches repositories where a few files are densely packed with high-severity AI tells — a strong indicator even when the normalised score appears moderate due to codebase size.
Lines of Code / Files
Total lines and files analysed. The scanner examines 94 file extensions. These denominators are used to normalise the score, enabling fair comparison between repositories of vastly different sizes.

Score History

Longitudinal tracking requires multiple scan runs. Once this repository is re-scanned after new commits land, this chart will visualise how the synthetic code signal evolves over time — enabling you to detect whether AI authorship is growing, stabilising, or being actively corrected by human engineers.

No multi-scan history yet — run the scanner again to build trend data.

Severity Breakdown

Classifies detected patterns by their diagnostic confidence and structural impact. CRITICAL patterns (coefficient 10) represent definitive synthetic signatures — hallucinated imports, explicit LLM attribution metadata — virtually never produced by human authors. HIGH (5) indicates strong structural tells such as cross-file repetition or cross-linguistic idioms. MEDIUM (2) covers recognisable conversational padding and AI-specific vocabulary. LOW (1) captures subtle indicators like tautological comments and generic boilerplate that require density to carry independent signal.

CRITICAL 0HIGH 12MEDIUM 43LOW 256

Directory Score Breakdown

This horizontal bar chart decomposes the repository's raw synthetic code score by top-level directory, allowing you to pinpoint precisely which modules or components carry the highest AI authorship density. Directories with disproportionately high scores relative to their size warrant targeted manual review: concentrated AI signatures often trace back to mass-generated configuration layers, auto-ported test suites, LLM-scaffolded boilerplate classes, or entire subsystems authored under heavy copilot assistance. Use this view to prioritise your human code-review effort.

Pattern Findings

The scanner identified 311 distinct pattern matches across 12 syntactic categories. Each entry below represents a discrete location in the source code where the engine recorded a statistically significant AI authorship indicator. Expand any category row to inspect the individual file paths, line numbers, code snippets, and the lexical context (CODE, COMMENT, or STRING) in which each match was detected.

Reading the findings table: The Severity column indicates the diagnostic confidence level (CRITICAL / HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW). The Context column identifies whether the match occurred inside executable code, an inline comment, or a string literal — comment-context matches receive a ×1.5 weight because LLMs systematically over-annotate. The ⚡ bolt icon marks clustered matches: three or more patterns within a 10-line window, each receiving an additional ×1.5 density multiplier as dense clusters constitute far stronger evidence of synthetic authorship than isolated hits.

