Creating a directory structure

Estimated time: 0 minutes

Overview

Questions

• What is a working directory?
• How do I set up a new working directory?
• How do I create new directories?
• How do I check what files are in my directory?

Objectives

• Set up a working directory
• Confirm the current working directory
• Create a directory structure
• Navigate through your directory

The working directory

---

Before starting working on the project, Alex wants to make sure that work is done in an organised way by using a consistent folder structure. This will make it easy to find things in the future.

First, Alex needs to set up a working directory.

What is a working directory?

The word directory may be viewed as another word for folder. Since one might have a lot of files and folders on their device, we need to let R know which directory (folder) we will be working in, so that R knows where to look for files to use, open, and also save. We can set up our working directory through RStudio.

Let’s first check what our current working directory is.

To do so, we will use the getwd() function (which stands for get working directory).

R

getwd()

Reminder: Use of R script vs Console

You can type the commands directly in the Console, and press Return to execute the command. Remember that commands typed directly in the Console will not be saved. Since it might be useful to have a saved copy of the code used throughout this R lesson, it is recommended that you use an R script instead. Remember that to execute line(s) of code in an R script, you have to put your cursor on the desired line (or select multiple lines) that you want to run, and press Command + Return on Mac or Ctrl + Return on Windows and Linux.

The output to getwd() will be different for everyone, but it may look something like: "/Users/yourusernamehere"

For example, Alex’s working directory is: "/Users/alex"

Alex wants to set the working directory to an existing folder called my-r-project.

To do so, Alex needs to tell R to change the working directory to my-r-project by using the setwd() function and typing in the pathname of the folder.

R

setwd("/Users/alex/Desktop/my-r-project")

When this command is run, no output will be shown in the Console. We can use the getwd() command to check whether R has set the desired folder as the working directory.

R

getwd()

Alex has now confirmed that R is seeing the my-r-project as the working directory.

Good to know

You can also set your working directory by navigating through your device’s system in the Files pane (bottom right pane), going into the folder you want as your working directory, clicking on the cogwheel icon and selecting Set as working directory.

Organise the working directory

---

Now that Alex has set up the desired working directory, Alex wants to organise the files to be used in this project in the following folder structure within the working directory (my-r-project):

• data/ Alex will put the raw data files (and other data) in this folder
• figures/ Any plots and graphics created will be saved in this folder
• scripts/ All R scripts written by Alex will be saved here
• munge/ This folder will hold all data cleaning and data manipulation R scripts
• documents/ Alex will use this folder for the research report and any written drafts

Good to know

There is no specific folder structure that needs following - the folder structure is completely up to you, however, having some sort of folder structure to organise your files is recommended.

There are multiple ways that folders (or directories) may be created in RStudio.

Alex will use the dir.create() function to create the desired folder (directory).

R

dir.create("data")

Alex has now created the first folder within the working directory. However, Alex is not sure whether this was done correctly, as this command did not output a result in the Console. To confirm that the data folder was created, Alex used the list.files() function, which will display all items in the working directory.

R

list.files()

Exercise: Directory structure

1. Create the following folders in the working directory: figures, scripts, munge, and documents
2. Check that all folders are now in your working directory

Show me the solution

1. Create the folders using dir.create()

R

dir.create("figures")
dir.create("scripts)
dir.create("munge")
dir.create("documents")

2. Check all items in your working directory

R

list.files()

Alternatively, new folders can be created through the Files pane (bottom right pane in environment) by clicking on the new folder icon.

New folder icon

Folders can also be created outside of RStudio through File Explorer/Manager on Windows and Linux, and Finder on Mac.

Key Points

• The term ‘directory’ in R has the same meaning as the common term ‘folder’
• Use getwd() to check your current working directory
• Establish a new working directory with setwd()
• Create new directories using dir.create("nameofnewdirectoryhere") or through the navigation pane
• Use list.files() to view all files in your working directory