- Qt 6.10
- Qt Core
- C++ Classes
- QFileInfo
- Qt 6.10.2 Reference Documentation

# QFileInfo Class

The QFileInfo class provides an OS-independent API to retrieve information about file system entries. More...

Header: | `#include <QFileInfo>`
CMake: | `find_package(Qt6 REQUIRED COMPONENTS Core)` `target_link_libraries(mytarget PRIVATE Qt6::Core)`
qmake: | `QT += core`

- List of all members, including inherited members
- QFileInfo is part of Input/Output and Networking and Implicitly Shared Classes.

This class is equality-comparable.

Note: All functions in this class are reentrant.

## Public Functions

| QFileInfo()
| QFileInfo(const QFileDevice &file)
| QFileInfo(const QString &path)
`(since 6.0)` | QFileInfo(const std::filesystem::path &file)
| QFileInfo(const QDir &dir, const QString &path)
`(since 6.0)` | QFileInfo(const QDir &dir, const std::filesystem::path &path)
| QFileInfo(const QFileInfo &fileinfo)
| ~QFileInfo()
QDir | absoluteDir() const
QString | absoluteFilePath() const
QString | absolutePath() const
QString | baseName() const
QDateTime | birthTime() const
`(since 6.6)` QDateTime | birthTime(const QTimeZone &tz) const
QString | bundleName() const
bool | caching() const
QString | canonicalFilePath() const
QString | canonicalPath() const
QString | completeBaseName() const
QString | completeSuffix() const
QDir | dir() const
bool | exists() const
QString | fileName() const
QString | filePath() const
QDateTime | fileTime(QFileDevice::FileTime time) const
`(since 6.6)` QDateTime | fileTime(QFileDevice::FileTime time, const QTimeZone &tz) const
`(since 6.0)` std::filesystem::path | filesystemAbsoluteFilePath() const
`(since 6.0)` std::filesystem::path | filesystemAbsolutePath() const
`(since 6.0)` std::filesystem::path | filesystemCanonicalFilePath() const
`(since 6.0)` std::filesystem::path | filesystemCanonicalPath() const
`(since 6.0)` std::filesystem::path | filesystemFilePath() const
`(since 6.2)` std::filesystem::path | filesystemJunctionTarget() const
`(since 6.0)` std::filesystem::path | filesystemPath() const
`(since 6.6)` std::filesystem::path | filesystemReadSymLink() const
`(since 6.0)` std::filesystem::path | filesystemSymLinkTarget() const
QString | group() const
uint | groupId() const
bool | isAbsolute() const
`(since 6.4)` bool | isAlias() const
bool | isBundle() const
bool | isDir() const
bool | isExecutable() const
bool | isFile() const
bool | isHidden() const
bool | isJunction() const
bool | isNativePath() const
`(since 6.10)` bool | isOther() const
bool | isReadable() const
bool | isRelative() const
bool | isRoot() const
bool | isShortcut() const
bool | isSymLink() const
bool | isSymbolicLink() const
bool | isWritable() const
`(since 6.2)` QString | junctionTarget() const
QDateTime | lastModified() const
`(since 6.6)` QDateTime | lastModified(const QTimeZone &tz) const
QDateTime | lastRead() const
`(since 6.6)` QDateTime | lastRead(const QTimeZone &tz) const
bool | makeAbsolute()
QDateTime | metadataChangeTime() const
`(since 6.6)` QDateTime | metadataChangeTime(const QTimeZone &tz) const
QString | owner() const
uint | ownerId() const
QString | path() const
bool | permission(QFileDevice::Permissions permissions) const
QFileDevice::Permissions | permissions() const
`(since 6.6)` QString | readSymLink() const
void | refresh()
void | setCaching(bool enable)
void | setFile(const QString &path)
`(since 6.0)` void | setFile(const std::filesystem::path &path)
void | setFile(const QFileDevice &file)
void | setFile(const QDir &dir, const QString &path)
qint64 | size() const
`(since 6.0)` void | stat()
QString | suffix() const
void | swap(QFileInfo &other)
QString | symLinkTarget() const
QFileInfo & | operator=(QFileInfo &&other)
QFileInfo & | operator=(const QFileInfo &fileinfo)

## Static Public Members

bool | exists(const QString &path)

## Related Non-Members

| QFileInfoList
bool | operator!=(const QFileInfo &lhs, const QFileInfo &rhs)
bool | operator==(const QFileInfo &lhs, const QFileInfo &rhs)

## Macros

`(since 6.0)` | QT_IMPLICIT_QFILEINFO_CONSTRUCTION

## Detailed Description

QFileInfo provides information about a file system entry, such as its name, path, access rights and whether it is a regular file, directory or symbolic link. The entry's size and last modified/read times are also available. QFileInfo can also be used to obtain information about a Qt resource.

A QFileInfo can point to a file system entry with either an absolute or a relative path:

- On Unix, absolute paths begin with the directory separator `'/'`. On Windows, absolute paths begin with a drive specification (for example, `D:/`).
- Relative paths begin with a directory name or a regular file name and specify a file system entry's path relative to the current working directory.

An example of an absolute path is the string `"/tmp/quartz"`. A relative path may look like `"src/fatlib"`. You can use the function isRelative() to check whether a QFileInfo is using a relative or an absolute path. You can call the function makeAbsolute() to convert a relative QFileInfo's path to an absolute path.

