What is the basic usage of the closedir function? A detailed guide on how to use it correctly

gitbox 2025-09-12

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<p>Article Title: What is the basic usage of the closedir function? A detailed guide on how to use it correctly</p>
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<p>The <code>closedir()

bool closedir(resource $dir_handle)

$dir_handle: The directory handle returned by opendir().

Return value: true on success, false on failure.

Usage Steps

Open a directory using opendir():
*/
$dir = "example_dir";
if ($dh = opendir($dir)) {
echo "Directory opened successfully
";

// 2) Read the directory content
while (($file = readdir($dh)) !== false) {
echo "Filename: $file
";
}

// 3) Close the directory using closedir()
if (closedir($dh)) {
echo "Directory closed successfully";
} else {
echo "Failed to close directory";
}
} else {
echo "Unable to open directory";
}

/**

3. Notes
- Ensure the directory handle is valid before calling closedir().
- closedir() does not delete directories or files; it simply releases the system-allocated directory handle resource.
- Even though PHP automatically closes directory handles when the script ends, it is a good practice to explicitly close them in long-running scripts.
1. Summary
closedir() is a simple but crucial function for closing directories opened with opendir(). The correct sequence of usage is:
1. opendir() to open the directory
1. readdir() or other operations to read directory contents
1. closedir() to close the directory handle
Following this sequence ensures proper resource management and avoids potential file handle leaks.
*/
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closedir