# R: Delete Files and Directories

unlink {base} | R Documentation

## Delete Files and Directories

### Description

`unlink` deletes the file(s) or directories specified by `x`.

### Usage

    unlink(x, recursive = FALSE)

### Arguments

`x` | a character vector with the names of the file(s) or directories to be deleted. Wildcards (normally ‘*’ and ‘?’) are allowed.
`recursive` | logical. Should directories be deleted recursively?

### Details

If `recursive = FALSE` directories are not deleted, not even empty ones.

`file.remove` can only remove files, but gives more detailed error information.

Wildcard expansion is done by the internal code of `Sys.glob`. Wildcards will only be expanded if the system supports it.

`recursive = TRUE` is not supported on all platforms, and may be ignored, with a warning.

### Value

`0` for success, `1` for failure. Not deleting a non-existent file is not a failure, nor is being unable to delete a directory if `recursive = FALSE`.

### References

Becker, R. A., Chambers, J. M. and Wilks, A. R. (1988) The New S Language. Wadsworth & Brooks/Cole.

### See Also

`file.remove`.

[Package base version 2.6.0 Index]