Note: Paths starting with a colon (:) are always considered absolute, as they denote a QResource.

The file system entry path that the QFileInfo works on is set in the constructor or later with setFile(). Use exists() to see if the entry actually exists and size() to get its size.

The file system entry's type is obtained with isFile(), isDir(), and isSymLink(). The symLinkTarget() function provides the absolute path of the target the symlink points to.

The path elements of the file system entry can be extracted with path() and fileName(). The fileName()'s parts can be extracted with baseName(), suffix(), or completeSuffix(). QFileInfo objects referring to directories created by Qt classes will not have a trailing directory separator `'/'`. If you wish to use trailing separators in your own file info objects, just append one to the entry's path given to the constructors or setFile().

Date and time related information are returned by birthTime(), fileTime(), lastModified(), lastRead(), and metadataChangeTime(). Information about access permissions can be obtained with isReadable(), isWritable(), and isExecutable(). Ownership information can be obtained with owner(), ownerId(), group(), and groupId(). You can also examine permissions and ownership in a single statement using the permission() function.

### Symbolic Links and Shortcuts

On Unix (including macOS and iOS), the property getter functions in this class return the properties such as times and size of the target, not the symlink, because Unix handles symlinks transparently. Opening a symlink using QFile effectively opens the link's target. For example:

     #ifdef Q_OS_UNIX

     QFileInfo info1("/home/bob/bin/untabify");
     info1.isSymLink();          // returns true
     info1.absoluteFilePath();   // returns "/home/bob/bin/untabify"
     info1.size();               // returns 56201
     info1.symLinkTarget();      // returns "/opt/pretty++/bin/untabify"

     QFileInfo info2(info1.symLinkTarget());
     info2.isSymLink();          // returns false
     info2.absoluteFilePath();   // returns "/opt/pretty++/bin/untabify"
     info2.size();               // returns 56201

     #endif

On Windows, shortcuts (`.lnk` files) are currently treated as symlinks. As on Unix systems, the property getters return the size of the target, not the `.lnk` file itself. This behavior is deprecated and will likely be removed in a future version of Qt, after which `.lnk` files will be treated as regular files.

     #ifdef Q_OS_WIN

     QFileInfo info1("C:\\Users\\Bob\\untabify.lnk");
     info1.isSymLink();          // returns true
     info1.absoluteFilePath();   // returns "C:/Users/Bob/untabify.lnk"
     info1.size();               // returns 63942
     info1.symLinkTarget();      // returns "C:/Pretty++/untabify"

     QFileInfo info2(info1.symLinkTarget());
     info2.isSymLink();          // returns false
     info2.absoluteFilePath();   // returns "C:/Pretty++/untabify"
     info2.size();               // returns 63942

     #endif

### NTFS permissions

On NTFS file systems, ownership and permissions checking is disabled by default for performance reasons. To enable it, include the following line:

     extern Q_CORE_EXPORT int qt_ntfs_permission_lookup;

Permission checking is then turned on and off by incrementing and decrementing `qt_ntfs_permission_lookup` by 1.

     qt_ntfs_permission_lookup++; // turn checking on
     qt_ntfs_permission_lookup--; // turn it off again

Note: Since this is a non-atomic global variable, it is only safe to increment or decrement `qt_ntfs_permission_lookup` before any threads other than the main thread have started or after every thread other than the main thread has ended.

Note: From Qt 6.6 the variable `qt_ntfs_permission_lookup` is deprecated. Please use the following alternatives.

The safe and easy way to manage permission checks is to use the RAII class `QNtfsPermissionCheckGuard`.

     void complexFunction()
     {
         QNtfsPermissionCheckGuard permissionGuard;  // check is enabled

         // do complex things here that need permission check enabled

     }   // as the guard goes out of scope the check is disabled

If you need more fine-grained control, it is possible to manage the permission with the following functions instead:

     qAreNtfsPermissionChecksEnabled();   // check status
     qEnableNtfsPermissionChecks();       // turn checking on
     qDisableNtfsPermissionChecks();      // turn it off again

### Performance Considerations

Some of QFileInfo's functions have to query the file system, but for performance reasons, some functions only operate on the path string. For example: To return the absolute path of a relative entry's path, absolutePath() has to query the file system. The path() function, however, can work on the file name directly, and so it is faster.

QFileInfo also caches information about the file system entry it refers to. Because the file system can be changed by other users or programs, or even by other parts of the same program, there is a function that refreshes the information stored in QFileInfo, namely refresh(). To switch off a QFileInfo's caching (that is, force it to query the underlying file system every time you request information from it), call setCaching(false).

Fetching information from the file system is typically done by calling (possibly) expensive system functions, so QFileInfo (depending on the implementation) might not fetch all the information from the file system at construction. To make sure that all information is read from the file system immediately, use the stat() member function.

birthTime(), fileTime(), lastModified(), lastRead(), and metadataChangeTime() return times in local time by default. Since native file system API typically uses UTC, this requires a conversion. If you don't actually need the local time, you can avoid this by requesting the time in QTimeZone::UTC directly.

