How do I check if a file exists in Java?

Question

How can I check whether a file exists, before opening it for reading in Java (the equivalent of Perl\'s -e $filename

Answer 1

There are multiple ways to achieve this.

1. In case of just for existence. It could be file or a directory.

   new File("/path/to/file").exists();
   

2. Check for file

   File f = new File("/path/to/file"); 
     if(f.exists() && f.isFile()) {}
   

3. Check for Directory.

   File f = new File("/path/to/file"); 
     if(f.exists() && f.isDirectory()) {}
   

4. Java 7 way.

   Path path = Paths.get("/path/to/file");
   Files.exists(path)  // Existence 
   Files.isDirectory(path)  // is Directory
   Files.isRegularFile(path)  // Regular file 
   Files.isSymbolicLink(path)  // Symbolic Link