👋 Hey there, PHP developer! Working with files and folders is a crucial part of any programming language. In PHP, directory functions allow you to interact with directories—read contents, create folders, delete them, and more. If you’ve ever wanted to build a file manager, manipulate uploaded files, or simply organize server-side data, directory functions in PHP are your go-to tools.

In this blog post, we’ll walk through the most commonly used directory functions in PHP, explain how they work, and include practical code examples to help you implement them in real-world projects.

📁 What Are Directory Functions in PHP?

Directory functions in PHP are built-in functions that help you interact with folders on the server. They allow you to:

• Open and read directory contents
• Create and delete directories
• Check for existence
• Change current directories
• Navigate through directories

Whether you’re developing a content management system (CMS) or handling user uploads, these functions come in handy.

Let’s dive into the most commonly used PHP directory functions.

📂 opendir() — Open a Directory

Description:

The opendir() function is used to open a directory handle for reading. This handle is later used with functions like readdir() and closedir().

Syntax:

opendir(string $directory, ?resource $context = null): resource|false

Example:

$dir = "uploads/";

if (is_dir($dir)) {
    if ($dh = opendir($dir)) {
        echo "Directory opened successfully.";
        closedir($dh);
    }
}

📄 readdir() — Read Files Inside a Directory

Description:

After opening a directory with opendir(), you can use readdir() to read its contents, one entry at a time.

Syntax:

readdir(?resource $dir_handle = null): string|false

Example:

$dir = "uploads/";

if ($dh = opendir($dir)) {
    while (($file = readdir($dh)) !== false) {
        echo "File: " . $file . "<br>";
    }
    closedir($dh);
}

🔍 Note: . and .. are special directory entries representing the current and parent directories respectively.

📃 scandir() — Get All Directory Files as Array

Description:

The scandir() function returns an array of files and directories inside a specified path.

Syntax:

scandir(string $directory, int $sorting_order = SCANDIR_SORT_ASCENDING, ?resource $context = null): array|false

Example:

$files = scandir("uploads/");

foreach ($files as $file) {
    echo $file . "<br>";
}

This is a simpler and faster alternative to using opendir() and readdir() if you want to get all files at once.

📁 mkdir() — Create a New Directory

Description:

The mkdir() function is used to create a new directory.

Syntax:

mkdir(
    string $directory,
    int $permissions = 0777,
    bool $recursive = false,
    ?resource $context = null
): bool

Example:

$newDir = "uploads/new_folder";

if (!file_exists($newDir)) {
    mkdir($newDir, 0755);
    echo "Directory created successfully.";
}

🛡️ Always check if the folder exists before creating one to avoid warnings or errors.

🗑️ rmdir() — Remove (Delete) a Directory

Description:

The rmdir() function removes an empty directory.

Syntax:

rmdir(string $directory, ?resource $context = null): bool

Example:

$dir = "uploads/old_folder";

if (is_dir($dir)) {
    rmdir($dir);
    echo "Directory deleted.";
}

⚠️ rmdir() only works on empty directories. To delete a directory with files, you need to remove its contents first.

📌 is_dir() — Check If Path is a Directory

Description:

This function is ued to checks if a given path is a directory or not.

Syntax:

is_dir(string $filename): bool

Example:

$path = "uploads/";

if (is_dir($path)) {
    echo "Yes, it's a directory.";
}

A helpful check before performing any directory-specific operations.

🔍 is_readable() and is_writable()

Description:

These functions check if the directory or file is readable or writable respectively.

Syntax:

is_readable(string $filename)
is_writable(string $filename)

Example:

$path = "uploads/";

if (is_readable($path)) {
    echo "Directory is readable.";
}

if (is_writable($path)) {
    echo "Directory is writable.";
}

Very useful for permission management on web servers.

🔄 chdir() — Change Current Directory

Description:

The chdir() function used to changes the current directory for the script.

Syntax:

chdir(string $directory): bool

Example:

chdir("uploads");
echo "Current Directory: " . getcwd();

🧭 Use getcwd() to get the current working directory path.

📌 glob() — Pattern Matching for Files

Description:

glob() searches for pathnames matching a specified pattern.

Syntax:

glob(string $pattern, int $flags = 0): array|false

Example:

$images = glob("uploads/*.jpg");

foreach ($images as $img) {
    echo $img . "<br>";
}

Very handy for filtering files with specific extensions.

🧹 Bonus: Delete Non-Empty Directory (Recursive Function)

Here’s a quick way to delete non-empty folders using recursion:

function deleteDir($dirPath) {
    if (!is_dir($dirPath)) return false;

    $items = scandir($dirPath);
    foreach ($items as $item) {
        if ($item == '.' || $item == '..') continue;
        $filePath = $dirPath . DIRECTORY_SEPARATOR . $item;

        if (is_dir($filePath)) {
            deleteDir($filePath);
        } else {
            unlink($filePath);
        }
    }
    return rmdir($dirPath);
}

🙋 Frequently Asked Questions

✅ Summary Table

🎯 Final Thoughts

Working with directory functions in PHP is straightforward once you understand the flow—open, read, create, delete. These functions are not only useful but necessary when dealing with file uploads, CMS systems, or any server-side file management features.

Whether you’re just getting started with PHP or looking to sharpen your backend development skills, mastering these directory functions is a must.

Learn more about File Handling in PHP to combine file and directory operations smoothly.

Check the PHP Manual on Directory Functions for comprehensive documentation and edge cases.

If you found this article helpful, feel free to share it or leave a comment! Happy coding! 👨‍💻👩‍💻