### Platform Specific Issues

On Android, some limitations apply when dealing with content URIs:

- Access permissions might be needed by prompting the user through the QFileDialog which implements Android's native file picker.
- Aim to follow the Scoped storage guidelines, such as using app specific directories instead of other public external directories. For more information, also see storage best practices.
- Due to the design of Qt APIs (e.g. QFile), it's not possible to fully integrate the latter APIs with Android's MediaStore APIs.

See also QDir and QFile.

## Member Function Documentation

### QFileInfo::QFileInfo()

Constructs an empty QFileInfo object that doesn't refer to any file system entry.

See also setFile().

### `[explicit]` QFileInfo::QFileInfo(const QFileDevice &file)

Constructs a new QFileInfo that gives information about file file.

If the file has a relative path, the QFileInfo will also have a relative path.

See also isRelative().

### `[explicit]` QFileInfo::QFileInfo(const QString &path)

Constructs a QFileInfo that gives information about a file system entry located at path that can be absolute or relative.

If path is relative, the QFileInfo will also have a relative path.

See also setFile(), isRelative(), QDir::setCurrent(), and QDir::isRelativePath().

### `[since 6.0]` QFileInfo::QFileInfo(const std::filesystem::path &file)

Constructs a new QFileInfo that gives information about the given file.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.0.

See also setFile(), isRelative(), QDir::setCurrent(), and QDir::isRelativePath().

### `[explicit]` QFileInfo::QFileInfo(const QDir &dir, const QString &path)

Constructs a new QFileInfo that gives information about the given file system entry path that is relative to the directory dir.

If dir has a relative path, the QFileInfo will also have a relative path.

If path is absolute, then the directory specified by dir will be disregarded.

See also isRelative().

### `[since 6.0]` QFileInfo::QFileInfo(const QDir &dir, const std::filesystem::path &path)

Constructs a new QFileInfo that gives information about the file system entry at path that is relative to the directory dir.

If dir has a relative path, the QFileInfo will also have a relative path.

If path is absolute, then the directory specified by dir will be disregarded.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.0.

### QFileInfo::QFileInfo(const QFileInfo &fileinfo)

Constructs a new QFileInfo that is a copy of the given fileinfo.

### `[noexcept]` QFileInfo::~QFileInfo()

Destroys the QFileInfo and frees its resources.

### QDir QFileInfo::absoluteDir() const

Returns a QDir object representing the absolute path of the parent directory of the file system entry that this QFileInfo refers to.

     // Given a current working directory of "/home/user/Documents/memos/"
     QFileInfo info1(u"relativeFile"_s);
     qDebug() << info1.absolutePath(); // "/home/user/Documents/memos/"
     qDebug() << info1.baseName(); // "relativeFile"
     qDebug() << info1.absoluteDir(); // QDir(u"/home/user/Documents/memos"_s)
     qDebug() << info1.absoluteDir().path(); // "/home/user/Documents/memos"

     // A QFileInfo on a dir
     QFileInfo info2(u"/home/user/Documents/memos"_s);
     qDebug() << info2.absolutePath(); // "/home/user/Documents"
     qDebug() << info2.baseName(); // "memos"
     qDebug() << info2.absoluteDir(); // QDir(u"/home/user/Documents"_s)
     qDebug() << info2.absoluteDir().path(); // "/home/user/Documents"

See also dir(), filePath(), fileName(), and isRelative().

### QString QFileInfo::absoluteFilePath() const

Returns the absolute full path to the file system entry this QFileInfo refers to, including the entry's name.

On Unix, absolute paths begin with the directory separator `'/'`. On Windows, absolute paths begin with a drive specification (for example, `D:/`).

On Windows, the paths of network shares that are not mapped to a drive letter begin with `//sharename/`.

QFileInfo will uppercase drive letters. Note that QDir does not do this. The code snippet below shows this.

         QFileInfo fi("c:/temp/foo");
         qDebug() << fi.absoluteFilePath(); // "C:/temp/foo"

This function returns the same as filePath(), unless isRelative() is true. In contrast to canonicalFilePath(), symbolic links or redundant "." or ".." elements are not necessarily removed.

Warning: If filePath() is empty the behavior of this function is undefined.

See also filePath(), canonicalFilePath(), and isRelative().

### QString QFileInfo::absolutePath() const

Returns the absolute path of the file system entry this QFileInfo refers to, excluding the entry's name.

On Unix, absolute paths begin with the directory separator `'/'`. On Windows, absolute paths begin with a drive specification (for example, `D:/`).

On Windows, the paths of network shares that are not mapped to a drive letter begin with `//sharename/`.

In contrast to canonicalPath() symbolic links or redundant "." or ".." elements are not necessarily removed.

Warning: If filePath() is empty the behavior of this function is undefined.

See also absoluteFilePath(), path(), canonicalPath(), fileName(), and isRelative().

### QString QFileInfo::baseName() const

Returns the base name of the file without the path.

The base name consists of all characters in the file up to (but not including) the first '.' character.

Example:

     QFileInfo fi("/tmp/archive.tar.gz");
     QString base = fi.baseName();  // base = "archive"

The base name of a file is computed equally on all platforms, independent of file naming conventions (e.g., ".bashrc" on Unix has an empty base name, and the suffix is "bashrc").

See also fileName(), suffix(), completeSuffix(), and completeBaseName().

### QDateTime QFileInfo::birthTime() const

Returns the date and time when the file was created (born), in local time.

If the file birth time is not available, this function returns an invalid QDateTime.

