pathlib offers a set of classes to handle filesystem paths. It offers the following advantages over using string objects:

No more cumbersome use of os and os.path functions. Everything can be done easily through operators, attribute accesses, and method calls.
Embodies the semantics of different path types. For example, comparing Windows paths ignores casing.
Well-defined semantics, eliminating any warts or ambiguities (forward vs. backward slashes, etc.).

Requirements

Python 3.2 or later is recommended, but pathlib is also usable with Python 2.7 and 2.6.

Install

In Python 3.4, pathlib is now part of the standard library. For Python 3.3 and earlier, easy_install pathlib or pip install pathlib should do the trick.

Examples

Importing the module classes::

from pathlib import *

Listing Python source files in a directory::

list(p.glob('*.py')) [PosixPath('test_pathlib.py'), PosixPath('setup.py'), PosixPath('pathlib.py')]

Navigating inside a directory tree::

p = Path('/etc') q = p / 'init.d' / 'reboot' q PosixPath('/etc/init.d/reboot') q.resolve() PosixPath('/etc/rc.d/init.d/halt')

Querying path properties::

q.exists() True q.is_dir() False

Opening a file::

with q.open() as f: f.readline() ... '#!/bin/bash\n'

Documentation

The full documentation can be read at Read the Docs <https://pathlib.readthedocs.org/>_.

Contributing

Main development now takes place in the Python standard library: see the Python developer's guide <http://docs.python.org/devguide/>, and report issues on the Python bug tracker <http://bugs.python.org/>.

However, if you find an issue specific to prior versions of Python (such as 2.7 or 3.2), you can post an issue on the BitBucket project page <https://bitbucket.org/pitrou/pathlib/>_.

History

Version 1.0.1 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Pull requestion #4: Python 2.6 compatibility by eevee.

Version 1.0 ^^^^^^^^^^^

This version brings pathlib up to date with the official Python 3.4 release, and also fixes a couple of 2.7-specific issues.

Python issue #20765: Add missing documentation for PurePath.withname() and PurePath.withsuffix().
Fix testmkdirparents when the working directory has additional bits set (such as the setgid or sticky bits).
Python issue #20111: pathlib.Path.with_suffix() now sanity checks the given suffix.
Python issue #19918: Fix PurePath.relative_to() under Windows.
Python issue #19921: When Path.mkdir() is called with parents=True, any missing parent is created with the default permissions, ignoring the mode argument (mimicking the POSIX "mkdir -p" command).
Python issue #19887: Improve the Path.resolve() algorithm to support certain symlink chains.
Make pathlib usable under Python 2.7 with unicode pathnames (only pure ASCII, though).
Issue #21: fix TypeError under Python 2.7 when using new division.
Add tox support for easier testing.

Version 0.97 ^^^^^^^^^^^^

This version brings pathlib up to date with the final API specified in :pep:428. The changes are too long to list here, it is recommended to read the documentation <https://pathlib.readthedocs.org/>_.

.. warning:: The API in this version is partially incompatible with pathlib 0.8 and earlier. Be sure to check your code for possible breakage!

Version 0.8 ^^^^^^^^^^^

Add PurePath.name and PurePath.anchor.
Add Path.owner and Path.group.
Add Path.replace().
Add Path.as_uri().
Issue #10: when creating a file with Path.open(), don't set the executable bit.
Issue #11: fix comparisons with non-Path objects.

Version 0.7 ^^^^^^^^^^^

Add '**' (recursive) patterns to Path.glob().
Fix openat() support after the API refactoring in Python 3.3 beta1.
Add a target_is_directory argument to Path.symlink_to()

Version 0.6 ^^^^^^^^^^^

Add Path.isfile() and Path.issymlink()
Add Path.glob() and Path.rglob()
Add PurePath.match()

Version 0.5 ^^^^^^^^^^^

Add Path.mkdir().
Add Python 2.7 compatibility by Michele Lacchia.
Make parent() raise ValueError when the level is greater than the path length.