file · Command reference

`qzx detectFileType`

What it does

Identifies file type based on its magic number (file signature) rather than extension

Canonical command: detectFileType

Accepted aliases: wonderFileTypeMagic

Case-sensitive: no

Included in the published package

Available in PyPI 0.2.2.0.2. This page documents the 0.2.2.0.2 alpha development checkout.

Safety and effects

Read-only under the current classification

No documented dry-run parameter

No native program invocation in the current classification

No documented network use

No inherent elevation requirement

This safety classification was reviewed against implementation digest sha256:b40f458cbbf0256b1690b8895ef9c8fc088a2f8425f8330eced67993a4c5eb18 on 2026-07-24.

Exact syntax

qzx detectFileType <file_path> [detailed_info] --json

Parameters

Name	Type	Required	Default	Description
file_path	str	Yes	Not declared	Path to the file to analyze
detailed_info	bool	No	false	Whether to show detailed MIME type information

Input examples

qzx wonderFileTypeMagic image.jpg

Identify the real type of image.jpg based on its contents

qzx wonderFileTypeMagic unknown.bin true

Identify an unknown file with detailed MIME information

For the complete structured payload, add --json: qzx detectFileType <file_path> [detailed_info] --json

Representative output example

This illustrative JSON is derived from the current implementation-backed result contract. It shows what the command can return without claiming a recorded execution; values vary with inputs, host, permissions, and optional tools.

Example command: qzx wonderFileTypeMagic image.jpg --json

{
    "success": true,
    "message": "Identifies file type based on its magic number (file signature) rather than extension. In this illustrative example, the command completed successfully.",
    "description": "Example value",
    "details": {
        "remediation": "Example value",
        "dependency": "Example value"
    },
    "extension": "Example value",
    "extension_matches_content": "Example value",
    "file_path": "C:\\project\\example.txt",
    "file_size": 4096,
    "file_size_readable": "C:\\project\\example.txt",
    "is_binary": true,
    "mime_type": "text/plain",
    "suggested_extension": "Example value"
}

View the JSON result contract

{
    "$schema": "https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema",
    "type": "object",
    "required": [
        "success",
        "message"
    ],
    "properties": {
        "success": {
            "type": "boolean"
        },
        "message": {
            "type": "string"
        },
        "description": [],
        "details": {
            "oneOf": [
                {
                    "type": "object",
                    "properties": {
                        "remediation": {
                            "type": "string"
                        },
                        "dependency": {
                            "type": "string"
                        }
                    },
                    "additionalProperties": true
                },
                {
                    "type": "object",
                    "properties": {
                        "mime_type": [],
                        "description": [],
                        "common_extensions": [],
                        "categories": []
                    },
                    "additionalProperties": true
                }
            ]
        },
        "error": {
            "type": "string"
        },
        "error_code": {
            "type": "string"
        },
        "extension": [],
        "extension_matches_content": [],
        "file_path": [],
        "file_size": [],
        "file_size_readable": [],
        "is_binary": [],
        "mime_type": [],
        "suggested_extension": {
            "type": "string"
        }
    },
    "additionalProperties": true
}

Errors and limits

The public contract requires success=false and a descriptive message on failure. This catalog does not yet declare a command-specific error taxonomy; inspect the result and do not invent error codes.

QZX is alpha software. Optional dependencies, permissions, and host capabilities can change the result.

Evidence workflow: ready for deterministic automated capture.

Evidence and provenance

Implementation: src/qzx/commands/file/detect_file_type.py
Tests: No command-specific test file with the same module name was found; this does not prove that all coverage is absent.
Documentation channel: Development documentation 0.2.2.0.2 · main · sha256:319b16857a87636ebc3b89734cc040a737bb56194464fca33ce73bdae2043096
Availability: 0.2.2.0.2 or earlier

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