diff --git a/zfs-inplace-rebalancing.sh b/zfs-inplace-rebalancing.sh
index b9fe6ce..f20084b 100755
--- a/zfs-inplace-rebalancing.sh
+++ b/zfs-inplace-rebalancing.sh
@@ -1,14 +1,14 @@
 #!/usr/bin/env bash
 
-# exit script on error
+# Exit script on error
 set -e
-# exit on undeclared variable
+# Exit on undeclared variable
 set -u
 
-# file used to track processed files
+# File used to track processed files
 rebalance_db_file_name="rebalance_db.txt"
 
-# index used for progress
+# Index used for progress
 current_index=0
 
 ## Color Constants
@@ -24,19 +24,18 @@ Cyan='\033[0;36m'         # Cyan
 
 ## Functions
 
-# print a help message
+# Print a help message
 function print_usage() {
-  echo "Usage: zfs-inplace-rebalancing --checksum true --skip-hardlinks false --passes 1 /my/pool"
+  echo "Usage: zfs-inplace-rebalancing.sh --checksum true --passes 1 --debug true /my/pool"
 }
 
-# print a given text entirely in a given color
+# Print a given text entirely in a given color
 function color_echo () {
     color=$1
     text=$2
     echo -e "${color}${text}${Color_Off}"
 }
 
-
 function get_rebalance_count () {
     file_path=$1
 
@@ -52,131 +51,99 @@ function get_rebalance_count () {
     fi
 }
 
-# rebalance a specific file
-function rebalance () {
-    file_path=$1
-
-    # check if file has >=2 links in the case of --skip-hardlinks
-    # this shouldn't be needed in the typical case of `find` only finding files with links == 1
-    # but this can run for a long time, so it's good to double check if something changed
-    if [[ "${skip_hardlinks_flag,,}" == "true"* ]]; then
-	if [[ "${OSTYPE,,}" == "linux-gnu"* ]]; then
-	    # Linux
-	    #
-	    #  -c  --format=FORMAT
-	    #      use the specified FORMAT instead of the default; output a
-	    #      newline after each use of FORMAT
-	    #  %h     number of hard links
-
-	    hardlink_count=$(stat -c "%h" "${file_path}")
-	elif [[ "${OSTYPE,,}" == "darwin"* ]] || [[ "${OSTYPE,,}" == "freebsd"* ]]; then
-	    # Mac OS
-	    # FreeBSD
-	    #  -f format
-	    #  Display information using the specified format
-	    #   l       Number of hard links to file (st_nlink)
-
-	    hardlink_count=$(stat -f %l "${file_path}")
-	else
-		echo "Unsupported OS type: $OSTYPE"
-		exit 1
-	fi
-
-	if [ "${hardlink_count}" -ge 2 ]; then
-            echo "Skipping hard-linked file: ${file_path}"
-            return
-        fi
-    fi
+# Rebalance a group of files that are hardlinked together
+function process_inode_group() {
+    paths=("$@")
+    num_paths="${#paths[@]}"
 
+    # Progress tracking
     current_index="$((current_index + 1))"
-    progress_percent=$(printf '%0.2f' "$((current_index*10000/file_count))e-2")
-    color_echo "${Cyan}" "Progress -- Files: ${current_index}/${file_count} (${progress_percent}%)" 
+    progress_raw=$((current_index * 10000 / file_count))
+    progress_percent=$(printf '%0.2f' "${progress_raw}e-2")
+    color_echo "${Cyan}" "Progress -- Files: ${current_index}/${file_count} (${progress_percent}%)"
 
-    if [[ ! -f "${file_path}" ]]; then
-        color_echo "${Yellow}" "File is missing, skipping: ${file_path}" 
+    if [ "$debug_flag" = true ]; then
+        echo "Processing inode group with ${num_paths} paths:"
+        for path in "${paths[@]}"; do
+            echo " - $path"
+        done
     fi
 
-    if [ "${passes_flag}" -ge 1 ]; then
-        # check if target rebalance count is reached
-        rebalance_count=$(get_rebalance_count "${file_path}")
+    # Check rebalance counts for all files
+    should_skip=false
+    for path in "${paths[@]}"; do
+        rebalance_count=$(get_rebalance_count "${path}")
         if [ "${rebalance_count}" -ge "${passes_flag}" ]; then
-        color_echo "${Yellow}" "Rebalance count (${passes_flag}) reached, skipping: ${file_path}"
-        return
+            should_skip=true
+            break
         fi
-    fi
-   
-    tmp_extension=".balance"
-    tmp_file_path="${file_path}${tmp_extension}"
+    done
 
