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File handling in C programming refers to the process of reading from and writing to files on a computer. This is a crucial aspect of programming, as it allows you to store and retrieve data from a file, rather than just keeping it in the memory of the program. In this article, we will go over the basics of file handling in C for beginners.
To start, you need to understand two main concepts: file input and file output. File input refers to reading data from a file, while file output refers to writing data to a file. In C, you can perform both of these operations using the standard library functions.
The first step in file handling is opening a file. This is done using the fopen() function, which takes two arguments: the name of the file you want to open, and the mode in which you want to open it. The mode can be either “r” for reading, “w” for writing, or “a” for appending.
Once you have opened a file, you can start reading or writing to it. To read data from a file, you can use the fscanf() or fgets() functions. The fscanf() function reads formatted data from the file, while fgets() reads a line of text from the file. To write data to a file, you can use the fprintf() or fputs() functions. The fprintf() function writes formatted data to the file, while fputs() writes a line of text to the file.
It’s important to remember to close the file once you’re done with it. This is done using the fclose() function, which takes the file pointer as an argument. Failing to close the file can lead to data loss or corruption.
Another important aspect of file handling is error handling. When you’re working with files, it’s possible that something could go wrong, such as the file not being found or not being able to be opened. To handle these errors, you can use the ferror() function, which returns an error code if something goes wrong.
In conclusion, file handling is an important part of C programming and allows you to store and retrieve data from files. By using the standard library functions for file input and output, you can easily read from and write to files in your C programs. Remember to always close the file after you’re done with it, and to handle errors appropriately to ensure the integrity of your data.
C Programming for Beginners – Chapter 28 : File Handling in C
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