Archived Directory and File Pathnames Reader Parameters

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Archive Parameters

Specifies the search pattern to use when looking for files and folders. Only filenames and folder names that match the Path Filter will be output as features.

This parameter is optional, but defaults to reading all contents of the current directory using a glob pattern of *. If not specified, the path will not attempt to be interpreted as a glob pattern. This allows special glob characters in the path to be treated as literals – all files, folders, or both, are returned from the reader dataset archive, depending on the setting for Allowed Path Type.

Note  The Path Filter is a glob pattern for matching file or folder names. Some limited name filtering is possible, but full regular expressions are not supported and the syntax is not identical. Recursion is performed using the parameter Recurse Into Subfolders.

The Path Filter allows a specific set of files and/or folders within the reader dataset archive by specifying a relative path. Patterns are possible in the Path Filter option.

Special Characters Supported in the Path Filter

Wildcard

Description

Example

Matches

Does not match

?

Matches any single character case-insensitively.

?at

Cat, cat, Bat, bat

at

*

Matches any sequence of zero or more characters case-insensitively.

This match can occur in folder names, file names or file extensions, and can be used multiple times.

Law*

Law, Laws, LawS, Lawyer

GrokLaw

[abc]

Matches a single character case sensitively

[CB]at

Cat, Bat

cat or bat

[a-z]

Matches any single character in the range a-z inclusive and case-sensitively

[a-z]001

a001, b001, ...

A001,a002

[0-9]

Matches any single number in the range 0-9 inclusive.

Letter[4-5]

Letter4, Letter5

Letters, Letter, Letter1

[a-z]

[A-Z]

Matches any single character in the range a-z or A-Z inclusive, case-sensitively.

test[a-z],...

test[A-Z]

testa, ... testz,
testA, ... testZ

test, testAB, testAz, testZa

{ab, cd, e}

Matches any of the strings ab or cd or e.

Dir{One,Two}

DirOne, DirTwo

DirThree, DirOneTwo
Note   
  • The Path Filter is a glob pattern – not a regular expression.
  • Using forward slashes as separators will provide the best results because forward slashes do not conflict with glob escape characters or UNC path names.

See also Common Path Filter Errors.

Additional Examples Relative to the Reader Dataset

*.dgn

Matches all files in the reader dataset folder that end with a .dgn extension.

{data,archive}/*.dgn

Matches all files in the reader dataset folder in either the data or archive subfolders that end with a .dgn extension.

data/{d,p}*.shp

Matches all files in the reader dataset folder that begin with a d or a p and that end with a .shp extension.

The braces must be contained within a single path component, and cannot contain path separators.

/data/92?034.dgn

Matches all files in the data subfolder of the reader dataset folder that start with 92, have any single letter or number character, and end with 034.dgn.

92[a-z]034.dgn

Matches all files in the reader dataset folder that start with 92, then any single lowercase letter, and end with 034.dgn.

data/**/*.shp

Matches all files in the data subfolder of the reader dataset folder with a .shp file extension.

How to access the Path filter after initial workspace generation.

  • The table below lists common errors and their resolutions.

    • Common Path Filter Errors

    Error

    Reason

    C:\data\*.dgn

    Single backslashes are interpreted as escape characters in the pattern.

    You can use forward slashes for path separators (C:/data/*.dgn), or escape the backslashes so they are treated as literals (C:\\data\\*.dgn).

    Specifies whether to match the current folder and, recursively, all subfolders.

    If set to Yes, the path filter glob pattern will be prepended with **/, a wildcard that indicates recursion into subfolders.

    Note  We recommend that users do not use the recursion wildcard directly in the Path Filter, but instead set this option to Yes if matching all subfolders is desired.

    Specifies whether to search for any path type, which includes both files and folders, or specifically files or folders only.

    Specifies whether to include or exclude hidden files and folders from the search.

    Hidden files are any filename that begins with a period (.).

    Tip  For consistent behavior across operating systems, consider including hidden files and folders.

    Specifies whether to populate file properties for each matched file or folder returned.

    If set to Yes, the attributes in the table below will be on schema and set on output features for files and folders with the corresponding timestamps, file size, owner name, and read-only attributes.

    See the Feature Representation section for information about each specific attribute.

    If set to No, the attributes will not be on schema or created. Setting this parameter to No can sometimes improve performance.

    File Properties Attributes
    zip_modified_date
    zip_accessed_date
    zip_created_date
    zip_filesize
    zip_ownername
    zip_readonly

    Defines a UTC datetime. Only files and folders modified on or after this specified datetime will be included in the results.