-    echo "Copying '${file_path}' to '${tmp_file_path}'..."
+    if [ "${should_skip}" = true ]; then
+        if [ "${num_paths}" -gt 1 ]; then
+            color_echo "${Yellow}" "Rebalance count (${passes_flag}) reached, skipping group: ${paths[*]}"
+        else
+            color_echo "${Yellow}" "Rebalance count (${passes_flag}) reached, skipping: ${paths[0]}"
+        fi
+        return
+    fi
+
+    main_file="${paths[0]}"
+
+    # Check if main_file exists
+    if [[ ! -f "${main_file}" ]]; then
+        color_echo "${Yellow}" "File is missing, skipping: ${main_file}"
+        return
+    fi
+
+    tmp_extension=".balance"
+    tmp_file_path="${main_file}${tmp_extension}"
+
+    echo "Copying '${main_file}' to '${tmp_file_path}'..."
+    if [ "$debug_flag" = true ]; then
+        echo "Executing copy command:"
+    fi
     if [[ "${OSTYPE,,}" == "linux-gnu"* ]]; then
         # Linux
-
-        # --reflink=never -- force standard copy (see ZFS Block Cloning)
-        # -a -- keep attributes, includes -d -- keep symlinks (dont copy target) and 
-        #       -p -- preserve ACLs to
-        # -x -- stay on one system
-        cp --reflink=never -ax "${file_path}" "${tmp_file_path}"
+        cmd=(cp --reflink=never -ax "${main_file}" "${tmp_file_path}")
+        if [ "$debug_flag" = true ]; then
+            echo "${cmd[@]}"
+        fi
+        "${cmd[@]}"
     elif [[ "${OSTYPE,,}" == "darwin"* ]] || [[ "${OSTYPE,,}" == "freebsd"* ]]; then
-        # Mac OS
-        # FreeBSD
-
-        # -a -- Archive mode.  Same as -RpP. Includes preservation of modification 
-        #       time, access time, file flags, file mode, ACL, user ID, and group 
-        #       ID, as allowed by permissions.
-        # -x -- File system mount points are not traversed.
-        cp -ax "${file_path}" "${tmp_file_path}"
+        # Mac OS and FreeBSD
+        cmd=(cp -ax "${main_file}" "${tmp_file_path}")
+        if [ "$debug_flag" = true ]; then
+            echo "${cmd[@]}"
+        fi
+        "${cmd[@]}"
     else
         echo "Unsupported OS type: $OSTYPE"
         exit 1
     fi
 
-    # compare copy against original to make sure nothing went wrong
+    # Compare copy against original to make sure nothing went wrong
     if [[ "${checksum_flag,,}" == "true"* ]]; then
         echo "Comparing copy against original..."
         if [[ "${OSTYPE,,}" == "linux-gnu"* ]]; then
             # Linux
-
-            # file attributes
-            original_md5=$(lsattr "${file_path}" | awk '{print $1}')
-            # file permissions, owner, group
-            # shellcheck disable=SC2012
-            original_md5="${original_md5} $(ls -lha "${file_path}" | awk '{print $1 " " $3 " " $4}')"
-            # file content
-            original_md5="${original_md5} $(md5sum -b "${file_path}" | awk '{print $1}')"
-
-            # file attributes
-            copy_md5=$(lsattr "${tmp_file_path}" | awk '{print $1}')
-            # file permissions, owner, group
-            # shellcheck disable=SC2012
-            copy_md5="${copy_md5} $(ls -lha "${tmp_file_path}" | awk '{print $1 " " $3 " " $4}')"
-            # file content
-            copy_md5="${copy_md5} $(md5sum -b "${tmp_file_path}" | awk '{print $1}')"
+            original_md5=$(md5sum -b "${main_file}" | awk '{print $1}')
+            copy_md5=$(md5sum -b "${tmp_file_path}" | awk '{print $1}')
         elif [[ "${OSTYPE,,}" == "darwin"* ]] || [[ "${OSTYPE,,}" == "freebsd"* ]]; then
-            # Mac OS
-            # FreeBSD
-
-            # file attributes
-            original_md5=$(lsattr "${file_path}" | awk '{print $1}')
-            # file permissions, owner, group
-            # shellcheck disable=SC2012
-            original_md5="${original_md5} $(ls -lha "${file_path}" | awk '{print $1 " " $3 " " $4}')"
-            # file content
-            original_md5="${original_md5} $(md5 -q "${file_path}")"
-
-            # file attributes
-            copy_md5=$(lsattr "${tmp_file_path}" | awk '{print $1}')
-            # file permissions, owner, group
-            # shellcheck disable=SC2012
-            copy_md5="${copy_md5} $(ls -lha "${tmp_file_path}" | awk '{print $1 " " $3 " " $4}')"
-            # file content
-            copy_md5="${copy_md5} $(md5 -q "${tmp_file_path}")"
+            # Mac OS and FreeBSD
+            original_md5=$(md5 -q "${main_file}")
+            copy_md5=$(md5 -q "${tmp_file_path}")
         else
             echo "Unsupported OS type: $OSTYPE"
             exit 1
         fi
 
-        if [[ "${original_md5}" == "${copy_md5}"* ]]; then
+        if [ "$debug_flag" = true ]; then
+            echo "Original MD5: $original_md5"
+            echo "Copy MD5: $copy_md5"
+        fi
+
+        if [[ "${original_md5}" == "${copy_md5}" ]]; then
             color_echo "${Green}" "MD5 OK"
         else
             color_echo "${Red}" "MD5 FAILED: ${original_md5} != ${copy_md5}"
@@ -184,30 +151,52 @@ function rebalance () {
         fi
     fi
 
-    echo "Removing original '${file_path}'..."
-    rm "${file_path}"
+    echo "Removing original files..."
+    for path in "${paths[@]}"; do
+        if [ "$debug_flag" = true ]; then
+            echo "Removing $path"
+        fi
+        rm "${path}"
+    done
 
-    echo "Renaming temporary copy to original '${file_path}'..."
-    mv "${tmp_file_path}" "${file_path}"
+    echo "Renaming temporary copy to original '${main_file}'..."
+    if [ "$debug_flag" = true ]; then
+        echo "Moving ${tmp_file_path} to ${main_file}"
+    fi
+    mv "${tmp_file_path}" "${main_file}"
+
+    echo "Recreating hardlinks..."
+    for (( i=1; i<${#paths[@]}; i++ )); do
+        if [ "$debug_flag" = true ]; then
+            echo "Linking ${main_file} to ${paths[$i]}"
+        fi
+        ln "${main_file}" "${paths[$i]}"
+    done
 
     if [ "${passes_flag}" -ge 1 ]; then
-        # update rebalance "database"
-        line_nr=$(grep -xF -n "${file_path}" "./${rebalance_db_file_name}" | head -n 1 | cut -d: -f1)
-        if [ -z "${line_nr}" ]; then
-        rebalance_count=1
-        echo "${file_path}" >> "./${rebalance_db_file_name}"
-        echo "${rebalance_count}" >> "./${rebalance_db_file_name}"
-        else
-        rebalance_count_line_nr="$((line_nr + 1))"
-        rebalance_count="$((rebalance_count + 1))"
-        sed -i '' "${rebalance_count_line_nr}s/.*/${rebalance_count}/" "./${rebalance_db_file_name}"
-        fi
+        # Update rebalance "database" for all files
+        for path in "${paths[@]}"; do
+            line_nr=$(grep -xF -n "${path}" "./${rebalance_db_file_name}" | head -n 1 | cut -d: -f1)
+            if [ -z "${line_nr}" ]; then
+                rebalance_count=1
+                echo "${path}" >> "./${rebalance_db_file_name}"
+                echo "${rebalance_count}" >> "./${rebalance_db_file_name}"
+            else
+                rebalance_count_line_nr="$((line_nr + 1))"
+                rebalance_count=$(awk "NR == ${rebalance_count_line_nr}" "./${rebalance_db_file_name}")
+                rebalance_count="$((rebalance_count + 1))"
+                if [ "$debug_flag" = true ]; then
+                    echo "Updating rebalance count for ${path} to ${rebalance_count}"
+                fi
+                sed -i "${rebalance_count_line_nr}s/.*/${rebalance_count}/" "./${rebalance_db_file_name}"
+            fi
+        done
     fi
 }
 
 checksum_flag='true'
-skip_hardlinks_flag='false'
 passes_flag='1'
+debug_flag='false'
 
