Introduction to Managing Files in MATLAB :: Managing Files in MATLAB (MATLAB®)

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Introduction to Managing Files in MATLAB

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Ways to Manage MATLAB Files Tools for Managing Files

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Ways to Manage MATLAB Files

Tools for Managing Files

Ways to Manage MATLAB Files

MATLAB functions and desktop tools help you:

Find a file you want to open, edit, load, or run in MATLAB
Organize your files
Obtain information about the contents and status of a file
Ensure that MATLAB can access a file so that you can run or load it. Typically, any file you access must be in the current folder or in a folder that is on the MATLAB search path.

For a broad introduction, see the Managing Files in MATLAB topic in the MATLAB Getting Started guide.

Tools for Managing Files

You can create, open, close, read, write, rename, move, and delete files and folders using MATLAB functions. For a listing of them and links to their reference pages, see File Operations.

MATLAB also provides many interactive tools for working with files. Click the name of a tool in the following table to learn more about it.

Desktop Tool	Description
Current Folder Browser	View files, perform file operations such as opening, finding files and viewing file content, and managing and tuning your files.
Find File tools	Locate files by folder, file type, size, text within them, and other criteria.
File and Folder Comparisons	View line-by-line differences between two files.
Editor	Create, edit, debug, and analyze files containing MATLAB language statements (functions and scripts), and view and edit other text files.
File Exchange	Access a repository of files, created by users for sharing with other users, at the MathWorks Web site.

Viewing and Changing the Current Folder Using the Current Folder Browser

To view and change the current folder:

View the full path to the current folder in the address bar.
- If the full path does not fit in the address bar, hover over the folder icon to see it.
- To view the full path as a string, suitable for copying or pasting, click the empty area near the right edge of the address bar.
View subfolders and change the current folder using the address bar. For more information, right-click the address bar, and from the context menu, select Help Using Address Bar.
Make a subfolder become the current folder by right-clicking the subfolder and selecting Open from the context menu.

Image of address bar in Current Folder browser.

Viewing and Changing the Current Folder from the Desktop Toolbar

To view or change the current folder on the desktop toolbar, use the current folder field. For example, select a previously used current folder from the history.