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

This function overloads QFileInfo::birthTime(const QTimeZone &tz), and returns the same as `birthTime(QTimeZone::LocalTime)`.

See also lastModified(), lastRead(), metadataChangeTime(), and fileTime().

### `[since 6.6]` QDateTime QFileInfo::birthTime(const QTimeZone &tz) const

Returns the date and time when the file was created (born).

The returned time is in the time zone specified by tz. For example, you can use QTimeZone::LocalTime or QTimeZone::UTC to get the time in the Local time zone or UTC, respectively. Since native file system API typically uses UTC, using QTimeZone::UTC is often faster, as it does not require any conversions.

If the file birth time is not available, this function returns an invalid QDateTime.

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.6.

See also lastModified(const QTimeZone &), lastRead(const QTimeZone &), metadataChangeTime(const QTimeZone &), and fileTime(QFileDevice::FileTime, const QTimeZone &).

### QString QFileInfo::bundleName() const

Returns the name of the bundle.

On macOS and iOS this returns the proper localized name for a bundle if the path isBundle(). On all other platforms an empty QString is returned.

Example:

     QFileInfo fi("/Applications/Safari.app");
     QString bundle = fi.bundleName();                // name = "Safari"

See also isBundle(), filePath(), baseName(), and suffix().

### bool QFileInfo::caching() const

Returns `true` if caching is enabled; otherwise returns `false`.

See also setCaching() and refresh().

### QString QFileInfo::canonicalFilePath() const

Returns the file system entry's canonical path, including the entry's name, that is, an absolute path without symbolic links or redundant `'.'` or `'..'` elements.

If the entry does not exist, canonicalFilePath() returns an empty string.

See also filePath(), absoluteFilePath(), and dir().

### QString QFileInfo::canonicalPath() const

Returns the file system entry's canonical path (excluding the entry's name), i.e. an absolute path without symbolic links or redundant "." or ".." elements.

If the entry does not exist, this method returns an empty string.

See also path() and absolutePath().

### QString QFileInfo::completeBaseName() const

Returns the complete base name of the file without the path.

The complete base name consists of all characters in the file up to (but not including) the last '.' character.

Example:

     QFileInfo fi("/tmp/archive.tar.gz");
     QString base = fi.completeBaseName();  // base = "archive.tar"

See also fileName(), suffix(), completeSuffix(), and baseName().

### QString QFileInfo::completeSuffix() const

Returns the complete suffix (extension) of the file.

The complete suffix consists of all characters in the file after (but not including) the first '.'.

Example:

     QFileInfo fi("/tmp/archive.tar.gz");
     QString ext = fi.completeSuffix();  // ext = "tar.gz"

See also fileName(), suffix(), baseName(), and completeBaseName().

### QDir QFileInfo::dir() const

Returns a QDir object representing the path of the parent directory of the file system entry that this QFileInfo refers to.

Note: The QDir returned always corresponds to the object's parent directory, even if the QFileInfo represents a directory.

For each of the following, dir() returns the QDir `"~/examples/191697"`.

         QFileInfo fileInfo1("~/examples/191697/.");
         QFileInfo fileInfo2("~/examples/191697/..");
         QFileInfo fileInfo3("~/examples/191697/main.cpp");

For each of the following, dir() returns the QDir `"."`.

         QFileInfo fileInfo4(".");
         QFileInfo fileInfo5("..");
         QFileInfo fileInfo6("main.cpp");

See also absolutePath(), filePath(), fileName(), isRelative(), and absoluteDir().

### bool QFileInfo::exists() const

Returns `true` if the file system entry this QFileInfo refers to exists; otherwise returns `false`.

Note: If the entry is a symlink that points to a non-existing target, this method returns `false`.

### `[static]` bool QFileInfo::exists(const QString &path)

Returns `true` if the file system entry path exists; otherwise returns `false`.

Note: If path is a symlink that points to a non-existing target, this method returns `false`.

Note: Using this function is faster than using `QFileInfo(path).exists()` for file system access.

### QString QFileInfo::fileName() const

Returns the name of the file system entry this QFileInfo refers to, excluding the path.

Example:

     QFileInfo fi("/tmp/archive.tar.gz");
     QString name = fi.fileName();                // name = "archive.tar.gz"

Note: If this QFileInfo is given a path ending with a directory separator `'/'`, the entry's name part is considered empty.

See also isRelative(), filePath(), baseName(), and suffix().

### QString QFileInfo::filePath() const

Returns the path of the file system entry this QFileInfo refers to; the path may be absolute or relative.

See also absoluteFilePath(), canonicalFilePath(), and isRelative().

### QDateTime QFileInfo::fileTime(QFileDevice::FileTime time) const

Returns the file time specified by time.

If the time cannot be determined, an invalid date time is returned.

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

This function overloads QFileInfo::fileTime(QFileDevice::FileTime, const QTimeZone &), and returns the same as `fileTime(time, QTimeZone::LocalTime)`.

See also birthTime(), lastModified(), lastRead(), and metadataChangeTime().

### `[since 6.6]` QDateTime QFileInfo::fileTime(QFileDevice::FileTime time, const QTimeZone &tz) const

Returns the file time specified by time.

The returned time is in the time zone specified by tz. For example, you can use QTimeZone::LocalTime or QTimeZone::UTC to get the time in the Local time zone or UTC, respectively. Since native file system API typically uses UTC, using QTimeZone::UTC is often faster, as it does not require any conversions.

If the time cannot be determined, an invalid date time is returned.

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.6.

See also birthTime(const QTimeZone &), lastModified(const QTimeZone &), lastRead(const QTimeZone &), metadataChangeTime(const QTimeZone &), and QDateTime::isValid().

### `[since 6.0]` std::filesystem::path QFileInfo::filesystemAbsoluteFilePath() const

Returns absoluteFilePath() as a `std::filesystem::path`.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.0.

See also absoluteFilePath().

### `[since 6.0]` std::filesystem::path QFileInfo::filesystemAbsolutePath() const

Returns absolutePath() as a `std::filesystem::path`.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.0.

See also absolutePath().

### `[since 6.0]` std::filesystem::path QFileInfo::filesystemCanonicalFilePath() const

Returns canonicalFilePath() as a `std::filesystem::path`.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.0.

See also canonicalFilePath().

### `[since 6.0]` std::filesystem::path QFileInfo::filesystemCanonicalPath() const

Returns canonicalPath() as a `std::filesystem::path`.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.0.

See also canonicalPath().

### `[since 6.0]` std::filesystem::path QFileInfo::filesystemFilePath() const

Returns filePath() as a `std::filesystem::path`.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.0.

See also filePath().

### `[since 6.2]` std::filesystem::path QFileInfo::filesystemJunctionTarget() const

Returns junctionTarget() as a `std::filesystem::path`.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.2.

See also junctionTarget().

### `[since 6.0]` std::filesystem::path QFileInfo::filesystemPath() const

Returns path() as a `std::filesystem::path`.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.0.

See also path().

### `[since 6.6]` std::filesystem::path QFileInfo::filesystemReadSymLink() const

Returns readSymLink() as a `std::filesystem::path`.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.6.

See also readSymLink().

### `[since 6.0]` std::filesystem::path QFileInfo::filesystemSymLinkTarget() const

Returns symLinkTarget() as a `std::filesystem::path`.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.0.

See also symLinkTarget().

### QString QFileInfo::group() const

Returns the group of the file. On Windows, on systems where files do not have groups, or if an error occurs, an empty string is returned.

This function can be time consuming under Unix (in the order of milliseconds).

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

See also groupId(), owner(), and ownerId().

### uint QFileInfo::groupId() const

Returns the id of the group the file belongs to.

On Windows and on systems where files do not have groups this function always returns (uint) -2.

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

See also group(), owner(), and ownerId().

### bool QFileInfo::isAbsolute() const

Returns `true` if the file system entry's path is absolute, otherwise returns `false` (that is, the path is relative).

Note: Paths starting with a colon (:) are always considered absolute, as they denote a QResource.

See also isRelative().

### `[since 6.4]` bool QFileInfo::isAlias() const

Returns `true` if this object points to an alias; otherwise returns `false`.

Aliases only exist on macOS. They are treated as regular files, so opening an alias will open the file itself. In order to open the file or directory an alias references use symLinkTarget().

Note: Even if an alias points to a non existing file, isAlias() returns true.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.4.

See also isFile(), isDir(), isSymLink(), and symLinkTarget().

### bool QFileInfo::isBundle() const

Returns `true` if this object points to a bundle or to a symbolic link to a bundle on macOS and iOS; otherwise returns `false`.

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

See also isDir(), isSymLink(), and isFile().

### bool QFileInfo::isDir() const

Returns `true` if this object points to a directory or to a symbolic link to a directory. Returns `false` if the object points to something that is not a directory (such as a file) or that does not exist.

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

See also isFile(), isSymLink(), and isBundle().

### bool QFileInfo::isExecutable() const

Returns `true` if the file system entry this QFileInfo refers to is executable; otherwise returns `false`.

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

See also isReadable(), isWritable(), and permission().

### bool QFileInfo::isFile() const

Returns `true` if this object points to a file or to a symbolic link to a file. Returns `false` if the object points to something that is not a file (such as a directory) or that does not exist.

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

See also isDir(), isSymLink(), and isBundle().

### bool QFileInfo::isHidden() const

Returns `true` if the file system entry this QFileInfo refers to is `hidden'; otherwise returns `false`.

Note: This function returns `true` for the special entries "." and ".." on Unix, even though QDir::entryList treats them as shown. And note that, since this function inspects the file name, on Unix it will inspect the name of the symlink, if this file is a symlink, not the target's name.

On Windows, this function returns `true` if the target file is hidden (not the symlink).

### bool QFileInfo::isJunction() const

Returns `true` if the object points to a junction; otherwise returns `false`.

Junctions only exist on Windows' NTFS file system, and are typically created by the `mklink` command. They can be thought of as symlinks for directories, and can only be created for absolute paths on the local volume.

### bool QFileInfo::isNativePath() const

Returns `true` if the file path can be used directly with native APIs. Returns `false` if the file is otherwise supported by a virtual file system inside Qt, such as the Qt Resource System.

Note: Native paths may still require conversion of path separators and character encoding, depending on platform and input requirements of the native API.

See also QDir::toNativeSeparators(), QFile::encodeName(), filePath(), absoluteFilePath(), and canonicalFilePath().

