Thursday, September 4, 2025
HomeLanguagesPHP | rmdir( ) Function

PHP | rmdir( ) Function

The rmdir() function in PHP is an inbuilt function which is used to remove an empty directory. It is mandatory for the directory to be empty, and it must have the relevant permissions which are required to delete the directory.
The directory to be deleted is sent as a parameter to the rmdir() function and it returns True on success or False on failure.

Syntax:

rmdir(dirname, context)

Parameters Used:
The rmdir() function in PHP accepts two parameters.

  1. dirname : It is a mandatory parameter which specifies the directory to be deleted.
  2. context : It is an optional parameter which specifies the behavior of the stream .

Return Value:
It returns True on success or False on failure.

Errors And Exception

  1. The rmdir() function generates an E_WARNING level error on failure.
  2. opendir() must be closed before using rmdir() function else it gives permission denied error.
  3. PHP checks whether the directory in which the script is operating has the same UID (owner) as the script that is being executed when it is in safe mode.

Examples:

Input : mkdir('gfg');
        $dirname= "gfg";
        rmdir($dirname);
Output : 1

Input : $dirname = "gfg";
        if(rmdir($dirname))
        {
          echo ("$dirname successfully removed");
        }
        else
        {
          echo ("$dirname couldn't be removed"); 
        }
Output : gfg successfully removed

Below programs illustrate the rmdir() function.

Program 1




<?php
// creating a directory named gfg
mkdir('gfg');
$dirname= "gfg";
  
// removing directory using rmdir()
rmdir($dirname);
?>


Output:

1

Program 2




<?php
// creating a directory named gfg
 $dirname = "gfg";
  
// removing directory using rmdir()
if(rmdir($dirname))
{
  echo ("$dirname successfully removed");
}
else
{
 echo ($dirname . "couldn't be removed"); 
}
?>


Output:

gfg successfully removed

Reference:
http://php.net/manual/en/function.rmdir.php

RELATED ARTICLES

Most Popular

Dominic
32264 POSTS0 COMMENTS
Milvus
81 POSTS0 COMMENTS
Nango Kala
6629 POSTS0 COMMENTS
Nicole Veronica
11799 POSTS0 COMMENTS
Nokonwaba Nkukhwana
11859 POSTS0 COMMENTS
Shaida Kate Naidoo
6749 POSTS0 COMMENTS
Ted Musemwa
7025 POSTS0 COMMENTS
Thapelo Manthata
6698 POSTS0 COMMENTS
Umr Jansen
6718 POSTS0 COMMENTS