C files I/O functions handle data on a secondary storage device, such as a hard disk. This tutorial will teach you how to manage files in the C programs.
C can handle files as Stream-oriented data (Text) files and System oriented data (Binary) files.
| Stream-oriented data files | The data is stored in the same manner as it appears on the screen. The I/O operations like buffering, data conversions, etc., take place automatically. |
| System-oriented data files | System-oriented data files are more closely associated with the OS and data stored in memory without converting into text format. |
C File Operations
Five significant operations can be performed on files:
- Creation of a new file.
- Opening an existing file.
- Reading data from a file.
- Writing data in a file.
- Closing a file.
Steps for Processing a File
- Declare a file pointer variable.
- Open a file using
fopen()function. - Process the file using the suitable function.
- Close the file using
fclose()function.
To handle files in C, file input/output functions available in the stdio library are:
| Function | Uses/Purpose |
|---|---|
| fopen | Opens a file. |
| fclose | Closes a file. |
| getc | Reads a character from a file. |
| putc | Writes a character to a file. |
| getw | Read integer. |
| putw | Write an integer. |
| fprintf | Prints formatted output to a file. |
| fscanf | Reads formatted input from a file. |
| fgets | Read a string of characters from a file. |
| fputs | Write a string of characters to a file. |
| feof | Detects end-of-file marker in a file. |