C delete file

Summary: in this tutorial, you will learn how to use the C remove() function to delete a file from the file system.

Introduction to the C remove() function

The remove() function is defined in the stdio.h standard library. The remove() function accepts a file name and deletes it from the file system.

Here’s the syntax of the remove() function:

int remove(const char *filename);
Code language: C++ (cpp)

In this syntax, the The filename is the name of the file that you want to delete.

If the remove() function deletes the file succcessfully, it’ll return zero (0). Or it’ll return -1 on failture.

C remove() function example

The following example uses the remove() function to remove the test.txt file in the current working directory:

#include <stdio.h>

int main()
{
    char *filename = "test.txt";

    if (remove(filename) == 0)
        printf("The file %s was deleted.", filename);
    else
        printf("Error deleting the file %s.", filename);

    return 0;
}
Code language: C++ (cpp)

If you run the program and the test.txt file exists, you’ll see the following message:

The file test.txt was deleted.
Code language: C++ (cpp)

In case the file test.txt doesn’t exist or it is locked by another program, you’ll see the following message:

Error deleting the file test.txt.
Code language: C++ (cpp)

Summary

• Use the C remove() function from the standard library to delete a file.