expo-file-system

What is expo-file-system?

The expo-file-system package provides access to the file system on the device, allowing for reading, writing, deleting, and managing files and directories. It is part of the Expo ecosystem and is designed to work seamlessly with other Expo modules.

What are expo-file-system's main functionalities?

Reading Files

This feature allows you to read the contents of a file from a given URI. The readAsStringAsync method reads the file and returns its content as a string.

import * as FileSystem from 'expo-file-system';

async function readFile(uri) {
  try {
    const content = await FileSystem.readAsStringAsync(uri);
    console.log(content);
  } catch (error) {
    console.error('Error reading file:', error);
  }
}

Writing Files

This feature allows you to write content to a file at a specified URI. The writeAsStringAsync method writes the provided content to the file.

import * as FileSystem from 'expo-file-system';

async function writeFile(uri, content) {
  try {
    await FileSystem.writeAsStringAsync(uri, content);
    console.log('File written successfully');
  } catch (error) {
    console.error('Error writing file:', error);
  }
}

Deleting Files

This feature allows you to delete a file at a specified URI. The deleteAsync method deletes the file.

import * as FileSystem from 'expo-file-system';

async function deleteFile(uri) {
  try {
    await FileSystem.deleteAsync(uri);
    console.log('File deleted successfully');
  } catch (error) {
    console.error('Error deleting file:', error);
  }
}

Creating Directories

This feature allows you to create a directory at a specified URI. The makeDirectoryAsync method creates the directory, and the intermediates option allows for creating intermediate directories if they do not exist.

import * as FileSystem from 'expo-file-system';

async function createDirectory(uri) {
  try {
    await FileSystem.makeDirectoryAsync(uri, { intermediates: true });
    console.log('Directory created successfully');
  } catch (error) {
    console.error('Error creating directory:', error);
  }
}

Downloading Files

This feature allows you to download a file from a remote URI to a local URI. The downloadAsync method handles the download process.

import * as FileSystem from 'expo-file-system';

async function downloadFile(uri, downloadUri) {
  try {
    const { uri: localUri } = await FileSystem.downloadAsync(downloadUri, uri);
    console.log('File downloaded to:', localUri);
  } catch (error) {
    console.error('Error downloading file:', error);
  }
}

Other packages similar to expo-file-system

react-native-fs

react-native-fs is a file system library for React Native that provides similar functionalities to expo-file-system, such as reading, writing, and managing files and directories. It is more flexible in terms of platform support but requires linking and additional setup compared to the seamless integration of expo-file-system within the Expo ecosystem.

rn-fetch-blob

rn-fetch-blob is a library that provides file system access and network capabilities for React Native. It allows for file manipulation, downloading, and uploading, similar to expo-file-system. However, it also includes advanced features like handling large file uploads and downloads, making it a more comprehensive solution for network and file system operations.

README

expo-file-system

expo-file-system provides access to a file system stored locally on the device. Each Expo app has a separate file systems and has no access to the file system of other Expo apps. The API takes file:// URIs pointing to local files on the device to identify files.

See FileSystem docs for documentation of this universal module's API.