> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://beads.gascity.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# bd purge

> Delete closed ephemeral beads to reclaim space

Generated from `bd help --doc purge`.

Permanently delete closed ephemeral beads and their associated data.

Closed ephemeral beads (wisps, transient molecules) accumulate rapidly and
have no value once closed. This command removes them to reclaim storage.

Deletes: issues, dependencies, labels, events, and comments for matching beads.
Skips: pinned beads (protected).

To delete closed non-ephemeral beads (regular tasks, features, bugs, etc.)
use `bd prune` instead.

For full Dolt storage reclaim after deleting many rows, follow with `bd flatten`
so history can be collapsed and old chunks can be garbage-collected.

EXAMPLES:
bd purge                           # Preview what would be purged
bd purge --force                   # Delete all closed ephemeral beads
bd purge --older-than 7d --force   # Only purge items closed 7+ days ago
bd purge --pattern "*-wisp-*"      # Only purge matching ID pattern
bd purge --dry-run                 # Detailed preview with stats

```
bd purge [flags]
```

**Flags:**

```
      --dry-run             Preview what would be purged with stats
  -f, --force               Actually purge (without this, shows preview)
      --older-than string   Only purge beads closed more than N ago (e.g., 7d, 2w, 30)
      --pattern string      Only purge beads matching ID glob pattern (e.g., *-wisp-*)
```