 if [[ "$#" -eq 0 ]]; then
     print_usage
@@ -228,18 +217,18 @@ while true ; do
             fi
             shift 2
         ;;
-        --skip-hardlinks )
-            if [[ "$2" == 1 || "$2" =~ (on|true|yes) ]]; then
-                skip_hardlinks_flag="true"
-            else
-                skip_hardlinks_flag="false"
-            fi
-            shift 2
-        ;;
         -p | --passes )
             passes_flag=$2
             shift 2
         ;;
+        --debug )
+            if [[ "$2" == 1 || "$2" =~ (on|true|yes) ]]; then
+                debug_flag="true"
+            else
+                debug_flag="false"
+            fi
+            shift 2
+        ;;
         *)
             break
         ;;
@@ -252,29 +241,84 @@ color_echo "$Cyan" "Start rebalancing $(date):"
 color_echo "$Cyan" "  Path: ${root_path}"
 color_echo "$Cyan" "  Rebalancing Passes: ${passes_flag}"
 color_echo "$Cyan" "  Use Checksum: ${checksum_flag}"
-color_echo "$Cyan" "  Skip Hardlinks: ${skip_hardlinks_flag}"
+color_echo "$Cyan" "  Debug Mode: ${debug_flag}"
 
-# count files
-if [[ "${skip_hardlinks_flag,,}" == "true"* ]]; then
-    file_count=$(find "${root_path}" -type f -links 1 | wc -l)
+# Generate files_list.txt with device and inode numbers using stat, separated by a pipe '|'
+if [[ "${OSTYPE,,}" == "linux-gnu"* ]]; then
+    # Linux
+    find "$root_path" -type f -not -path '*/.zfs/*' -exec stat --printf '%d:%i|%n\n' {} \; > files_list.txt
+elif [[ "${OSTYPE,,}" == "darwin"* ]] || [[ "${OSTYPE,,}" == "freebsd"* ]]; then
+    # Mac OS and FreeBSD
+    find "$root_path" -type f -not -path '*/.zfs/*' -exec sh -c 'stat -f "%d:%i|%N" "$0"' {} \; {} \; > files_list.txt
 else
-    file_count=$(find "${root_path}" -type f | wc -l)
+    echo "Unsupported OS type: $OSTYPE"
+    exit 1
 fi
 
-color_echo "$Cyan" "  File count: ${file_count}"
+if [ "$debug_flag" = true ]; then
+    echo "Contents of files_list.txt:"
+    cat files_list.txt
+fi
 
-# create db file
+# Sort files_list.txt by device and inode number
+sort -t '|' -k1,1 files_list.txt > sorted_files_list.txt
+
+if [ "$debug_flag" = true ]; then
+    echo "Contents of sorted_files_list.txt:"
+    cat sorted_files_list.txt
+fi
+
+# Use awk to group paths by inode key
+awk -F'|' '{
+    key = $1
+    path = $2
+    if (key == prev_key) {
+        paths = paths " " path
+    } else {
+        if (NR > 1) {
+            print prev_key "|" paths
+        }
+        prev_key = key
+        paths = path
+    }
+}
+END {
+    if (NR > 0) {
+        print prev_key "|" paths
+    }
+}' sorted_files_list.txt > grouped_inodes.txt
+
+if [ "$debug_flag" = true ]; then
+    echo "Contents of grouped_inodes.txt:"
+    cat grouped_inodes.txt
+fi
+
+# Count number of inode groups
+file_count=$(wc -l < grouped_inodes.txt | tr -d ' ')
+
+color_echo "$Cyan" "  Number of files to process: ${file_count}"
+
+# Initialize current_index
+current_index=0
+
+# Create db file
 if [ "${passes_flag}" -ge 1 ]; then
     touch "./${rebalance_db_file_name}"
 fi
 
-# recursively scan through files and execute "rebalance" procedure
-# in the case of --skip-hardlinks, only find files with links == 1
-if [[ "${skip_hardlinks_flag,,}" == "true"* ]]; then
-    find "$root_path" -type f -links 1 -print0 | while IFS= read -r -d '' file; do rebalance "$file"; done
-else
-    find "$root_path" -type f -print0 | while IFS= read -r -d '' file; do rebalance "$file"; done
-fi
+# Read grouped_inodes.txt and process each group
+while IFS='|' read -r key paths; do
+    if [ "$debug_flag" = true ]; then
+        echo "Detected inode group: key=${key}"
+        echo "Paths:${paths}"
+    fi
+    # Split the paths into an array
+    read -a path_array <<< "${paths}"
+    process_inode_group "${path_array[@]}"
+done < grouped_inodes.txt
+
+# Clean up temporary files
+rm files_list.txt sorted_files_list.txt grouped_inodes.txt
 
 echo ""
 echo ""