Linux chdir function
On Unix-like operating systems, chdir is the system call for changing the current working directory.
This page covers the GNU/Linux version of chdir.
Description
chdir changes the current working directory of the calling process to the directory specified in path.
Syntax
#include <unistd.h> int chdir(const char *path);
Return value
On success, zero (0) is returned. On an error, -1 is returned, and errno is set appropriately.
Errors
Depending on the filesystem, other errors can be returned. The more general errors for chdir are listed below:
| EACCES | Search permission is denied for one of the components of path. |
| EFAULT | path points outside the accessible address space. |
| EIO | An I/O error occurred. |
| ELOOP | Too many symbolic links were encountered in resolving path. |
| ENAMETOOLONG | path is too long. |
| ENOENT | The file does not exist. |
| ENOMEM | Insufficient kernel memory was available. |
| ENOTDIR | A component of path is not a directory. |
Notes
The current working directory is the starting point for interpreting relative pathnames (those not starting with '/').
A child process created via fork inherits its parent's current working directory. The current working directory is left unchanged by execve.
Related commands
cd — Change the working directory.
chroot — Run a command or shell from another directory, and treat that directory as root.
ls — List the contents of a directory or directories.