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FindFile

See Also
- FileNames
- FileNameSetter
- FileExistsQ
- SystemDialogInput
- $Path
- Get
- Needs
- Install
- NotebookDirectory
- $Input
- $InputFileName
Related Guides
- See Also
  - FileNames
  - FileNameSetter
  - FileExistsQ
  - SystemDialogInput
  - $Path
  - Get
  - Needs
  - Install
  - NotebookDirectory
  - $Input
  - $InputFileName
- Related Guides

FindFile

finds the file with the specified name that would be loaded by Get[name] and related functions.

Details

FindFile[name] successively searches for a file with the specified name in each of the directories given in $Path.
FindFile returns full absolute file names.
FindFile returns $Failed if it cannot find a file with the specified name.
In FindFile[name], the name can be specified with / path separators (or \\ on Windows). It can also be specified with ` context separators.
For names of the form "name`", FindFile searches for files "name.mx" and "name.m".
If FindFile resolves to a directory, it will search for a file named Kernel/init.m or init.m in that directory.
If FindFile resolves to an object of the form "name.mx" which corresponds to a directory, it will search for a file with a name like name.mx/$SystemID/name.mx.
Get, Needs, OpenRead, Install and other functions effectively use FindFile to find files to read.
FindFile[File["file"]] is also supported.

Examples

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Basic Examples (3)

Find which initialization file is loaded:

Find initialization file for a package:

Find a file used for examples:

Scope (1)

Find the file specified by the File object:

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