How can I check if a file exists in Perl?

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Test whether something exists at given path using the -e file-test operator.

print "$base_path exists!\n" if -e $base_path;

However, this test is probably broader than you intend. The code above will generate output if a plain file exists at that path, but it will also fire for a directory, a named pipe, a symlink, or a more exotic possibility. See the documentation for details.

Given the extension of .TGZ in your question, it seems that you expect a plain file rather than the alternatives. The -f file-test operator asks whether a path leads to a plain file.

print "$base_path is a plain file!\n" if -f $base_path;

The perlfunc documentation covers the long list of Perl’s file-test operators that covers many situations you will encounter in practice.

  • -r
    File is readable by effective uid/gid.
  • -w
    File is writable by effective uid/gid.
  • -x
    File is executable by effective uid/gid.
  • -o
    File is owned by effective uid.
  • -R
    File is readable by real uid/gid.
  • -W
    File is writable by real uid/gid.
  • -X
    File is executable by real uid/gid.
  • -O
    File is owned by real uid.
  • -e
    File exists.
  • -z
    File has zero size (is empty).
  • -s
    File has nonzero size (returns size in bytes).
  • -f
    File is a plain file.
  • -d
    File is a directory.
  • -l
    File is a symbolic link (false if symlinks aren’t supported by the file system).
  • -p
    File is a named pipe (FIFO), or Filehandle is a pipe.
  • -S
    File is a socket.
  • -b
    File is a block special file.
  • -c
    File is a character special file.
  • -t
    Filehandle is opened to a tty.
  • -u
    File has setuid bit set.
  • -g
    File has setgid bit set.
  • -k
    File has sticky bit set.
  • -T
    File is an ASCII or UTF-8 text file (heuristic guess).
  • -B
    File is a “binary” file (opposite of -T).
  • -M
    Script start time minus file modification time, in days.
  • -A
    Same for access time.
  • -C
    Same for inode change time (Unix, may differ for other platforms)

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