### `[since 6.10]` bool QFileInfo::isOther() const

Returns `true` if this QFileInfo refers to a file system entry that is not a directory, regular file or symbolic link. Otherwise returns `false`.

If this QFileInfo refers to a nonexistent entry, this method returns `false`.

If the entry is a dangling symbolic link (the target doesn't exist), this method returns `false`. For a non-dangling symbolic link, this function returns information about the target, not the symbolic link.

On Unix a special (other) file system entry is a FIFO, socket, character device, or block device. For more details, see the `mknod` manual page.

On Windows (for historical reasons, see Symbolic Links and Shortcuts) this method returns `true` for `.lnk` files.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.10.

See also isDir(), isFile(), isSymLink(), and QDirListing::IteratorFlag::ExcludeOther.

### bool QFileInfo::isReadable() const

Returns `true` if the user can read the file system entry this QFileInfo refers to; otherwise returns `false`.

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

Note: If the NTFS permissions check has not been enabled, the result on Windows will merely reflect whether the entry exists.

See also isWritable(), isExecutable(), and permission().

### bool QFileInfo::isRelative() const

Returns `true` if the file system entry's path is relative, otherwise returns `false` (that is, the path is absolute).

On Unix, absolute paths begin with the directory separator `'/'`. On Windows, absolute paths begin with a drive specification (for example, `D:/`).

Note: Paths starting with a colon (:) are always considered absolute, as they denote a QResource.

See also isAbsolute().

### bool QFileInfo::isRoot() const

Returns `true` if the object points to a directory or to a symbolic link to a directory, and that directory is the root directory; otherwise returns `false`.

### bool QFileInfo::isShortcut() const

Returns `true` if this object points to a shortcut; otherwise returns `false`.

Shortcuts only exist on Windows and are typically `.lnk` files. For instance, true will be returned for shortcuts (`*.lnk` files) on Windows, but false will be returned on Unix (including macOS and iOS).

The shortcut (.lnk) files are treated as regular files. Opening those will open the `.lnk` file itself. In order to open the file a shortcut references to, it must uses symLinkTarget() on a shortcut.

Note: Even if a shortcut (broken shortcut) points to a non existing file, isShortcut() returns true.

See also isFile(), isDir(), isSymbolicLink(), and symLinkTarget().

### bool QFileInfo::isSymLink() const

Returns `true` if this object points to a symbolic link, shortcut, or alias; otherwise returns `false`.

Symbolic links exist on Unix (including macOS and iOS) and Windows and are typically created by the `ln -s` or `mklink` commands, respectively. Opening a symbolic link effectively opens the link's target.

In addition, true will be returned for shortcuts (`*.lnk` files) on Windows, and aliases on macOS. This behavior is deprecated and will likely change in a future version of Qt. Opening a shortcut or alias will open the `.lnk` or alias file itself.

Example:

     QFileInfo info(fileName);
     if (info.isSymLink())
         fileName = info.symLinkTarget();

Note: exists() returns `true` if the symlink points to an existing target, otherwise it returns `false`.

See also isFile(), isDir(), and symLinkTarget().

### bool QFileInfo::isSymbolicLink() const

Returns `true` if this object points to a symbolic link; otherwise returns `false`.

Symbolic links exist on Unix (including macOS and iOS) and Windows (NTFS-symlink) and are typically created by the `ln -s` or `mklink` commands, respectively.

Unix handles symlinks transparently. Opening a symbolic link effectively opens the link's target.

In contrast to isSymLink(), false will be returned for shortcuts (`*.lnk` files) on Windows and aliases on macOS. Use QFileInfo::isShortcut() and QFileInfo::isAlias() instead.

Note: exists() returns `true` if the symlink points to an existing target, otherwise it returns `false`.

See also isFile(), isDir(), isShortcut(), and symLinkTarget().

### bool QFileInfo::isWritable() const

Returns `true` if the user can write to the file system entry this QFileInfo refers to; otherwise returns `false`.

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

Note: If the NTFS permissions check has not been enabled, the result on Windows will merely reflect whether the entry is marked as Read Only.

See also isReadable(), isExecutable(), and permission().

### `[since 6.2]` QString QFileInfo::junctionTarget() const

Resolves an NTFS junction to the path it references.

Returns the absolute path to the directory an NTFS junction points to, or an empty string if the object is not an NTFS junction.

There is no guarantee that the directory named by the NTFS junction actually exists.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.2.

See also isJunction(), isFile(), isDir(), isSymLink(), isSymbolicLink(), and isShortcut().

### QDateTime QFileInfo::lastModified() const

Returns the date and time when the file was last modified.

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

This function overloads QFileInfo::lastModified(const QTimeZone &), and returns the same as `lastModified(QTimeZone::LocalTime)`.

See also birthTime(), lastRead(), metadataChangeTime(), and fileTime().

### `[since 6.6]` QDateTime QFileInfo::lastModified(const QTimeZone &tz) const

Returns the date and time when the file was last modified.

The returned time is in the time zone specified by tz. For example, you can use QTimeZone::LocalTime or QTimeZone::UTC to get the time in the Local time zone or UTC, respectively. Since native file system API typically uses UTC, using QTimeZone::UTC is often faster, as it does not require any conversions.

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.6.

See also birthTime(const QTimeZone &), lastRead(const QTimeZone &), metadataChangeTime(const QTimeZone &), and fileTime(QFileDevice::FileTime, const QTimeZone &).

