create: audit console logging/UX across --verbose/--info/--list/--stats/--progress/--json combinations

[mr-raj12]

Context

I ran borg create through the various logging/verbosity flag combinations to see how the output
actually feels: is it clean, does it nest properly, is everything logged at the right level, and is it
saying too much or too little? Findings are up top; every command with its full output is pasted
verbatim at the bottom.

Environment

Item	Value
borg version	2.0.0b21.dev770+g15d55d48e (master @ 87bd65c05)
Platform	native Linux, run as python -m borg
Repo	local, encryption none
Source tree	4 files (24 B – 4 KB) across 2 subdirs; +1 file added on the incremental run
Streams	borg logs to stderr; only --json writes to stdout

borg2 note: the command syntax is borg [-r REPO] create NAME PATH … (not the borg1
repo::archive form). Commands below are shown without the -r REPO prefix for brevity.

---

Analysis

Concrete bugs

None. (An earlier draft flagged a 0x08 byte in the --print_config help metavar — that turned out to be an intentional jsonargparse detail, not a borg issue. See Known / expected below.)

Needs attention / for discussion (not fixing unilaterally)

ID	Combo(s)	Observation	Question
A	1	Baseline create says nothing at all: no stdout, no stderr, exit 0. Nothing to tell you an archive was even made.	Intended (quiet-on-success) or too little?
B	5, 6	Creating archive at "<REPO PATH>" prints the repository path, never the archive name (a5/a6).	Should it name the archive, or say "in repository …"?
C	8	--progress leaves a cryptic final line 0 B O 0 B U 0 N op/src (reads unfinished), two stray blank lines, and Saving files cache / chunks cache / cache config messages present only in progress mode.	Should the trailing progress state be cleared / show final counts?
D	3 vs 10	--json stats block leaves out deduplicated_size (and compression) that text --stats prints.	The two stats views don't match. Should they?
E	11	--list under --log-json emits {"type": "file_status", …} objects with no levelname.	Confirm intended contract (only regular log messages carry levels, not file_status).

Looks good (no change needed)

Combo(s)	Why it's fine
2, 4 --list (± --stats)	Per-item list, depth-first (files then their d dir), no interleave with stats.
3 --stats	Clean summary block.
6 --info	Same as --verbose (they alias), plus the stats.
7 --debug	Lots of output, but that's what debug is for. The "files cache can't be read" line on a new series is harmless.
9 --progress --list	Rejected with a clear message, which is the intended behaviour (exit 2).
11 --log-json --list	Clean JSONL, one object per item.
12 --list --filter=AME	Correctly drops d dir entries.
13 incremental	U/A/d statuses correct; stats report Added 1 / Unchanged 4.
14–17 quiet levels	--list/--stats honoured at every level; ladder is monotonic (see below).

Log-level ladder (monotonicity check)

--list and --stats go through their own loggers (borg.output.list / borg.output.stats), which
aren't gated by the global log level. So if you ask for a list you get it, no matter how quiet you set
things. Raising verbosity only ever adds lines; it never drops or contradicts what a lower level showed.

Level	Ambient log lines added	--list / --stats still shown?
--critical / --error / --warning / default	none	✅ yes
--info / --verbose	+ Creating archive at "<repo>"	✅ yes
--debug	+ full borgstore / lock / security / chunk-index firehose	✅ yes

Known / expected (documented, not bugs)

Behaviour	Detail	Reference
--progress + --list rejected	Parser errors with "Options --progress and --list do not play nicely together." Intentional (combo 9).	archiver/__init__.py:378
M/U need a reused series	Incremental statuses only show up when you reuse the same archive name (series); borg2's files-cache is per-series.	—
Modified-within-second → A	A file changed within the same mtime-second as the backup is conservatively re-added as A (not M); files-cache safety window.	archive.py:1427
--dry-run + --stats	Mutually exclusive but do not error; borg proceeds with dry-run and silently drops stats. (Not exercised below.)	create_cmd.py:816-817
0x08 in --print_config help	The backspace byte in the usage/help metavar comes from jsonargparse (metavar="\b[=flags]"), not from borg. It's a deliberate trick to erase the space argparse inserts, so a real terminal renders --print_config[=flags] correctly. Only visible when the output is piped/captured (e.g. cat -v). Nothing for borg to fix.	jsonargparse _actions.py:170

