How do I solve the strange "filehandle" problem? [duplicate] - swift

Question

I know there are a few questions pertaining to this, but they're in Objective-C.
How can I access a .txt file included in my app using Swift on an actual iPhone? I want to be able to read and write from it. Here are my project files if you want to take a look. I'm happy to add details if necessary.

Answer 1

Simply by searching in the app bundle for the resource
var filePath = NSBundle.mainBundle().URLForResource("file", withExtension: "txt")
However you can't write to it because it is in the app resources directory and you have to create it in the document directory to write to it
var documentsDirectory: NSURL?
var fileURL: NSURL?
documentsDirectory = NSFileManager.defaultManager().URLsForDirectory(.DocumentDirectory, inDomains: .UserDomainMask).last!
fileURL = documentsDirectory!.URLByAppendingPathComponent("file.txt")
if (fileURL!.checkResourceIsReachableAndReturnError(nil)) {
print("file exist")
}else{
print("file doesnt exist")
NSData().writeToURL(fileURL!,atomically:true)
}
now you can access it from fileURL
EDIT - 28 August 2018
This is how to do it in Swift 4.2
var filePath = Bundle.main.url(forResource: "file", withExtension: "txt")
To create it in the document directory
if let documentsDirectory = FileManager.default.urls(for: .documentDirectory, in: .userDomainMask).last {
let fileURL = documentsDirectory.appendingPathComponent("file.txt")
do {
if try fileURL.checkResourceIsReachable() {
print("file exist")
} else {
print("file doesnt exist")
do {
try Data().write(to: fileURL)
} catch {
print("an error happened while creating the file")
}
}
} catch {
print("an error happened while checking for the file")
}
}

Answer 2

Swift 3, based on Karim’s answer.
Reading
You can read files included in an app’s bundle through the bundle’s resource:
let fileURL = Bundle.main.url(forResource:"filename", withExtension: "txt")
Writing
However, you can’t write there. You will need to create a copy, preferably in the Documents directory:
func makeWritableCopy(named destFileName: String, ofResourceFile originalFileName: String) throws -> URL {
// Get Documents directory in app bundle
guard let documentsDirectory = FileManager.default.urls(for: .documentDirectory, in: .userDomainMask).last else {
fatalError("No document directory found in application bundle.")
}
// Get URL for dest file (in Documents directory)
let writableFileURL = documentsDirectory.appendingPathComponent(destFileName)
// If dest file doesn’t exist yet
if (try? writableFileURL.checkResourceIsReachable()) == nil {
// Get original (unwritable) file’s URL
guard let originalFileURL = Bundle.main.url(forResource: originalFileName, withExtension: nil) else {
fatalError("Cannot find original file “\(originalFileName)” in application bundle’s resources.")
}
// Get original file’s contents
let originalContents = try Data(contentsOf: originalFileURL)
// Write original file’s contents to dest file
try originalContents.write(to: writableFileURL, options: .atomic)
print("Made a writable copy of file “\(originalFileName)” in “\(documentsDirectory)\\\(destFileName)”.")
} else { // Dest file already exists
// Print dest file contents
let contents = try String(contentsOf: writableFileURL, encoding: String.Encoding.utf8)
print("File “\(destFileName)” already exists in “\(documentsDirectory)”.\nContents:\n\(contents)")
}
// Return dest file URL
return writableFileURL
}
Example usage:
let stuffFileURL = try makeWritableCopy(named: "Stuff.txt", ofResourceFile: "Stuff.txt")
try "New contents".write(to: stuffFileURL, atomically: true, encoding: String.Encoding.utf8)

Answer 3

Just a quick update for using this code with Swift 4:
Bundle.main.url(forResource:"YourFile", withExtension: "FileExtension")
And the following has been updated to account for writing the file out:
var myData: Data!
func checkFile() {
if let documentsDirectory = FileManager.default.urls(for: .documentDirectory, in: .userDomainMask).last {
let fileURL = documentsDirectory.appendingPathComponent("YourFile.extension")
do {
let fileExists = try fileURL.checkResourceIsReachable()
if fileExists {
print("File exists")
} else {
print("File does not exist, create it")
writeFile(fileURL: fileURL)
}
} catch {
print(error.localizedDescription)
}
}
}
func writeFile(fileURL: URL) {
do {
try myData.write(to: fileURL)
} catch {
print(error.localizedDescription)
}
}
This particular example is not the most flexible, but with a little bit of work you can easily pass in your own file names, extensions and data values.

Answer 4

🎁 Property Wrapper - Fetch and convert to correct data type
This simple wrapper helps you to load any file from any bundle in a cleanest way:
#propertyWrapper struct BundleFile<DataType> {
let name: String
let type: String
let fileManager: FileManager = .default
let bundle: Bundle = .main
let decoder: (Data) -> DataType
var wrappedValue: DataType {
guard let path = bundle.path(forResource: name, ofType: type) else { fatalError("Resource not found: \(name).\(type)") }
guard let data = fileManager.contents(atPath: path) else { fatalError("Can not load file at: \(path)") }
return decoder(data)
}
}
Usage:
#BundleFile(name: "avatar", type: "jpg", decoder: { UIImage(data: $0)! } )
var avatar: UIImage
You can define any decoder to match your needs

Answer 5

Get File From Bundle in Swift 5.1
//For Video File
let stringPath = Bundle.main.path(forResource: "(Your video file name)", ofType: "mov")
let urlVideo = Bundle.main.url(forResource: "Your video file name", withExtension: "mov")

Answer 6

Bundles are read only. You can use NSBundle.mainBundle().pathForResource to access the file as read-only, but for read-write access you need to copy your document to Documents folder or tmp folder.

Answer 7

Bundles can be written. You can use Bundle.main.path to overwrite file by adding it into Copy Bundles Resource.

Answer 8

I have to use a file from another bundle. So, following code worked for me. Needful when you work with a frameworks.
let bundle = Bundle(for: ViewController.self)
let fileName = bundle.path(forResource: "fileName", ofType: "json")