A directory is a group of data files, depending on their content, their purpose or any criteria decided by the user.
They serve to better organize the files on a storage medium such as a hard drive, a pen drive, a CD, etc.
Within a directory there may also be other directories, called subdirectories or subfolders; in fact, ultimately, all directories are subdirectories of the root directory (the logical drive).
This organization of content into directories and subdirectories creates a directory hierarchy starting with the root directory.
Starting with Windows, many users became familiar with the term folder to name directories. In most cases they are synonyms, but sometimes not, as we will see below.
Folder and Directory are not synonyms, but they are similar
Sometimes Folder and Directory are not exactly synonymous, since folder does not represent an actually existing directory in the file system’s directory hierarchy.
This occurs in the case of folders to classify information (folders in the e-mail box as an inbox or outbox, or folders in the favorites/bookmarks of the browser), in the case of the smart folders of certain operating systems, in the case of smart folders of certain operating systems, in the case of virtual folders, etc.
Characteristics of the directories
Historically, and even on some modern embedded systems, file systems either did not support directories at all, or only had a «flat» directory structure, meaning no support for subdirectories.
On modern systems, file systems support a mix of files and subdirectories.
To refer to a location within a system of
A reference to a location in a directory system is called a path.
root directory
In computer file systems, the root directory is the first or highest directory in the directory hierarchy. It can be seen as the trunk of a tree, from which the rest of the branches (the rest of the directories) branch off.
For more information read: root directory.
directory tree
The directory tree is a way of displaying all the directories on a storage unit (such as a hard drive, floppy disk, optical disc, etc.) in a tree structure.
For more information read: directory tree.
web directory
A web directory is a collection of websites accompanied by their links, usually organized in categories and with brief information about what each one offers.
For more information read: web directory.
Related
How to hide and password protect directories.
Quote the definition:
Alegsa.com.ar (2018). directory definition – ALEGSA 2018-05-17 url: https:///Dec/directorio.php
Doubts? needs more information? Write and we will respond to your email: click here