Verdict table

#	Command	Stream	Exit	Verdict
1	create (baseline)	—	0	⚠️ silent
2	create --list	stderr	0	✅
3	create --stats	stderr	0	✅
4	create --list --stats	stderr	0	✅
5	--verbose create --list	stderr	0	⚠️ wording
6	--info create --stats	stderr	0	✅ (== verbose)
7	--debug create	stderr	0	✅ (volume ok)
8	create --progress	stderr	0	⚠️ residue
9	create --progress --list	stderr	2	✅ expected error
10	create --json	stdout	0	⚠️ stats mismatch
11	--log-json create --list	stderr	0	✅
12	create --list --filter=AME	stderr	0	✅
13	create --list (incremental, reused series)	stderr	0	✅
14	--warning create --list	stderr	0	✅
15	--error create --stats	stderr	0	✅
16	--critical create --list --stats	stderr	0	✅
17	create --list (default level)	stderr	0	✅

---

Commands run & full outputs (verbatim)

1. borg create a1 (exit 0)

(no output on stdout or stderr)

2. borg create --list a2 (exit 0)

stderr:

A op/src/dir1/file_b.bin
A op/src/dir1/file_d.bin
d op/src/dir1
A op/src/dir2/file_c.txt
d op/src/dir2
A op/src/file_a.bin
d op/src

3. borg create --stats a3 (exit 0)

stderr:

Repository: /home/rog_mr/Desktop/joy/borg/op/repo
Archive name: a3
Archive fingerprint: a51e9887602011d1dd5e4f32e066c76a7badbc9797cee4c3a8e1442e072af046
Time (nominal): Mon, 2026-07-06 10:39:41 +0530
Time (start):   Mon, 2026-07-06 10:39:41 +0530
Time (end):     Mon, 2026-07-06 10:39:41 +0530
Duration: 0.007 seconds
Number of files: 4
Original size: 7.20 kB
Deduplicated size: 482 B
Time spent in hashing: 0.000 seconds
Time spent in chunking: 0.000 seconds
Added files: 4
Unchanged files: 0
Modified files: 0
Error files: 0
Files changed while reading: 0
Bytes read from remote: 0
Bytes sent to remote: 0

4. borg create --list --stats a4 (exit 0)

stderr:

A op/src/dir1/file_b.bin
A op/src/dir1/file_d.bin
d op/src/dir1
A op/src/dir2/file_c.txt
d op/src/dir2
A op/src/file_a.bin
d op/src
Repository: /home/rog_mr/Desktop/joy/borg/op/repo
Archive name: a4
Archive fingerprint: ff0900e8e177a6ae55ea377695a2914cdf5c29edd2f2b2c799ea1926b913dee4
Time (nominal): Mon, 2026-07-06 10:39:42 +0530
Time (start):   Mon, 2026-07-06 10:39:42 +0530
Time (end):     Mon, 2026-07-06 10:39:42 +0530
Duration: 0.009 seconds
Number of files: 4
Original size: 7.20 kB
Deduplicated size: 489 B
Time spent in hashing: 0.000 seconds
Time spent in chunking: 0.000 seconds
Added files: 4
Unchanged files: 0
Modified files: 0
Error files: 0
Files changed while reading: 0
Bytes read from remote: 0
Bytes sent to remote: 0

5. borg --verbose create --list a5 (exit 0)

stderr:

Creating archive at "/home/rog_mr/Desktop/joy/borg/op/repo"
A op/src/dir1/file_b.bin
A op/src/dir1/file_d.bin
d op/src/dir1
A op/src/dir2/file_c.txt
d op/src/dir2
A op/src/file_a.bin
d op/src

6. borg --info create --stats a6 (exit 0)

stderr:

Creating archive at "/home/rog_mr/Desktop/joy/borg/op/repo"
Repository: /home/rog_mr/Desktop/joy/borg/op/repo
Archive name: a6
Archive fingerprint: db336ea03bf3b322b0d55aaed178c8c7601e91f2d4bddeef74d76f5a942a92cd
Time (nominal): Mon, 2026-07-06 10:39:43 +0530
Time (start):   Mon, 2026-07-06 10:39:43 +0530
Time (end):     Mon, 2026-07-06 10:39:43 +0530
Duration: 0.012 seconds
Number of files: 4
Original size: 7.20 kB
Deduplicated size: 489 B
Time spent in hashing: 0.000 seconds
Time spent in chunking: 0.000 seconds
Added files: 4
Unchanged files: 0
Modified files: 0
Error files: 0
Files changed while reading: 0
Bytes read from remote: 0
Bytes sent to remote: 0

7. borg --debug create a7 (exit 0)

stderr:

using builtin fallback logging configuration
17 self-tests completed in 0.09 seconds
borgstore: load('config/readme', offset=0, size=None, deleted=False) -> 73B in 0.1ms
borgstore: load('config/version', offset=0, size=None, deleted=False) -> 1B in 0.1ms
borgstore: load('config/id', offset=0, size=None, deleted=False) -> 64B in 0.1ms
LOCK-INIT: initializing. store: <Store(backend='PosixFS')>, stale: 1800s, refresh: 900s.
LOCK-ACQUIRE: trying to acquire a lock. exclusive: False.
borgstore: list_start('locks', deleted=False)
borgstore: list_end('locks', deleted=False) -> 0
LOCK-CREATE: creating lock in store. key: ab22b0129f86b739844cb91c47c5144cbd91458df82fc79bcb3d65aef33c4add, lock: {'exclusive': False, 'hostid': 'rog_mr-HP-ProBook-445-14-inch-G10-Notebook-PC@110289787484537', 'processid': 17300, 'threadid': 0, 'time': '2026-07-06T05:09:44.578+00:00'}.
borgstore: store('locks/ab22b0129f86b739844cb91c47c5144cbd91458df82fc79bcb3d65aef33c4add') -> 182B in 0.4ms
borgstore: list_start('locks', deleted=False)
borgstore: list_end('locks', deleted=False) -> 1
borgstore: load('locks/ab22b0129f86b739844cb91c47c5144cbd91458df82fc79bcb3d65aef33c4add', offset=0, size=None, deleted=False) -> 182B in 0.1ms
LOCK-ACQUIRE: success! no exclusive locks detected.
borgstore: load('config/manifest', offset=0, size=None, deleted=False) -> 370B in 0.1ms
security: read previous location '/home/rog_mr/Desktop/joy/borg/op/repo'
security: read manifest timestamp '2026-07-06T05:09:43.887130+00:00'
security: determined newest manifest timestamp as 2026-07-06T05:09:43.887130+00:00
security: repository checks ok, allowing access
Creating archive at "/home/rog_mr/Desktop/joy/borg/op/repo"
Using /home/rog_mr/.cache/borg/393ce96b709bf446b0e2e5fb2ceb084deabae57c0145aa64ad179cea4832dce1 as cache
security: read previous location '/home/rog_mr/Desktop/joy/borg/op/repo'
security: read manifest timestamp '2026-07-06T05:09:43.887130+00:00'
security: determined newest manifest timestamp as 2026-07-06T05:09:43.887130+00:00
security: repository checks ok, allowing access
Processing files ...
Reading files cache ...
The files cache can't be read. [[Errno 2] No such file or directory: '/home/rog_mr/.cache/borg/393ce96b709bf446b0e2e5fb2ceb084deabae57c0145aa64ad179cea4832dce1/files.20377cec9f51f6bf5ba1fa64649f3b1614e4eee833fd0fc5893f24f6e0accbaf']
borgstore: list_start('archives', deleted=False)
borgstore: list_end('archives', deleted=False) -> 6
borgstore: list_start('index', deleted=False)
borgstore: list_end('index', deleted=False) -> 7
chunk indexes: ['1a049ec0a9a163ab714bee62291b059dede5eec140aacae84b1df88abba783f6', '4acd8bcd44be6162e5869fd30055807286dc3654fe5b6831ceba18589af577aa', '7863f8a9845a9093fc3df01080de7d3632d81f486b9fa391458090a0328fa4f4', '9a9b3074616eca7dbf3d9df436c433ea774540fb4e2a6e1ade343f99ceaa054b', 'c7e9813bb14952fc80df7a61ccae310740248b45c665e54961fbb53aa0e849a6', 'f070c6a51916ee6f68aba7cf2af6835dce1f21cd7d298c9768db3464d2728787', 'f7c384a63afe086bcfe913397d9d8b6e2b2feccee3119398abcaab92ba32e802']
trying to load index/1a049ec0a9a163ab714bee62291b059dede5eec140aacae84b1df88abba783f6 from the repo...
borgstore: load('index/1a049ec0a9a163ab714bee62291b059dede5eec140aacae84b1df88abba783f6', offset=0, size=None, deleted=False) -> 469B in 0.1ms
index/1a049ec0a9a163ab714bee62291b059dede5eec140aacae84b1df88abba783f6 is valid.
cached chunk index 1a049ec0a9a163ab714bee62291b059dede5eec140aacae84b1df88abba783f6 gets merged...
trying to load index/4acd8bcd44be6162e5869fd30055807286dc3654fe5b6831ceba18589af577aa from the repo...
borgstore: load('index/4acd8bcd44be6162e5869fd30055807286dc3654fe5b6831ceba18589af577aa', offset=0, size=None, deleted=False) -> 469B in 0.1ms
index/4acd8bcd44be6162e5869fd30055807286dc3654fe5b6831ceba18589af577aa is valid.
cached chunk index 4acd8bcd44be6162e5869fd30055807286dc3654fe5b6831ceba18589af577aa gets merged...
trying to load index/7863f8a9845a9093fc3df01080de7d3632d81f486b9fa391458090a0328fa4f4 from the repo...
borgstore: load('index/7863f8a9845a9093fc3df01080de7d3632d81f486b9fa391458090a0328fa4f4', offset=0, size=None, deleted=False) -> 949B in 0.1ms
index/7863f8a9845a9093fc3df01080de7d3632d81f486b9fa391458090a0328fa4f4 is valid.
cached chunk index 7863f8a9845a9093fc3df01080de7d3632d81f486b9fa391458090a0328fa4f4 gets merged...
trying to load index/9a9b3074616eca7dbf3d9df436c433ea774540fb4e2a6e1ade343f99ceaa054b from the repo...
borgstore: load('index/9a9b3074616eca7dbf3d9df436c433ea774540fb4e2a6e1ade343f99ceaa054b', offset=0, size=None, deleted=False) -> 469B in 0.1ms
index/9a9b3074616eca7dbf3d9df436c433ea774540fb4e2a6e1ade343f99ceaa054b is valid.
cached chunk index 9a9b3074616eca7dbf3d9df436c433ea774540fb4e2a6e1ade343f99ceaa054b gets merged...
trying to load index/c7e9813bb14952fc80df7a61ccae310740248b45c665e54961fbb53aa0e849a6 from the repo...
borgstore: load('index/c7e9813bb14952fc80df7a61ccae310740248b45c665e54961fbb53aa0e849a6', offset=0, size=None, deleted=False) -> 469B in 0.1ms
index/c7e9813bb14952fc80df7a61ccae310740248b45c665e54961fbb53aa0e849a6 is valid.
cached chunk index c7e9813bb14952fc80df7a61ccae310740248b45c665e54961fbb53aa0e849a6 gets merged...
trying to load index/f070c6a51916ee6f68aba7cf2af6835dce1f21cd7d298c9768db3464d2728787 from the repo...
borgstore: load('index/f070c6a51916ee6f68aba7cf2af6835dce1f21cd7d298c9768db3464d2728787', offset=0, size=None, deleted=False) -> 469B in 0.1ms
index/f070c6a51916ee6f68aba7cf2af6835dce1f21cd7d298c9768db3464d2728787 is valid.
cached chunk index f070c6a51916ee6f68aba7cf2af6835dce1f21cd7d298c9768db3464d2728787 gets merged...
trying to load index/f7c384a63afe086bcfe913397d9d8b6e2b2feccee3119398abcaab92ba32e802 from the repo...
borgstore: load('index/f7c384a63afe086bcfe913397d9d8b6e2b2feccee3119398abcaab92ba32e802', offset=0, size=None, deleted=False) -> 389B in 0.1ms
index/f7c384a63afe086bcfe913397d9d8b6e2b2feccee3119398abcaab92ba32e802 is valid.
cached chunk index f7c384a63afe086bcfe913397d9d8b6e2b2feccee3119398abcaab92ba32e802 gets merged...
borgstore: load('packs/21e2d9e7df671acaa019cb79688cd3ea266c7eb4827eabc1812b95b582b6a57f', offset=0, size=469, deleted=False) -> 469B in 0.1ms
borgstore: load('packs/6c6287218a27b60fdb4f8c8a3c97c9ed35fff52d42a399f69cc3125b58b9f050', offset=7765, size=450, deleted=False) -> 450B in 0.1ms
borgstore: load('packs/3a526a9b04a3fe7c29b1f11aba0107e3a870fb75633b1ebb934f2d7daaccc4f0', offset=0, size=459, deleted=False) -> 459B in 0.1ms
borgstore: load('packs/855ce3bc7739605e3b81d18e60fcb6a624f7d1c51d4801d48794f9888e8a7103', offset=0, size=467, deleted=False) -> 467B in 0.1ms
borgstore: load('packs/aaddfbbc6a844a2940d45b22244a5eef3ad06454c72f4061d79454a1905edc5b', offset=0, size=460, deleted=False) -> 460B in 0.0ms
borgstore: load('packs/ae77013aa3c686eb9a720923da80a23c37ec9e3da4c21d106f2638dcb4a3f80c', offset=0, size=467, deleted=False) -> 467B in 0.0ms
writing item metadata stream chunk 2d401dadfe28e74e0d0b59b9fa1b3a15ba190ae78aa08f6241400f8306cf79cf
writing item_ptrs chunk a8cfe66a1e52c56b4f2c5fd2a4b17811d9e280b642b7dd6c98c0c9ea99a59ce9
borgstore: store('packs/514dbeb0adab4ff270ab8d939ad79c991a44887072d4f6ec2d170467bb7126f4') -> 459B in 0.4ms
borgstore: store('archives/d873778e2633f3883635de3b417beff3d2e05e68b83cd9ae57dccafba40c70e9') -> 0B in 0.2ms
borgstore: list_start('archives', deleted=False)
borgstore: list_end('archives', deleted=False) -> 7
borgstore: store('config/manifest') -> 370B in 0.3ms
security: saving state for 393ce96b709bf446b0e2e5fb2ceb084deabae57c0145aa64ad179cea4832dce1 to /home/rog_mr/snap/code/243/.local/share/borg/security/393ce96b709bf446b0e2e5fb2ceb084deabae57c0145aa64ad179cea4832dce1
security: current location   /home/rog_mr/Desktop/joy/borg/op/repo
security: key type           2
security: manifest timestamp 2026-07-06T05:09:44.643580+00:00
Chunks index stats: del: 0
Chunks index stats: get: 51
Chunks index stats: iter: 1
Chunks index stats: linear: 60
Chunks index stats: lookup: 88
Chunks index stats: resize_kv: 0
Chunks index stats: resize_table: 0
Chunks index stats: set: 33
caching 1 chunks (incremental=True).
borgstore: list_start('index', deleted=False)
borgstore: list_end('index', deleted=False) -> 7
chunk indexes: ['1a049ec0a9a163ab714bee62291b059dede5eec140aacae84b1df88abba783f6', '4acd8bcd44be6162e5869fd30055807286dc3654fe5b6831ceba18589af577aa', '7863f8a9845a9093fc3df01080de7d3632d81f486b9fa391458090a0328fa4f4', '9a9b3074616eca7dbf3d9df436c433ea774540fb4e2a6e1ade343f99ceaa054b', 'c7e9813bb14952fc80df7a61ccae310740248b45c665e54961fbb53aa0e849a6', 'f070c6a51916ee6f68aba7cf2af6835dce1f21cd7d298c9768db3464d2728787', 'f7c384a63afe086bcfe913397d9d8b6e2b2feccee3119398abcaab92ba32e802']
storing chunks index as index/551e94e550b4b1b11c71cced2ebb2972c93a5e55230ecbe577496bed3be76d1c in repository...
borgstore: store('index/551e94e550b4b1b11c71cced2ebb2972c93a5e55230ecbe577496bed3be76d1c') -> 469B in 0.2ms
borgstore: list_start('locks', deleted=False)
borgstore: list_end('locks', deleted=False) -> 1
borgstore: load('locks/ab22b0129f86b739844cb91c47c5144cbd91458df82fc79bcb3d65aef33c4add', offset=0, size=None, deleted=False) -> 182B in 0.1ms
LOCK-RELEASE: releasing lock: {'exclusive': False, 'hostid': 'rog_mr-HP-ProBook-445-14-inch-G10-Notebook-PC@110289787484537', 'processid': 17300, 'threadid': 0, 'time': '2026-07-06T05:09:44.578+00:00', 'key': 'ab22b0129f86b739844cb91c47c5144cbd91458df82fc79bcb3d65aef33c4add', 'dt': datetime.datetime(2026, 7, 6, 5, 9, 44, 578000, tzinfo=datetime.timezone.utc)}.
LOCK-DELETE: deleting lock from store. key: ab22b0129f86b739844cb91c47c5144cbd91458df82fc79bcb3d65aef33c4add.
borgstore: delete('locks/ab22b0129f86b739844cb91c47c5144cbd91458df82fc79bcb3d65aef33c4add', deleted=False) -> 0B in 0.1ms