### QDateTime QFileInfo::lastRead() const

Returns the date and time when the file was last read (accessed).

On platforms where this information is not available, returns the same time as lastModified().

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

This function overloads QFileInfo::lastRead(const QTimeZone &), and returns the same as `lastRead(QTimeZone::LocalTime)`.

See also birthTime(), lastModified(), metadataChangeTime(), and fileTime().

### `[since 6.6]` QDateTime QFileInfo::lastRead(const QTimeZone &tz) const

Returns the date and time when the file was last read (accessed).

The returned time is in the time zone specified by tz. For example, you can use QTimeZone::LocalTime or QTimeZone::UTC to get the time in the Local time zone or UTC, respectively. Since native file system API typically uses UTC, using QTimeZone::UTC is often faster, as it does not require any conversions.

On platforms where this information is not available, returns the same time as lastModified().

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.6.

See also birthTime(const QTimeZone &), lastModified(const QTimeZone &), metadataChangeTime(const QTimeZone &), and fileTime(QFileDevice::FileTime, const QTimeZone &).

### bool QFileInfo::makeAbsolute()

If the file system entry's path is relative, this method converts it to an absolute path and returns `true`; if the path is already absolute, this method returns `false`.

See also filePath() and isRelative().

### QDateTime QFileInfo::metadataChangeTime() const

Returns the date and time when the file's metadata was last changed, in local time.

A metadata change occurs when the file is first created, but it also occurs whenever the user writes or sets inode information (for example, changing the file permissions).

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

This function overloads QFileInfo::metadataChangeTime(const QTimeZone &tz), and returns the same as `metadataChangeTime(QTimeZone::LocalTime)`.

See also birthTime(), lastModified(), lastRead(), and fileTime().

### `[since 6.6]` QDateTime QFileInfo::metadataChangeTime(const QTimeZone &tz) const

Returns the date and time when the file's metadata was last changed. A metadata change occurs when the file is first created, but it also occurs whenever the user writes or sets inode information (for example, changing the file permissions).

The returned time is in the time zone specified by tz. For example, you can use QTimeZone::LocalTime or QTimeZone::UTC to get the time in the Local time zone or UTC, respectively. Since native file system API typically uses UTC, using QTimeZone::UTC is often faster, as it does not require any conversions.

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.6.

See also birthTime(const QTimeZone &), lastModified(const QTimeZone &), lastRead(const QTimeZone &), and fileTime(QFileDevice::FileTime time, const QTimeZone &).

### QString QFileInfo::owner() const

Returns the owner of the file. On systems where files do not have owners, or if an error occurs, an empty string is returned.

This function can be time consuming under Unix (in the order of milliseconds). On Windows, it will return an empty string unless the NTFS permissions check has been enabled.

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

See also ownerId(), group(), and groupId().

### uint QFileInfo::ownerId() const

Returns the id of the owner of the file.

On Windows and on systems where files do not have owners this function returns ((uint) -2).

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

See also owner(), group(), and groupId().

### QString QFileInfo::path() const

Returns the path of the file system entry this QFileInfo refers to, excluding the entry's name.

Note: If this QFileInfo is given a path ending with a directory separator `'/'`, the entry's name part is considered empty. In this case, this function will return the entire path.

See also filePath(), absolutePath(), canonicalPath(), dir(), fileName(), and isRelative().

### bool QFileInfo::permission(QFileDevice::Permissions permissions) const

Tests for file permissions. The permissions argument can be several flags of type QFile::Permissions OR-ed together to check for permission combinations.

On systems where files do not have permissions this function always returns `true`.

Note: The result might be inaccurate on Windows if the NTFS permissions check has not been enabled.

Example:

     QFileInfo fi("/tmp/archive.tar.gz");
     if (fi.permission(QFile::WriteUser | QFile::ReadGroup))
         qWarning("I can change the file; my group can read the file");
     if (fi.permission(QFile::WriteGroup | QFile::WriteOther))
         qWarning("The group or others can change the file");

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

See also isReadable(), isWritable(), and isExecutable().

### QFileDevice::Permissions QFileInfo::permissions() const

Returns the complete OR-ed together combination of QFile::Permissions for the file.

Note: The result might be inaccurate on Windows if the NTFS permissions check has not been enabled.

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

### `[since 6.6]` QString QFileInfo::readSymLink() const

Read the path the symlink references.

Returns the raw path referenced by the symbolic link, without resolving a relative path relative to the directory containing the symbolic link. The returned string will only be an absolute path if the symbolic link actually references it as such. Returns an empty string if the object is not a symbolic link.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.6.

See also symLinkTarget(), exists(), isSymLink(), isDir(), and isFile().

### void QFileInfo::refresh()

Refreshes the information about the file system entry this QFileInfo refers to, that is, reads in information from the file system the next time a cached property is fetched.

### void QFileInfo::setCaching(bool enable)

If enable is true, enables caching of file information. If enable is false caching is disabled.

When caching is enabled, QFileInfo reads the file information from the file system the first time it's needed, but generally not later.

Caching is enabled by default.

See also refresh() and caching().

### void QFileInfo::setFile(const QString &path)

Sets the path of the file system entry that this QFileInfo provides information about to path that can be absolute or relative.

