Detailed explanation of the use of Python file path pattern matching glob module

1. Overview of glob module

globThe module can find files and directories according to the specified pattern, and it supports fuzzy matching using wildcards. Mainly byglobandiglobTwo functions to achieve pattern matching of file paths, and can handle simple file name patterns, such as*.txtIt can match all extensions as.txtfile.

2. Wildcard rules

(I) * Wild Card

Function: Match any number of characters (including zero) of them.
Example：

import glob

# Match all files with the extension .txt in the current directorytxt_files = ('*.txt')
for file in txt_files:
    print(file)

In the above code,*.txtIt means that the file name matches any of the current directory, but the extension is.txtAll files.

(II)? Wild Card Talisman

Function: Match a single arbitrary character.
Example：

import glob

# Match files with only one character in the current directory with an extension of .pysingle_char_py_files = ('?.py')
for file in single_char_py_files:
    print(file)

here,?.pyIndicates that the file name has only one character and the extension is.pyfile.

(III)[] Wild Card

Function: Match any character specified in square brackets.
Example：

import glob

# Match files with file names starting with a or b and extension .txt in the current directoryab_txt_files = ('[ab]*.txt')
for file in ab_txt_files:
    print(file)

[ab]*.txtIndicates the file name asaorbStart with the extension.txtfile.

(IV) ** Wildcard character (recursive matching)

Function: Used in the path**Represents a recursive matching directory. Supported in Python 3.5 and above.
Example：

import glob

# Recursively match all files with .txt extension under the current directory and its subdirectoriesall_txt_files = ('**/*.txt', recursive=True)
for file in all_txt_files:
    print(file)

**/*.txtCombinedrecursive=TrueWill recursively search the current directory and all subdirectories.txtdocument.

3. glob function

(a)(pathname, *, recursive=False)

Function: Returns a list of file and directory paths that match the specified pattern.
parameter:
- pathname: The path pattern to match.
- recursive: Whether to perform recursive matching, the default isFalse. When set toTrueWhen using**Wildcards are searched recursively.
Example：

import glob

# Match all files starting with test under the current directory and its subdirectoriestest_files = ('**/test*', recursive=True)
for file in test_files:
    print(file)

4. Iglob function

(a)(pathname, *, recursive=False)

Function: Returns an iterator that produces file and directory paths that conform to the specified pattern one by one.
parameter:andsame.
Example：

import glob

# Use iglob to iterate over all .py files in the current directorypy_files_iter = ('*.py')
for file in py_files_iter:
    print(file)

iglobIt is suitable for handling a large number of matching results, because it does not generate all matching results at once, but generates them one by one, saving memory.

5. Comparison between glob and other file search methods

How to find	advantage	shortcoming	Applicable scenarios
`glob`Module	Simple to use, supports wildcard matching, and can quickly find files and directories that match the pattern.	The pattern matching function is relatively simple and does not support complex regular expression matching.	Simple file and directory searches, such as searching by extension, file name prefix, etc.
Function	You can traverse the directory tree recursively and control the traversal process in detail.	It requires manual code to be written for file filtering, which is relatively complicated to use.	Scenarios that require deep traversal and complex filtering of the directory tree.
`re`Module (regular expression)	Supports complex pattern matching and powerful functions.	The learning cost is high and the code is relatively complex.	A scenario where complex file name pattern matching is required.

6. Application scenarios

(I) Batch file processing

Can be usedglobThe module finds files that meet a specific pattern, and then batches these files, such as batch renaming, batch reading of file content, etc.

import glob

# Batch rename all .txt files in the current directorytxt_files = ('*.txt')
for file in txt_files:
    new_name = ('.txt', '_new.txt')
    import os
    (file, new_name)

(II) Data collection

When performing data collection, it may be necessary to read data from multiple files. Can be usedglobThe module looks for relevant files and then reads the data.

import glob

# Read data of all .csv files in the current directory and its subdirectoriescsv_files = ('**/*.csv', recursive=True)
for file in csv_files:
    with open(file, 'r') as f:
        data = ()
        print(f"Data from {file}: {data[:100]}...")

Article summary

globThe module provides Python developers with a convenient way to find files and directories. By using Unix-style wildcard rules, it can quickly locate files and directories that meet specific patterns.The function returns a list of matching results.Function returns an iterator, suitable for different application scenarios. In simple file search and batch processing tasks,globModules are a very practical tool.

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