PHP Recursive function: Get all files and directories within a directory and its sub-directories

Question

I have wrote a php function , through which I want an array of all the files and directories in a particular directory .

1) Below is my directory structure -

/pages  (Full path - /home/ubuntu/projects/xyz.com/code/ciapp/views/pages)
|
|--file1.php
|--file2.php
|--file3.php
|--folder1
   |--file4.php
   |--file5.php
   |--folder2
      |--file6.php
|--folder3
   |--file7.php
   |--file8.php

2) What I want is an array of files and directories -

Array
(
[files] => Array
    (
        [0] => /home/ubuntu/projects/xyz.com/code/ciapp/views/pages/file1.php
        [1] => /home/ubuntu/projects/xyz.com/code/ciapp/views/pages/file2.php
        [2] => /home/ubuntu/projects/xyz.com/code/ciapp/views/pages/file3.php
        [3] => /home/ubuntu/projects/xyz.com/code/ciapp/views/pages/folder1/file4.php
        [4] => /home/ubuntu/projects/xyz.com/code/ciapp/views/pages/folder1/file5.php
        [5] => /home/ubuntu/projects/xyz.com/code/ciapp/views/pages/folder1/folder2/file6.php
        [6] => /home/ubuntu/projects/xyz.com/code/ciapp/views/pages/folder3/file7.php
        [7] => /home/ubuntu/projects/xyz.com/code/ciapp/views/pages/folder3/file8.php
    )

[directories] => Array
    (
        [0] => /home/ubuntu/projects/xyz.com/code/ciapp/views/pages/folder1
        [1] => /home/ubuntu/projects/xyz.com/code/ciapp/views/pages/folder1/folder2
        [2] => /home/ubuntu/projects/xyz.com/code/ciapp/views/pages/folder3
    )
)

3) What I am getting (only 1 level) -

Array
(
[files] => Array
    (
        [0] => /home/ubuntu/projects/xyz.com/code/ciapp/views/pages/file1.php
        [1] => /home/ubuntu/projects/xyz.com/code/ciapp/views/pages/file2.php
        [2] => /home/ubuntu/projects/xyz.com/code/ciapp/views/pages/file3.php
    )

[directories] => Array
    (
        [0] => /home/ubuntu/projects/xyz.com/code/ciapp/views/pages/folder1
        [1] => /home/ubuntu/projects/xyz.com/code/ciapp/views/pages/folder3
    )
)

4) My function -

function get_files_directories($directory, $a = array())
{
    $dirs = scandir($directory, 1);
    $arr = $a;

    foreach($dirs as $dir)
    {
       if($dir != "." && $dir != '..')
       {
           $new_dir = $directory.'/'.$dir;
           if(is_dir($new_dir))
           {
               $arr['directories'][] = $new_dir;
               get_files_directories($new_dir, $arr);
           }
           else
           {
               $arr['files'][] = $new_dir;
           }
       }
    }

    return $arr;
}

$my_dir = "/home/ubuntu/projects/xyz.com/code/ciapp/views/pages";
$files_dirs = get_files_directories($my_dir);

echo '<pre>'; print_r($files_dirs);

What am I missing here? Help will be appreciated. Thankyou :)

Answer 1

Switch $path with your path, and this should work. The SPL contains all the classes required for recursive directory traversal, there is no need to roll your own.

<?php

$path   = '.';
$result = array('files' => array(), 'directories' => array());

$DirectoryIterator = new RecursiveDirectoryIterator($path);
$IteratorIterator  = new RecursiveIteratorIterator($DirectoryIterator, RecursiveIteratorIterator::SELF_FIRST);
foreach ($IteratorIterator as $file) {

    $path = $file->getRealPath();
    if ($file->isDir()) {
        $result['directories'][] = $path;
    } elseif ($file->isFile()) {
        $result['files'][] = $path;
    }

}

print_r($result);

For more information, consult the PHP documentation: RecursiveDirectoryIterator , RecursiveIteratorIterator & SplFileInfo are great starting points!

Answer 2

Using the FilesystemIterator may be a bit faster:

function getDirectoryList($dir) {
    $dirList = $fileList = array();
    $iter = new FilesystemIterator($dir, FilesystemIterator::SKIP_DOTS);

    foreach($iter as $file) {
        if($file->isDir()) {
            $dirList[$file->getFilename()] = getDirectoryList($file->getPathname());
        } else {
            $fileList[$file->getFilename()] = $file->getFilename();
        }
    }
    uksort($dirList, "strnatcmp");
    natsort($fileList);
    return $dirList + $fileList;
}

This function will give you a multi-dimensional array structured exactly like your directory structure, which may also be easier to work with.

Answer 3

It's a recursive call and you might append the return value to the array or work on a array reference:

if(is_dir($new_dir))
{
    $arr['directories'][] = $new_dir;
    get_files_directories($new_dir, $arr); //assign or return
}

-

function get_files_directories($directory, &$arr) 

Answer 4

You should either assign the "arr" returning from the recusive call OR you should pass in the array by reference. (see passing by reference: http://php.net/manual/en/language.references.pass.php )

To pass by reference: get_files_directories($new_dir, &$arr);