
How-To... - Check if a file exists
using the Dir Function
You
already know how to copy files through Visual Basic, but what if the file
already exists. You don't want to overwrite important files. To check if a
file already exists, you can use the Dir Function. Anybody that has used DOS
will already be familiar with this function. The syntax is :-
Dir[(pathname[, attributes])]
For example, Dir("C:\Windows\System.ini",
0) will search for that file. If it does exist "System.ini"
is returned, if it doesn't exist then nothing is returned. The 0(that's zero)
means Normal. For more constants, consult the VB Online Help, or the source
code for this How-To. That's how easy it is to check for a file already existing.
You
can download the source code by clicking here
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