Python - os.chdir() method

os.chdir() method in Python is used to change the current working directory to the specified path. This function is part of the os module, which provides functionalities to interact with the operating system.

Example of os.chdir()

import os  

# Check the current working directory  
print(os.getcwd())  

# Change the current working directory  
os.chdir("/path/to/new/directory")  

# Verify the directory change  
print(os.getcwd())  

Output:

Explanation:

• The os.getcwd() function retrieves the current working directory.
• os.chdir() changes the working directory to the specified path.

Python os.chdir() Syntax

os.chdir(path)

Parameters:

• path: A string representing the path to the directory you want to set as the current working directory. This can be either an absolute path (e.g., /home/user/docs) or a relative path (e.g., ../newdir).

Returns:

• The method does not return any value.

Using an Absolute Path

os.chdir("/usr/local/bin") command changes the working directory to the absolute path /usr/local/bin. After the directory change, os.getcwd() is used to confirm the change and print the current directory, which should now be /usr/local/bin.

import os  

# Changing to an absolute path  
os.chdir("/usr/local/bin")  
print(os.getcwd())  

Output:

Using a Relative Path

os.chdir("..") uses a relative path, which moves the working directory up one level. The .. represents the parent directory. After changing the directory, os.getcwd() will print the new directory, which should be the parent of the current directory.

import os  

# Change directory using a relative path  
os.chdir("..")  # Move one level up  
print(os.getcwd())  

Output:

Switching Between Directories

In this we first store the current directory in the variable initial_dir using os.getcwd(). The directory is then changed to /tmp using os.chdir("/tmp"). The new working directory is printed with os.getcwd().

import os  

# Store the initial directory  
initial_dir = os.getcwd()  

# Change to a new directory  
os.chdir("/tmp")  
print("After Changing:", os.getcwd())  

# Revert to the initial directory  
os.chdir(initial_dir)  
print("Reverted Back:", os.getcwd())  

Output: