🐍 pathlib.nvim

OS independent, ultimate solution to path handling in neovim.

🐍 pathlib.nvim

This plugin aims to decrease the difficulties of path management across mutliple OSs in neovim. The plugin API is heavily inspired by Python's pathlib.Path with tweaks to fit neovim usage. It is mainly used in neo-tree.nvim but it is very simple and portable to be used in any plugin.

• Documentation
• Module References
  • PathlibPath: base class with operations.
  • PathlibPosixPath: posix system specific.
  • PathlibWindowsPath: posix system specific.
• 🔎 Search for Keyword
  • Search
  • Index

✨ Benefits

📦 Intuitive and Useful Methods

local Path = require("pathlib")
local dir = Path("~/Documents") -- Same as `Path.home() / "Documents"`
local foo = dir / "foo.txt"

print(foo:basename(), foo:stem(), foo:suffix()) -- foo.txt, foo, .txt
print(foo:parent()) -- "/home/user/Documents"

📋 Git Integration

local git_root = Path("/path/to/git/workdir")
assert(git_root:child(".git"):exists(), string.format("%s is not a git repo.", git_root))

require("pathlib.git").fill_git_state({ file_a, file_b, ... })

file_a.git_state.ignored  -- is git ignored
file_a.git_state.status   -- git status (modified, added, staged, ...)
file_a.git_state.git_root -- root directory of the repo

⏱️ Sync / Async Operations

The API is designed so it is very easy to switch between sync and async operations. Call them inside a nvim-nio async context without any change, and the operations are converted to be async (does not block the main thread).

local foo = Path("~/Documents/foo.txt")
local content = "File Content\n"

-- # sync
local sync_bytes = foo:fs_write(content)
assert(sync_bytes == content:len(), foo.error_msg)

-- # async
require("nio").run(function()
  local async_bytes = foo:fs_write(content)
  assert(async_bytes == content:len(), foo.error_msg)
end)

🚀 Usage Example

Create Path Object

local Path = require("pathlib")
local cwd     = Path.cwd()
vim.print(string.format([[cwd: %s]], cwd))

-- Use __div to chain file tree!
local folder  = Path(".") / "folder"
local foo     =              folder / "foo.txt"
assert(tostring(foo)          == "folder/foo.txt") -- $PWD/folder/foo.txt
assert(tostring(foo:parent()) == "folder")

-- Path object is comparable
assert(foo                    == Path("./folder/foo.txt")) -- Path object can be created with arguments
assert(foo                    == Path(folder, "foo.txt"))  -- Unpack any of them if you want!

-- Calculate relativily
assert(foo:is_relative_to(Path("folder")))
assert(not foo:is_relative_to(Path("./different folder")))
assert(foo:relative_to(folder) == Path("foo.txt"))

Path object is stored with string[].

• Very fast operations to work with parents / children / siblings.
• No need to worry about path separator => OS Independent.
  • /: Unix, \: Windows

Nicely integrated with vim functions.

There are wrappers around vim functions such as fnamemodify, stdpath and getcwd.

path:modify(":p:t:r")                -- vim.fn.fnamemodify

-- Define child directory of stdpaths
Path.stdpath("data", "mason", "bin") -- vim.fn.stdpath("data") .. "/mason/bin"

Create and Manipulate Files / Directories

local luv = vim.loop
local Path = require("pathlib")

-- Create new folder
local new_file = Path.new("./new/folder/foo.txt")
new_file:parent_assert():mkdir(Path.permission("rwxr-xr-x"), true) -- (permission, recursive)

-- Create new file and write to it
local fd = new_file:fs_open("w", Path.permission("rw-r--r--"), true)
assert(fd ~= nil, "File creation failed. " .. new_file.error_msg)
luv.fs_write(fd, "File Content\n")
luv.fs_close(fd)
-- HINT: new_file:fs_write(...) does this all at once.

-- SHORTHAND: read file content with `io.read`
local content = new_file:io_read()
assert(content == "File Content\n")

-- SHORTHAND: write to file
new_file:io_write("File Content\n")

new_file:copy(new_file:with_basename("bar.txt")) -- copy `foo.txt` to `bar.txt`
new_file:symlink_to(new_file:with_basename("baz.txt")) -- create symlink of `foo.txt` named `baz.txt`

Scan Directories

-- Continue from above
for path in new_file:parent_assert():fs_iterdir() do
  -- loop: [Path("./new/folder/foo.txt"), Path("./new/folder/bar.txt"), Path("./new/folder/baz.txt")]
end

Async Execution

This library uses nvim-nio under the hood to run async calls. Supported methods will turn into async calls inside a nio.run async context and has the EXACT SAME INTERFACE.

local nio = require("nio")
local path = Path("foo.txt")
nio.run(function() -- async run (does not block the main thread)
  vim.print(path:fs_stat())       -- coroutine (async)
  path:fs_write("File Content\n") -- coroutine (async)
  vim.print(path:fs_read())       -- coroutine (async)
  vim.print("async done")         -- prints last
end)

vim.print("sync here") -- prints first (maybe not if above functions end very fast)

When execution fails, function will return nil and the error message is captured into self.error_msg. This property holds the error message of the latest async function call.

nio.run(function ()
  local path = Path("./does/not/exist.txt")
  local fd = path:fs_open("r")
  assert(fd, "ERROR: " .. path.error_msg)
  -- fd will be nil when `:fs_open` fails. Check `self.error_msg` for the error message.
end)

TODO

• API documentation.
  • PathlibPath
  • PathlibPosixPath
  • PathlibWindowsPath
  • Git
• Git operation integration.
• Git test suite.
  • List out every possible git state: ignored, staged etc.
  • Create file for each state.
  • Add docs for each state: man git-diff -> RAW OUTPUT FORMAT
• Windows implementation, test environment.
  • Create a CI/CD action to run on windows.
  • Prepare windows specific test suite.

Contributions

I'll happily accept any feature request Feel free to ask for any functionality :)

Other Projects

• Python pathlib
  • https://docs.python.org/3/library/pathlib.html