`fileattrib`

Reads the attributes of a file or folder.

Category: Programming > Files and Folders

Syntax

[status, attrs] = fileattrib(name)

Returns whether name was found and a struct of its attributes.

fileattrib(name)

Displays the attributes.

Description

The attribute struct has one field for each property of the item. Name holds the full path, directory is 1 for a folder, and the User... fields tell whether the current user can read, write or execute it.

Use the first output to test existence without raising an error: a name that does not exist gives a false status.

Input arguments

name: File or folder.

Output arguments

status: true if the item exists.
attrs: Struct with Name, archive, system, hidden, directory, and the permission fields UserRead, UserWrite, UserExecute, GroupRead and the like. On Windows the group and other fields are NaN.

Example

Attributes of a file and a folder

mkdir box
writelines('x', 'box/f.txt');
[ok, a] = fileattrib('box/f.txt');
ok
a.directory
a.UserRead
[~, b] = fileattrib('box');
b.directory

Output

ok = logical
   1
ans = logical
   0
ans = logical
   1
ans = logical
   1

Notes

MatLivre reads attributes; a mode string such as '+w' or '-w' is accepted but does not change them.

fileattrib