What does the os.path.exists() function do in Python?

a) Checks if a path exists on the filesystem

b) Checks if a path is a directory

c) Checks if a path is a file

d) Deletes a file or directory

Answer:

a) Checks if a path exists on the filesystem

Explanation:

The os.path.exists() function in Python is used to check if a specified path exists on the filesystem. This function returns True if the path exists and False otherwise. The path can be a file, directory, or symbolic link.

import os

# Example of checking if a path exists
path = "example.txt"
if os.path.exists(path):
    print(f"{path} exists.")
else:
    print(f"{path} does not exist.")

In this example, the os.path.exists() function checks if the file example.txt exists in the current directory and prints the appropriate message.

Checking if a path exists is useful when performing operations that depend on the presence or absence of files or directories, such as file manipulation, backups, or directory management.