- How to print full path of current file’s directory in Python?
- Using os.path.abspath() Method
- Example
- Output
- Using os.path.dirname() Method
- Example
- Output
- Conclusion
- Print Current Directory in Python
- Files and Directories in Python
- Ways to print the Current Directory in Python
- Using the os.getcwd() function to print the current directory in Python
- Using the os.path module to print the current directory in Python
- Find The Full Path of The Python Interpreter
- The Python Interpreter
- Finding Python Path
- Method 1: Using sys.executable
- Method 2: Using sys.path
- Conclusion
- Print Current Directory in Python
- Files and Directories in Python
- Ways to print the Current Directory in Python
- Using the os.getcwd() function to print the current directory in Python
- Using the os.path module to print the current directory in Python
How to print full path of current file’s directory in Python?
The path of a current file is defined with the help of directory hierarchy; and it contains the backtracked path from the current file to the root directory this file is present in. For instance, consider a file “my_file” belongs to a directory “my_directory”, the path for this file is defined as given below
The directory, sub-directory and the file are all separated using the “/” separator in the path.
Therefore, to get current file’s full path, you can use the os.path.abspath() function. If you want only the directory path, you can call os.path.dirname() method.
Using os.path.abspath() Method
The os.path.abspath() function accepts the path as an argument is used to get the complete normalized absolute path of the current file.
Example
?The following example demonstrates how to retrieve the absolute path of a file by passing its name as an argument to the os.path.abspath() method.
import os fname = "file1.txt" print(os.path.abspath(fname))
Output
If we compile and run the program above, the output is given as follows −
Using os.path.dirname() Method
The os.path.dirname() function is used to get the directory path (without the file name) of the current file.
This method only accepts a string or a byte as an argument; however, one must pass the complete path of the current file to retrieve the path of its current directory (a part of the path).
return value of os.path.dirname() method + file name = return value of os.path.abspath() method
Example
Here, we will first obtain the complete path of the current file using the abspath() method; then the return value is passed as an argument to the dirname() method. The current directory is expected to be retrieved.
import os fname = "file1.txt" dn = os.path.abspath(fname) print(os.path.dirname(dn))
Output
If we compile and run the program above, the output is displayed as follows −
Conclusion
The path module provides two functions to get current file’s full path. First, use os.path.abspath() function to get the absolute path. Next, use os.path.dirname() function to get only the directory path.
Print Current Directory in Python
In this post, we will see how to print current directory in Python.
Files and Directories in Python
A computer system uses directories to store and organize files. Every file is present in some directory. There is a root folder at the top of the hierarchy, and every directory is a child of this root.
In Python, we have the current directory of a script file. We also have the current directory of the Python terminal. At times, both are the same especially when we work with Python notebook files.
Ways to print the Current Directory in Python
We will now discuss how to print the current directory in Python. We will deal with methods and display the directory of the running Python script or the current directory of the Python terminal.
Using the os.getcwd() function to print the current directory in Python
We have different functionalities in the os module that can communicate and interact with the operating system.
The current working directory is the directory in which the Python terminal is operating. At times, it may not be the directory of the Python script.
We can return the current working directory using the os.getcwd() function. It returns the directory as a string.
Using the os.path module to print the current directory in Python
The os.path module provides different pathname-related functions. We can use them to print the current directory in Python.
The __file__ constant will be used in these methods and it represents the pathname of the Python script file. This path is relative to the current working directory. Remember, to use this constant we need to work in a .py file and not on a notebook file.
The os.path.realpath() function from this module can return the path of a given file. It removes any symbolic links present in the path. We can pass the __file__ constant to this function and we will get the path of the file we are working with. We can display this path to print the current directory in Python.
Find The Full Path of The Python Interpreter
Problem Statement: How to find the full path of the currently running Python interpreter?
There are different ways to find the full path of Python interpreters. But first, let’s get the basics out of our way before we unearth the solution to our problem statement.
