Checking which IPFS release files survive local garbage collection
An operator sees a child file in the local blockstore but needs to know whether a cleanup can reclaim it. Kubo distinguishes a root pinned recursively from a block retained through another root.
Inspect the release root and a child
Use a directory CID in RELEASE_ROOT and a CID linked from inside it in CHILD_CID. Run the commands against the repository you intend to maintain. A recursive pin protects a root and its linked descendants. An indirect pin on the child can therefore be exactly the result you want. A direct pin protects only the named block.
ipfs pin ls --type=recursive "$RELEASE_ROOT"
ipfs pin ls --type=all "$CHILD_CID"
ipfs pin verify
Decide what to keep across release rotations
If old and new releases share a child, that child can stay protected through the newer tree when the previous root is unpinned. Keep an explicit recursive pin on each release you promise to retain, and investigate failures from pin verification before relying on that repository for recovery. Verification describes this node’s pinned graph. A remote gateway serving the same CID is a separate copy with its own retention policy.