Problem regarding Checksum

sridhar_arjunan · 01-05-2005, 05:05 AM

Hi everyone,
Im new to this group and also new to Linux.I have a problem regarding files.My problem can there be 2 files having the same checksum but different names.
Supose there are 2 files a.doc and b.doc.
Assuming that these 2 files have the same content inside can these 2 files have the same Checksum

slakmagik · 01-05-2005, 05:12 AM

Yep. If the contents are identical, they're identical.

sridhar_arjunan · 01-05-2005, 10:56 AM

Hi digiot
Thanks for the info.But can the files have the same checksum even if they have different contents.I mean suppose a.txt has contents in English and b.txt has contents in german is there a possibility that the checksum of the 2 files can be the same

slakmagik · 01-05-2005, 07:19 PM

Well, that gets into the dark areas of theory. I think it is *possible* but the odds are one in a zillion or something. I could be wrong about that, though, as it's just something I recall reading somewhere. You could try the man page and google to see what you turn up. But in practice, I don't think you'd ever encounter such a case.