How to check if a file exists from inside a batch file

Question

I need to run a utility only if a certain file exists  How do I do this in Windows batch

User · Answer

Try something like the following example, quoted from the output of IF /? on Windows XP:

IF EXIST filename. (
    del filename.
) ELSE (
    echo filename. missing.
)

You can also check for a missing file with IF NOT EXIST.

The IF command is quite powerful. The output of IF /? will reward careful reading. For that matter, try the /? option on many of the other built-in commands for lots of hidden gems.

User · Answer

if exist  lt insert file name here gt        rem file exists   else       rem file doesn t exist     Or on a single line  if only a single action needs to occur    if exist  lt insert file name here gt   lt action gt    for example  this opens notepad on autoexec bat  if the file exists   if exist c  autoexec bat notepad c  autoexec bat

User · Answer

C   gt help if   Performs conditional processing in batch programs      IF  NOT  ERRORLEVEL number command      IF  NOT  string1  string2 command      IF  NOT  EXIST filename command

[windows] How to check if a file exists from inside a batch file

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