Table of Contents

1. Overview of the os and shutil Modules
2. Common File Operations: Creating, Deleting, Renaming, and Checking Files and Directories
3. Navigating the File System
4. File and Directory Information
5. File and Directory Manipulation
6. File I/O Operations
7. Copying and Moving Files
8. Walking Through Directory Trees
9. Code Examples
10. Key Points to Remember
11. Conclusion

Overview of Python's os and shutil Modules

Python's os and shutil modules are essential for file system operations, providing functions for file manipulation and management.

Common File Operations

This section covers fundamental operations including the creation, deletion, renaming, and verification of files and directories.

Navigating the File System

1. Determining the current working directory using os.getcwd().
2. Changing the working directory with os.chdir(path).
3. Listing the contents of a directory via os.listdir(path).

File and Directory Information

1. Acquiring file details with os.stat(file_path).
2. Extracting file size, creation time, and last modification time.
3. Identifying file types using os.path.isfile() and os.path.isdir().

File and Directory Manipulation

1. Creating directories with os.mkdir() and os.makedirs().
2. Generating files using open('file.txt', 'w').close().
3. Renaming files or directories with os.rename(old_name, new_name).
4. Removing files and directories using os.remove() and shutil.rmtree().

File I/O Operations

1. Reading from a file with with open('file.txt', 'r') as f:.
2. Writing to a file with with open('file.txt', 'w') as f:.
3. Appending data to a file using with open('file.txt', 'a') as f:.

Copying and Moving Files

1. Copying files with shutil.copy() and shutil.copy2().
2. Duplicating directories via shutil.copytree().
3. Moving or renaming files and directories using shutil.move().

Walking Through Directory Trees

1. Traversing a directory tree with os.walk().
2. Executing tasks on each file or directory encountered.

Code Examples

Cheat Sheet

import os

import shutil

# Navigation

current_dir = os.getcwd()

os.chdir(path)

# Listing

contents = os.listdir(path)

# Information

file_info = os.stat(file_path)

is_file = os.path.isfile(path)

is_directory = os.path.isdir(path)

# Manipulation

os.mkdir(directory_path)

os.makedirs(multi_level_path)

os.rename(old_name, new_name)

os.remove(file_path)

shutil.rmtree(directory_path)

# File I/O

with open(file_path, 'r') as file:

content = file.read()

with open(file_path, 'w') as file:

file.write("Hello, File!")

# Copying and Moving

shutil.copy(source, destination)

shutil.copy2(source, destination)

shutil.copytree(source, destination)

shutil.move(source, destination)

# Directory Tree Walking

for root, dirs, files in os.walk(directory_path):

for file in files:

file_path = os.path.join(root, file)

print("File:", file_path)

Key Points to Remember

• Always utilize with open() for file I/O to ensure proper resource management.
• Exercise caution with destructive actions like file deletions.
• Pay attention to file paths and use the correct methods for path joining (os.path.join()).
• Understand the distinctions between os.remove() and shutil.rmtree() for file and directory deletions.