Is node.js rmdir recursive ? Will it work on non empty directories?

Question

The documentation for fs.rmdir is very short and doesn\'t explain the behavior of rmdir when the directory is not empty.

Q: What happens if I try to use

Answer 1

Node.js v12.10.0 introduced recursive option into fs.rmdir. As fs.mkdir supports the same option since v10.12.0, both making and removing directory can be executed recursively.

$ node --experimental-repl-await

# without recursive option -> error
> await fs.promises.mkdir('foo/bar')
Thrown:
[Error: ENOENT: no such file or directory, mkdir 'foo/bar'] {
  errno: -2,
  code: 'ENOENT',
  syscall: 'mkdir',
  path: 'foo/bar'
}

# with recursive option -> success
> await fs.promises.mkdir('foo/bar', { recursive: true })
undefined

# without recursive option -> error
> await fs.promises.rmdir('foo')
Thrown:
[Error: ENOTEMPTY: directory not empty, rmdir 'foo'] {
  errno: -66,
  code: 'ENOTEMPTY',
  syscall: 'rmdir',
  path: 'foo'
}

# with recursive option -> success
> await fs.promises.rmdir('foo', { recursive: true })
undefined