Over-Commented Block178 hits · 159 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
LOWerrcode.h21/* If you change these, please also update the string mappings in log.c andCOMMENT
LOWerrcode.h61#define RERR_CMD_FAILED 124COMMENT
LOWversion.h1#define RSYNC_VERSION "3.5.0dev"COMMENT
LOWloadparm.c101#endifCOMMENT
LOWloadparm.c121 { LOG_MAIL, "mail" },COMMENT
LOWloadparm.c141#ifdef LOG_LOCAL1COMMENT
LOWrsync.h21#define False 0COMMENT
LOWrsync.h41/* a non-zero CHAR_OFFSET makes the rolling sum stronger, but isCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h61#define XMIT_USER_NAME_FOLLOWS (1<<10) /* protocols 30 - now */COMMENT
LOWrsync.h81#define FLAG_CONTENT_DIR (1<<2) /* sender/receiver/generator */COMMENT
LOWrsync.h141 * MAX_PROTOCOL_VERSION: either to allow new major-rev versions thatCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h201#define LINK_DEST 3COMMENT
LOWrsync.h221#define MSG_FLUSH 2COMMENT
LOWrsync.h241#define ITEM_REPORT_TIME (1<<3)COMMENT
LOWrsync.h301 MSG_NO_SEND=102,/* sender failed to open a file we wanted */COMMENT
LOWrsync.h341COMMENT
LOWrsync.h361# include <memory.h>COMMENT
LOWrsync.h381#ifdef HAVE_SYS_PARAM_HCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h401#ifdef HAVE_SYS_FCNTL_HCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h421#ifdef HAVE_GRP_HCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h441COMMENT
LOWrsync.h461#endifCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h481#ifdef HAVE_SYS_FILE_HCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h501#include <sys/mkdev.h>COMMENT
LOWrsync.h521#ifdef __TANDEMCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h541#define ICONV_CONSTCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h561typedef unsigned int id_t;COMMENT
LOWrsync.h581#define uchar unsigned charCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h601#elseCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h621#elif SIZEOF_INT == 4COMMENT
LOWrsync.h641#endifCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h661COMMENT
LOWrsync.h681# define int64 off64_tCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h721#define HT_NODE(tbl, bkts, i) ((void*)((char*)(bkts) + (i)*(tbl)->node_size))COMMENT
LOWrsync.h741#ifndef MAXPATHLENCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h761#ifndef INADDR_NONECOMMENT
LOWrsync.h781#define PREALLOCATE_NEEDS_TRUNCATE 1COMMENT
LOWrsync.h841extern int pathname_ndx;COMMENT
LOWrsync.h861#define OPT_EXTRA(f,bump) ((union file_extras*)(f) - file_extra_cnt - 1 - (bump))COMMENT
LOWrsync.h881#define F_MOD_NSEC(f) OPT_EXTRA(f, 0)->unumCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h901#define F_XATTR(f) REQ_EXTRA(f, xattrs_ndx)->numCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h921#define F_SUM(f) ((char*)OPT_EXTRA(f, START_BUMP(f) + HLINK_BUMP(f) \COMMENT
LOWrsync.h1021#define FILTRULE_DIRECTORY (1<<6) /* this matches only directories */COMMENT
LOWrsync.h1101} xbuf;COMMENT
LOWrsync.h1121#define RL_EOL_NULLS (1<<0)COMMENT
LOWrsync.h1141#include "lib/mdigest.h"COMMENT
LOWrsync.h1161 time_t crtime;COMMENT
LOWrsync.h1201#define read_buf read_buf_COMMENT
LOWrsync.h1221#endifCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h1241#endifCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h1261#define SIGACTION(n,h) signal(n,h)COMMENT
LOWrsync.h1281#define S_IRUSR 0400COMMENT
LOWrsync.h1301COMMENT
LOWrsync.h1321#elseCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h1341COMMENT
LOWrsync.h1401#endifCOMMENT
LOWrsync.h1421#define MY_UID() geteuid()COMMENT
LOWrsync.h1441#define DEBUG_GTE(flag, lvl) (debug_levels[DEBUG_##flag] >= (lvl))COMMENT
LOWrsync.h1461#define DEBUG_BACKUP (DEBUG_ACL+1)COMMENT
LOWrsync.h1481#define DEBUG_RECV (DEBUG_PROTO+1)COMMENT
118 more matches not shown…
Decorative Section Separators34 hits · 96 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
MEDIUMtestsuite/abdiff.py44# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/abdiff.py136# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/abdiff.py270# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/abdiff.py495# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/abdiff.py544# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/abdiff.py715# ===========================================================================COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/abdiff.py722# ===========================================================================COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/abdiff.py2475# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/perftest.py47# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/perftest.py49# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/perftest.py229# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/perftest.py231# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/perftest.py322# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/perftest.py324# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/perftest.py390# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/perftest.py392# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py189# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py191# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py731# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py733# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py236# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py238# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py256# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py258# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py280# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py282# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py344# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py346# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py444# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py446# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py542# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py544# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------COMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py868# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------STRING
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py870# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------STRING
