remove unused file from my project

[Liny]

I'm currently working on some projects for the nRF54 platform using NCS and VS Code. I want to delete the unused files in my project because the codebase has become too large. Is there a quick way to identify which folders I don't need? Alternatively, is there a way to copy only the files I'm using and create a new repository?

If neither is possible, could you provide a guide explaining the purpose of the different folders in this SDK?

thanks

[DanielNG]

Hi, there's no automatic unused file/folder detection or copying tool in the SDK or VS Code extension.

You can refer to Adding your own code and nrfconnect/ncs-example-application: NCS example application, based on https://github.com/zephyrproject-rtos/example-application to better manage your codebase

You can create a "freestanding" application, where your code is outside the SDK tree and only references the SDK as a dependency. This keeps your repository small and focused

You can run something like "west build -p always -b  nrf54l15dk/nrf54l15/cpuapp -- -DCMAKE_EXPORT_COMPILE_COMMANDS=ON" to get a list of everything that compiled in "compile_commands.json" (in your build folder)

Note: Don’t delete anything inside NCS/Zephyr. Only trim your application.
The SDK is a collection of git modules that west/CMake expects. Deleting inside NCS/Zephyr will break builds and updates.

[Liny]

could you tell me which folders in the SDK contain third-party libraries? I need to remove some libraries with less permissive open-source licenses to meet compliance requirements. For example, licenses like Zephyr's Apache 2.0 are more friendly as they don't force mandatory code disclosure.

[DanielNG]

Hi,
Third-party code is typically found in the lib/ext and platform/ext folders.
You can use west ncs-sbom to generate a report of all licenses in your build. Please refer to Software Bill of Materials