8. borg create --progress a8 (exit 0)

stderr:

0 B O 0 B U 0 N op/src

Saving files cache
Saving chunks cache
Saving cache config

9. borg create --progress --list a9 (exit 2)

stderr:

usage: __main__.py [--config CONFIG] [--print_config �[=flags]] [-V]
                   [--cockpit] [-h] [--critical] [--error] [--warning]
                   [--info] [--debug] [--debug-topic TOPIC] [-p] [--iec]
                   [--log-json] [--lock-wait SECONDS] [--show-version]
                   [--show-rc] [--umask M] [--remote-path PATH]
                   [--upload-ratelimit RATE] [--upload-buffer UPLOAD_BUFFER]
                   [--debug-profile FILE] [--rsh RSH] [-r REPO]
                   <command> ...
tip: For details of accepted options run: __main__.py --help
error: Options --progress and --list do not play nicely together.

10. borg create --json a10 (exit 0)

stdout:

{
    "archive": {
        "command_line": "/home/rog_mr/Desktop/joy/borg/src/borg/__main__.py create --json a10 op/src",
        "duration": 0.046696,
        "end": "2026-07-06T10:39:46.734145+05:30",
        "id": "380dcaa6bfc3a0ced468e88d38ca25ba92bafd2513a8e5175f5a93a8a549d3bc",
        "name": "a10",
        "start": "2026-07-06T10:39:46.687449+05:30",
        "stats": {
            "chunking_time": 0.0004808249941561371,
            "files_stats": {
                "A": 4,
                "d": 3
            },
            "hashing_time": 3.708199994889583e-05,
            "nfiles": 4,
            "original_size": 7198
        },
        "time": "2026-07-06T10:39:46.687449+05:30"
    },
    "cache": {
        "path": "/home/rog_mr/.cache/borg/393ce96b709bf446b0e2e5fb2ceb084deabae57c0145aa64ad179cea4832dce1"
    },
    "encryption": {
        "encryption": "none",
        "id_hash": "sha256"
    },
    "repository": {
        "id": "393ce96b709bf446b0e2e5fb2ceb084deabae57c0145aa64ad179cea4832dce1",
        "last_modified": "2026-07-06T10:39:46.734771+05:30",
        "location": "/home/rog_mr/Desktop/joy/borg/op/repo"
    }
}

11. borg --log-json create --list a11 (exit 0)

stderr:

{"type": "file_status", "status": "A", "path": "op/src/dir1/file_b.bin"}
{"type": "file_status", "status": "A", "path": "op/src/dir1/file_d.bin"}
{"type": "file_status", "status": "d", "path": "op/src/dir1"}
{"type": "file_status", "status": "A", "path": "op/src/dir2/file_c.txt"}
{"type": "file_status", "status": "d", "path": "op/src/dir2"}
{"type": "file_status", "status": "A", "path": "op/src/file_a.bin"}
{"type": "file_status", "status": "d", "path": "op/src"}