Cross-Language Confusion8 hits · 61 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
HIGHtestsuite/fleettest.py190# command execution (ssh for remote, local shell when ssh_host is null)COMMENT
HIGHtestsuite/fleettest.py787 command -v pgrep >/dev/null 2>&1 || return 0CODE
HIGHtestsuite/fleettest.py789 [ "$before" -gt 0 ] 2>/dev/null || return 0CODE
HIGHtestsuite/fleettest.py795 [ "$killed" -gt 0 ] 2>/dev/null && echo "KILLED $killed stray $1(s)"CODE
HIGHtestsuite/fleettest.py796 if [ "$after" -gt 0 ] 2>/dev/null; thenCODE
HIGHtestsuite/fleettest.py805 if rm -rf -- "$d" 2>/dev/null || sudo -n rm -rf -- "$d" 2>/dev/null; thenCODE
HIGHtestsuite/fleettest.py805 if rm -rf -- "$d" 2>/dev/null || sudo -n rm -rf -- "$d" 2>/dev/null; thenCODE
HIGHtestsuite/fleettest.py294 f'{t.make} -j{t.pipe_jobs} check-progs || exit 5\n'CODE
Unused Imports47 hits · 46 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
LOWpackaging/release.py19CODE
LOWpackaging/release.py24CODE
LOWpackaging/release.py24CODE
LOWpackaging/release.py24CODE
LOWtestsuite/filter-depth_test.py11CODE
LOWtestsuite/filter-depth_test.py13CODE
LOWtestsuite/metadata-depth_test.py13CODE
LOWtestsuite/exclude_test.py17CODE
LOWtestsuite/exclude_test.py17CODE
LOWtestsuite/ssh-basic_test.py41CODE
LOWtestsuite/acls_test.py9CODE
LOWtestsuite/hardlinks_test.py14CODE
LOWtestsuite/files-from_test.py8CODE
LOWtestsuite/daemon-refuse_test.py12CODE
LOWtestsuite/rsyncfns.py18CODE
LOWtestsuite/missing_test.py12CODE
LOWtestsuite/abdiff.py25CODE
LOWtestsuite/dir-sgid_test.py9CODE
LOWtestsuite/acls-depth_test.py10CODE
LOWtestsuite/symlink-dirlink-basis_test.py20CODE
LOWtestsuite/daemon_test.py16CODE
LOWtestsuite/daemon_test.py16CODE
LOWtestsuite/daemon_test.py16CODE
LOWtestsuite/itemize_test.py11CODE
LOWtestsuite/itemize_test.py11CODE
LOWtestsuite/batch-mode_test.py8CODE
LOWtestsuite/fleettest.py67CODE
LOWtestsuite/delete-deep_test.py11CODE
LOWtestsuite/size-filter_test.py9CODE
LOWtestsuite/chmod-option_test.py10CODE
LOWtestsuite/backup_test.py12CODE
LOWtestsuite/00-hello_test.py10CODE
LOWtestsuite/devices_test.py14CODE
LOWtestsuite/devices_test.py14CODE
LOWtestsuite/devices_test.py14CODE
LOWtestsuite/devices_test.py14CODE
LOWtestsuite/devices_test.py14CODE
LOWtestsuite/proxy-response-line-too-long_test.py16CODE
LOWtestsuite/chdir-symlink-race_test.py15CODE
LOWtestsuite/chdir-symlink-race_test.py15CODE
LOWtestsuite/chdir-symlink-race_test.py15CODE
LOWtestsuite/delete_test.py12CODE
LOWtestsuite/delete_test.py13CODE
LOWtestsuite/alt-dest_test.py10CODE
LOWtestsuite/alt-dest_test.py13CODE
LOWtestsuite/alt-dest_test.py13CODE
LOWtestsuite/temp-dir_test.py19CODE
Deep Nesting23 hits · 22 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
LOWruntests.py136CODE
LOWruntests.py205CODE
LOWruntests.py302CODE
LOWruntests.py378CODE
LOWpackaging/pkglib.py26CODE
LOWpackaging/pkglib.py174CODE
LOWpackaging/pkglib.py209CODE
LOWpackaging/release.py176CODE
LOWpackaging/release.py290CODE
LOWtestsuite/rsyncfns.py448CODE
LOWtestsuite/rsyncfns.py661CODE
LOWtestsuite/abdiff.py173CODE
LOWtestsuite/abdiff.py1803CODE
LOWtestsuite/abdiff.py2248CODE
LOWtestsuite/abdiff.py2550CODE
LOWtestsuite/abdiff.py2712CODE
LOWtestsuite/perftest.py170CODE
LOWtestsuite/perftest.py282CODE
LOWtestsuite/perftest.py336CODE
LOWtestsuite/perftest.py381CODE
LOWtestsuite/perftest.py394CODE
LOWtestsuite/fleettest.py568CODE
LOWtestsuite/fleettest.py873CODE
Cross-File Repetition4 hits · 20 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
HIGHtestsuite/copy-dest-source-symlink_test.py0\ use chroot = no log file = {scratchdir}/rsyncd.log [upload] path = {mod} use chroot = no read only = noSTRING
HIGHtestsuite/sender-flist-symlink-leak_test.py0\ use chroot = no log file = {scratchdir}/rsyncd.log [upload] path = {mod} use chroot = no read only = noSTRING
HIGHtestsuite/alt-dest-symlink-race_test.py0\ use chroot = no log file = {scratchdir}/rsyncd.log [upload] path = {mod} use chroot = no read only = noSTRING
HIGHtestsuite/chdir-symlink-race_test.py0\ use chroot = no log file = {scratchdir}/rsyncd.log [upload] path = {mod} use chroot = no read only = noSTRING
AI Slop Vocabulary6 hits · 18 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
MEDIUMtestsuite/daemon-auth_test.py23# test harness cannot redirect, so it would hang `make coverage` (or any runCOMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/abdiff.py212 # "is this file hardlinked at all" (link-dest / -H) -- a robustCOMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/ownership-depth_test.py10# Rerun under the fleet harness's non-root pass (testsuite/fleettest.py): the uidCOMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/daemon_test.py9# Rerun under the fleet harness's non-root pass (testsuite/fleettest.py): aCOMMENT
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py85# Set from --repo in main() (default: cwd). The harness builds whatever rsyncCOMMENT
MEDIUM.github/workflows/fleettest.yml3# Bitrot check for testsuite/fleettest.py (the developer fleet CI harness).COMMENT
Excessive Try-Catch Wrapping6 hits · 6 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
LOWtestsuite/abdiff.py2420 except Exception as ex:CODE
LOWtestsuite/abdiff.py2739 except Exception as ex: # never let one scenario kill the poolCODE
MEDIUMtestsuite/abdiff.py2736def worker(s):CODE
MEDIUMtestsuite/fleettest.py722def current_branch() -> str:CODE
LOWtestsuite/fleettest.py727 except Exception:CODE
LOWtestsuite/fleettest.py1019 except Exception as e: # never let one target kill the runSTRING
Self-Referential Comments1 hit · 3 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
MEDIUMtestsuite/alt-dest_test.py33# Create a side dir with one identically-named candidate so copy_file()'sCOMMENT
Hyper-Verbose Identifiers2 hits · 2 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
LOWtestsuite/rsyncfns.py1192def resolve_beneath_supported() -> bool:CODE
LOWtestsuite/bare-do-open-symlink-race_test.py57def verify_outside_unchanged_or_absent(label: str, target: str) -> None:CODE
Redundant / Tautological Comments1 hit · 2 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
LOWpackaging/pkglib.py20# Set this to an encoding name or set it to None to avoid the default encoding idiom.COMMENT
AI Structural Patterns1 hit · 1 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
LOWtestsuite/abdiff.py548CODE