Absolute Path

Term added on Monday 10th June, 2024 by Team

An absolute path is like a full address that includes every detail needed to find a location from the very top level of the file system. It’s unambiguous and always points to the same location, no matter where you are currently.

For example, imagine your computer’s file system as a big filing cabinet with multiple drawers and folders inside each drawer.

Top Level (Root)

The highest level of the file system. On Windows, it’s usually represented as `C:\`. On Unix-like systems (like macOS or Linux), it’s `/`.

Absolute Path in Windows

C:\Users\John\Documents\report.txt`

`C:` is the drive letter.
`\Users` is a folder in the root of the `C:` drive.
`\John` is a folder inside `Users`.
`\Documents` is a folder inside `John`.
`report.txt` is the file inside the `Documents` folder.

Absolute Path in Unix/Linux

`/home/john/documents/report.txt`

`/` is the root directory.
`home` is a folder in the root directory.
`john` is a folder inside `home`.
`documents` is a folder inside `john`.
`report.txt` is the file inside the `documents` folder.

Why Use Absolute Paths?

Consistency: Always points to the same location, no matter where you are working from.
Clarity: Provides the complete address, making it clear and precise.

How to Recognize an Absolute Path

Windows: Starts with a drive letter followed by a colon and a backslash (e.g., `C:\`).
Unix/Linux: Starts with a forward slash (e.g., `/`).

Example Scenario

Imagine you’re working on a project, and you need to open a file called `report.txt`. The absolute path ensures that the computer knows exactly where to look for that file.

Windows: If you provide `C:\Users\John\Documents\report.txt`, the computer will go to the `C:` drive, then to `Users`, then `John`, then `Documents`, and finally find `report.txt`.
Unix/Linux: If you provide `/home/john/documents/report.txt`, the computer will start at the root directory, then go to `home`, then `john`, then `documents`, and find `report.txt`.