PHP Working with Directories

PHP Working with Directories – Create, Read & Manage

PHP provides a rich set of functions to create, read, update, and delete directories. Here’s a beginner-friendly guide to working with directories in PHP.

1. Creating Directories

Use the mkdir() function to create a new directory.

Example: Creating a Directory

<?php
$dirName = "example_dir";

if (!is_dir($dirName)) {
    if (mkdir($dirName)) {
        echo "Directory '$dirName' created successfully.";
    } else {
        echo "Failed to create directory.";
    }
} else {
    echo "Directory already exists.";
}
?>

2. Listing Directory Contents

To read the contents of a directory, use scandir() or opendir() and readdir().

Example: Listing Files with scandir()

<?php
$dirName = "example_dir";

if (is_dir($dirName)) {
    $files = scandir($dirName);
    foreach ($files as $file) {
        if ($file != "." && $file != "..") {
            echo $file . "<br>";
        }
    }
} else {
    echo "Directory does not exist.";
}
?>

Example: Using opendir()

<?php
$dirName = "example_dir";

if ($handle = opendir($dirName)) {
    while (($file = readdir($handle)) !== false) {
        if ($file != "." && $file != "..") {
            echo $file . "<br>";
        }
    }
    closedir($handle);
} else {
    echo "Failed to open directory.";
}
?>

3. Deleting Directories

Use rmdir() to remove an empty directory. To delete a directory with files, you need a recursive function.

Example: Deleting an Empty Directory

<?php
$dirName = "example_dir";

if (is_dir($dirName)) {
    if (rmdir($dirName)) {
        echo "Directory '$dirName' deleted successfully.";
    } else {
        echo "Failed to delete directory.";
    }
} else {
    echo "Directory does not exist.";
}
?>

Example: Deleting a Directory with Files

<?php
function deleteDirectory($dir) {
    if (!is_dir($dir)) return false;

    $files = array_diff(scandir($dir), ['.', '..']);
    foreach ($files as $file) {
        $filePath = $dir . DIRECTORY_SEPARATOR . $file;
        is_dir($filePath) ? deleteDirectory($filePath) : unlink($filePath);
    }
    return rmdir($dir);
}

$dirName = "example_dir";

if (deleteDirectory($dirName)) {
    echo "Directory '$dirName' deleted successfully.";
} else {
    echo "Failed to delete directory.";
}
?>

4. Checking Directory Properties

You can check if a directory exists, is readable, or is writable using is_dir(), is_readable(), and is_writable().

Example: Checking Directory Properties

<?php
$dirName = "example_dir";

if (is_dir($dirName)) {
    echo "Directory exists.<br>";
    echo is_readable($dirName) ? "Directory is readable.<br>" : "Directory is not readable.<br>";
    echo is_writable($dirName) ? "Directory is writable.<br>" : "Directory is not writable.<br>";
} else {
    echo "Directory does not exist.";
}
?>

5. Getting Directory Path Information

Use basename(), dirname(), and realpath() to retrieve directory information.

Example: Getting Directory Information

<?php
$path = "/var/www/html/example_dir";

echo "Directory name: " . basename($path) . "<br>";
echo "Parent directory: " . dirname($path) . "<br>";
echo "Absolute path: " . realpath($path) . "<br>";
?>

6. Changing Current Directory

Use chdir() to change the working directory in a script.

Example: Changing Directory

<?php
$dirName = "example_dir";

if (chdir($dirName)) {
    echo "Current directory is now: " . getcwd();
} else {
    echo "Failed to change directory.";
}
?>

7. Summary of Directory Functions

Function	Description
mkdir()	Creates a new directory.
rmdir()	Removes an empty directory.
scandir()	Lists the contents of a directory.
opendir()	Opens a directory handle.
readdir()	Reads a file/directory from the handle.
closedir()	Closes a directory handle.
is_dir()	Checks if a file path is a directory.
is_readable()	Checks if a directory is readable.
is_writable()	Checks if a directory is writable.
chdir()	Changes the current working directory.
getcwd()	Gets the current working directory.