Read file using Box file path

[rrpaleja]

Hello! Is there a function to read a file using the Box file path? E.g. if the file path is "folder1/folder2/temp_file.csv"

I didn't see one and wrote a quick recursive function to get the file ID from a file path:

library(data.table)
file_path <- 'folder1/folder2/temp_file.csv'

split_file_path <- strsplit(file_path, "/")[[1]]

dir_id_last = box_getwd()
for (i in seq(1,length(split_file_path))) {
   
  ls_list <- box_ls(dir_id = dir_id_last, limit = 1000, fields = 'name')
  dir_id_last <- rbindlist(ls_list)[name == split_file_path[i], id]
    
}

There is probably a better (more efficient and cleaner) way to create this function. Do you think this is something that could be implemented?

Thanks

[nathancday]

There is no support for read by path at the Box API level AKAIK. Your wrapper is a handy way to get around it with boxr. If other boxers find it useful, maybe it could be added as a helper.

…

On Mon, Dec 13, 2021 at 5:20 PM rrpaleja ***@***.***> wrote: Hello! Is there a function to read a file using the Box file path? E.g. if the file path is "folder1/folder2/temp_file.csv" I didn't see one and wrote a quick recursive function to get the file ID from a file path: library(data.table) file_path <- 'folder1/folder2/temp_file.csv' split_file_path <- strsplit(file_path, "/")[[1]] dir_id_last = box_getwd() for (i in seq(1,length(split_file_path))) { ls_list <- box_ls(dir_id = dir_id_last, limit = 1000, fields = 'name') dir_id_last <- rbindlist(ls_list)[name == split_file_path[i], id] } There is probably a better (more efficient and cleaner) way to create this function. Do you think this is something that could be implemented? Thanks — You are receiving this because you are subscribed to this thread. Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#223>, or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AAGFKIKWIDYGERPUABKIDIDUQZWUJANCNFSM5J7KVSRA> . Triage notifications on the go with GitHub Mobile for iOS <https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id1477376905?ct=notification-email&mt=8&pt=524675> or Android <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.github.android&referrer=utm_campaign%3Dnotification-email%26utm_medium%3Demail%26utm_source%3Dgithub>.

[tamuanand]

Hi @rrpaleja

In your example below, are you reading the file folder1/folder2/temp_file.csv via the BoxURL or via the box folder that might be mounted/synched on your laptop?

Hello! Is there a function to read a file using the Box file path? E.g. if the file path is "folder1/folder2/temp_file.csv"

I didn't see one and wrote a quick recursive function to get the file ID from a file path:

library(data.table)
file_path <- 'folder1/folder2/temp_file.csv'

split_file_path <- strsplit(file_path, "/")[[1]]

dir_id_last = box_getwd()
for (i in seq(1,length(split_file_path))) {
   
  ls_list <- box_ls(dir_id = dir_id_last, limit = 1000, fields = 'name')
  dir_id_last <- rbindlist(ls_list)[name == split_file_path[i], id]
    
}

There is probably a better (more efficient and cleaner) way to create this function. Do you think this is something that could be implemented?

Thanks

[ijlyttle]

This use case sounds like it would be suited to {boxrdrive}: https://github.com/r-box/boxrdrive - it is based on the path rather than the folder_id.

[seth127]

Hello. Loving this package, by the way.

I'm looking for the same thing here (specifically, passing a file path to box_ul() and box_dl()). Would there be any interest in me making a PR if I get an implementation that I like? If so, any tips or gotchas to consider in the implementation?

Also, would there be other functions beyond box_ul(), box_dl() (and probably box_ls()) that you would think should have this option?

[IsabelFE]

Hello, I've created a couple of functions to work around this issue and being able to use directory names and file names in my code:

• The custom function box_subfolder() provides the folder ID for any subfolder, given the parent folder ID and its name. If the named folder does not exist, it gets created. See code at the end.
• The custom box_read_file() function allows to read a file by its name instead of ID. See code at the end.

I start my project defining a project_folder_id, that is saved in the .Renviron file. Then I made as many folders and subfolders as I need. In this example a "data" folder, with 2 subfolders ("dataframes" and "outputs") and inside "outputs" another subfolder is "plots". Like this:

# Set Box folder ID for the parent data folder for the project
project_folder_id <- Sys.getenv("PROJECT_FOLDER_ID")

# Create or retrieve the subfolder IDs for each desired subfolder
data_folder_id <- box_subfolder(project_folder_id, "data")
dataframes_folder_id <- box_subfolder(data_folder_id, "dataframes")
outputs_folder_id <- box_subfolder(data_folder_id, "outputs")
plots_folder_id <- box_subfolder(outputs_folder_id, "plots")

Now I can read files with my other custom function using their name rather than ID:

dataframe_csv <- box_read_file(dataframes_folder_id, "values.csv")

And write files back to the any of the saved folder IDs:

box_write(dataframe_csv, dir_id = dataframes_folder_id, file_name = "dataframe.csv")

I hope this is useful for other people. Not sure if this is the best way to do it, any suggestions are welcome.

box_subfolder()

box_subfolder <- function(parent_folder_id, subfolder_name) {
  # Get the list of items in the parent folder
  items <- box_ls(parent_folder_id)
  
  # Initialize a variable to store the ID of the existing folder if found
  existing_folder_id <- NULL
  
  # Iterate over all items in the list
  for (item in items) {
    # Check if the current item has the 'name' and 'type' attributes
    if ("name" %in% names(item) && "type" %in% names(item)) {
      # Check if the item is a folder and matches the subfolder name
      if (item$type == "folder" && item$name == subfolder_name) {
        existing_folder_id <- item$id
        break
      }
    } else {
      warning("Item does not have the expected 'name' and 'type' attributes.")
    }
  }
  
  # If an existing folder was found, return its ID with a message
  if (!is.null(existing_folder_id)) {
    message("The folder '", subfolder_name, "' already exists with ID: ", existing_folder_id)
    return(existing_folder_id)
  } else {
    # Create a new folder if it doesn't exist, and return its ID with a message
    new_folder <- box_dir_create(dir_name = subfolder_name, parent_dir_id = parent_folder_id)
    message("Created a new folder '", subfolder_name, "' with ID: ", new_folder$id)
    return(new_folder$id)
  }
}

box_read_file()

box_read_file <- function(folder_id, file_name) {
  # Get the list of items in the folder
  items <- box_ls(folder_id)
  
  # Initialize a variable to store the ID of the existing file if found
  file_id <- NULL
  
  # Iterate over all items in the list
  for (item in items) {
    # Check if the current item has the 'name' and 'type' attributes
    if ("name" %in% names(item) && "type" %in% names(item)) {
      # Check if the item is a file and matches the file name
      if (item$type == "file" && item$name == file_name) {
        file_id <- item$id
        break
      }
    } else {
      warning("Item does not have the expected 'name' and 'type' attributes.")
    }
  }
  # If an existing file was found, get its ID and read the file
  if (!is.null(file_id)) {
    file_data <- box_read(file_id, trust = TRUE)
    return(file_data)
  } else {
    stop("File not found")
  }
}