So, what’s a Python Interpreter? This might be a bit silly to discuss for intermediate coders, however keeping in mind the wide range of audience we have, it is absolutely necessary to understand the basics before we dissect the given question. Please feel free to jump into the solutions right away if you already know what are interpreters.
The Python Interpreter
In simple terms, interpreter is the layer that operates between your program and your computer hardware to get your code running. The Python interpreter is a byte-code interpreter. We will learn about bytecodes in some other discussion but for now you can think of bytecode as a series of instructions or a certain low level program for the Python Interpreter. Each code object contains a bunch of instructions to be executed that is the bytecode in addition to the other data that the interpreter will require.
The interpreter runs the Python code in two different ways:
Finding Python Path
When you get introduced to Python, you first install it on your device. If you are on a Windows machine, it is most likely the situation that there is a file named C:\Python , and inside that file, there is a program named python.exe . Hence, the path to Python is C:\Python . It can also be installed at the following path: C:\Program Files\Python . On the off chance that you have no clue about where Python got installed on your device, you should look for it in the following way:
- First, press Start in the lower-left corner then press Search followed by all files and folders.
- Type python.exe in the top text line that shows up and then press the search.
- A folder name will be listed where Python got installed. Hence the folder name becomes the path of Python.
- Now, go to the particular folder path and ensure that python.exe belongs inside the folder.
Now let’s dive into the various methods to find the full path of a Python interpreter.
Method 1: Using sys.executable
At a point when the Python script runs, the sys.executable gives the path to the program that was executed, to be specific, the Python interpreter. In case if Python is not able to recover the genuine path to its executable, the sys.executable method will be an empty string or None .
According to the official documentation, sys.executable gives a string giving the absolute path of the executable binary for the Python interpreter, on systems where this makes sense. If Python is unable to retrieve the real path to its executable, sys.executable will be an empty string or None .
Note: You have to import the sys module to utilize it.
While using it in your script, you can do it this way:
import sys path = sys.executable print(path)
Method 2: Using sys.path
Most often beginners intend to install the wrong interpreter module or package in Python. The system then does not allow to import the desired packages. Hence, it becomes necessary to find the right path for the interpreter. You can use the sys.path variable for this purpose.
The sys.path variable is a list of strings that determines the path for the modules, and it also tells where the packages (commonly with pip) have been installed.
While using it in your script, you can do it this way:
# Importing sys module import sys path = sys.path # Getting the path of the Python interpreter print(path)
Conclusion
I hope this has been informative. Please stay tuned and subscribe for more tutorials in the future.
Recommended Tutorial: How Do I Copy a File in Python?
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Print Current Directory in Python
In this post, we will see how to print current directory in Python.
Files and Directories in Python
A computer system uses directories to store and organize files. Every file is present in some directory. There is a root folder at the top of the hierarchy, and every directory is a child of this root.
In Python, we have the current directory of a script file. We also have the current directory of the Python terminal. At times, both are the same especially when we work with Python notebook files.
Ways to print the Current Directory in Python
We will now discuss how to print the current directory in Python. We will deal with methods and display the directory of the running Python script or the current directory of the Python terminal.
Using the os.getcwd() function to print the current directory in Python
We have different functionalities in the os module that can communicate and interact with the operating system.
The current working directory is the directory in which the Python terminal is operating. At times, it may not be the directory of the Python script.
We can return the current working directory using the os.getcwd() function. It returns the directory as a string.
Using the os.path module to print the current directory in Python
The os.path module provides different pathname-related functions. We can use them to print the current directory in Python.
The __file__ constant will be used in these methods and it represents the pathname of the Python script file. This path is relative to the current working directory. Remember, to use this constant we need to work in a .py file and not on a notebook file.
The os.path.realpath() function from this module can return the path of a given file. It removes any symbolic links present in the path. We can pass the __file__ constant to this function and we will get the path of the file we are working with. We can display this path to print the current directory in Python.