On Unix, absolute paths begin with the directory separator `'/'`. On Windows, absolute paths begin with a drive specification (for example, `D:/`).

Relative paths begin with a directory name or a regular file name and specify a file system entry's path relative to the current working directory.

Example:

     QFileInfo info("/usr/bin/env");

     QString path = info.absolutePath(); // path = /usr/bin
     QString base = info.baseName(); // base = env

     info.setFile("/etc/hosts");

     path = info.absolutePath(); // path = /etc
     base = info.baseName(); // base = hosts

See also isFile(), isRelative(), QDir::setCurrent(), and QDir::isRelativePath().

### `[since 6.0]` void QFileInfo::setFile(const std::filesystem::path &path)

Sets the path of file system entry that this QFileInfo provides information about to path.

If path is relative, the QFileInfo will also have a relative path.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.0.

### void QFileInfo::setFile(const QFileDevice &file)

Sets the file that the QFileInfo provides information about to file.

If file includes a relative path, the QFileInfo will also have a relative path.

This is an overloaded function.

See also isRelative().

### void QFileInfo::setFile(const QDir &dir, const QString &path)

Sets the path of the file system entry that this QFileInfo provides information about to path in directory dir.

If dir has a relative path, the QFileInfo will also have a relative path.

If path is absolute, then the directory specified by dir will be disregarded.

This is an overloaded function.

See also isRelative().

### qint64 QFileInfo::size() const

Returns the file size in bytes. If the file does not exist or cannot be fetched, 0 is returned.

If the file is a symlink, this function returns information about the target, not the symlink.

See also exists().

### `[since 6.0]` void QFileInfo::stat()

Reads all attributes from the file system.

This is useful when information about the file system is collected in a worker thread, and then passed to the UI in the form of caching QFileInfo instances.

This function was introduced in Qt 6.0.

See also setCaching() and refresh().

### QString QFileInfo::suffix() const

Returns the suffix (extension) of the file.

The suffix consists of all characters in the file after (but not including) the last '.'.

Example:

     QFileInfo fi("/tmp/archive.tar.gz");
     QString ext = fi.suffix();  // ext = "gz"

The suffix of a file is computed equally on all platforms, independent of file naming conventions (e.g., ".bashrc" on Unix has an empty base name, and the suffix is "bashrc").

See also fileName(), completeSuffix(), baseName(), and completeBaseName().

### `[noexcept]` void QFileInfo::swap(QFileInfo &other)

Swaps this file info with other. This operation is very fast and never fails.

### QString QFileInfo::symLinkTarget() const

Returns the absolute path to the file or directory a symbolic link points to, or an empty string if the object isn't a symbolic link.

This name may not represent an existing file; it is only a string.

Note: exists() returns `true` if the symlink points to an existing target, otherwise it returns `false`.

See also exists(), isSymLink(), isDir(), and isFile().

### `[noexcept]` QFileInfo &QFileInfo::operator=(QFileInfo &&other)

Move-assigns other to this QFileInfo instance.

### QFileInfo &QFileInfo::operator=(const QFileInfo &fileinfo)

Makes a copy of the given fileinfo and assigns it to this QFileInfo.

## Related Non-Members

### QFileInfoList

Synonym for QList<QFileInfo>.

### `[noexcept]` bool operator!=(const QFileInfo &lhs, const QFileInfo &rhs)

Returns `true` if QFileInfo lhs refers to a different file system entry than the one referred to by rhs; otherwise returns `false`.

See also operator==().

### `[noexcept]` bool operator==(const QFileInfo &lhs, const QFileInfo &rhs)

Returns `true` if QFileInfo lhs and QFileInfo rhs refer to the same entry on the file system; otherwise returns `false`.

Note that the result of comparing two empty QFileInfo objects, containing no file system entry references (paths that do not exist or are empty), is undefined.

Warning: This will not compare two different symbolic links pointing to the same target.

Warning: On Windows, long and short paths that refer to the same file system entry are treated as if they referred to different entries.

See also operator!=().

## Macro Documentation

### `[since 6.0]` QT_IMPLICIT_QFILEINFO_CONSTRUCTION

Defining this macro makes most QFileInfo constructors implicit instead of explicit. Since construction of QFileInfo objects is expensive, one should avoid accidentally creating them, especially if cheaper alternatives exist. For instance:

     QDirIterator it(dir);
     while (it.hasNext()) {
         // Implicit conversion from QString (returned by it.next()):
         // may create unnecessary data structures and cause additional
         // accesses to the file system. Unless this macro is defined,
         // this line does not compile.

         QFileInfo fi = it.next();

         ~~~
     }

Instead, use the right API:

     QDirIterator it(dir);
     while (it.hasNext()) {
         // Extract the QFileInfo from the iterator directly:
         QFileInfo fi = it.nextFileInfo();

         ~~~
     }

Construction from QString, QFile, and so on is always possible by using direct initialization instead of copy initialization:

     QFileInfo fi1 = some_string; // Does not compile unless this macro is defined
     QFileInfo fi2(some_string);  // OK
     QFileInfo fi3{some_string};  // Possibly better, avoids the risk of the Most Vexing Parse
     auto fi4 = QFileInfo(some_string); // OK

This macro is provided for compatibility reason. Its usage is not recommended in new code.

This macro was introduced in Qt 6.0.