12. borg create --list --filter=AME a12 (exit 0)

stderr:

A op/src/dir1/file_b.bin
A op/src/dir1/file_d.bin
A op/src/dir2/file_c.txt
A op/src/file_a.bin

13. borg create --list clean1 (2nd run, real 1.2s gap, file_c modified) (exit 0)

stderr:

U op/src/dir1/file_b.bin
U op/src/dir1/file_d.bin
d op/src/dir1
A op/src/dir2/file_c.txt
d op/src/dir2
U op/src/file_a.bin
U op/src/file_e_new.bin
d op/src

14. borg --warning create --list q1 (exit 0)

stderr:

A op/src/dir1/file_b.bin
A op/src/dir1/file_d.bin
d op/src/dir1
A op/src/dir2/file_c.txt
d op/src/dir2
A op/src/file_a.bin
A op/src/file_e_new.bin
d op/src

15. borg --error create --stats q2 (exit 0)

stderr:

Repository: /home/rog_mr/Desktop/joy/borg/op/repo
Archive name: q2
Archive fingerprint: 96288df07ad5f8fe04edfdd0ce421080939029367ce4dde2ec764b5834149912
Time (nominal): Mon, 2026-07-06 11:09:21 +0530
Time (start):   Mon, 2026-07-06 11:09:21 +0530
Time (end):     Mon, 2026-07-06 11:09:21 +0530
Duration: 0.051 seconds
Number of files: 5
Original size: 8.26 kB
Deduplicated size: 490 B
Time spent in hashing: 0.000 seconds
Time spent in chunking: 0.001 seconds
Added files: 5
Unchanged files: 0
Modified files: 0
Error files: 0
Files changed while reading: 0
Bytes read from remote: 0
Bytes sent to remote: 0

16. borg --critical create --list --stats q3 (exit 0)

stderr:

A op/src/dir1/file_b.bin
A op/src/dir1/file_d.bin
d op/src/dir1
A op/src/dir2/file_c.txt
d op/src/dir2
A op/src/file_a.bin
A op/src/file_e_new.bin
d op/src
Repository: /home/rog_mr/Desktop/joy/borg/op/repo
Archive name: q3
Archive fingerprint: 552a9d6ceced086c0fc4cf09f0429c2d179198ded82bc8404e612944ce4c9aca
Time (nominal): Mon, 2026-07-06 11:09:21 +0530
Time (start):   Mon, 2026-07-06 11:09:21 +0530
Time (end):     Mon, 2026-07-06 11:09:21 +0530
Duration: 0.037 seconds
Number of files: 5
Original size: 8.27 kB
Deduplicated size: 500 B
Time spent in hashing: 0.000 seconds
Time spent in chunking: 0.001 seconds
Added files: 5
Unchanged files: 0
Modified files: 0
Error files: 0
Files changed while reading: 0
Bytes read from remote: 0
Bytes sent to remote: 0

17. borg create --list q4 (exit 0)

stderr:

A op/src/dir1/file_b.bin
A op/src/dir1/file_d.bin
d op/src/dir1
A op/src/dir2/file_c.txt
d op/src/dir2
A op/src/file_a.bin
A op/src/file_e_new.bin
d op/src

[ThomasWaldmann]

About the backspace in --print_config help: that comes from jsonargparse, so we can't change that in borg.

But I don't see it "garbling" anything, so guess only the AI gets confused.

[mr-raj12]

About the backspace in --print_config help: that comes from jsonargparse, so we can't change that in borg.

But I don't see it "garbling" anything, so guess only the AI gets confused.

agreed , it's from jsonargparse's \b[=flags] metavar trick, not a borg thing, and it renders fine in terminal, was getting confused looking at piped output!
removed and updated!

[ThomasWaldmann]

Finding B: Creating archive at "" prints the repository path, never the archive name (a5/a6).

Sounds like a valid suggestion, we should add the archive name.