EC
ERR_FS_EISDIR
Node.jsERRORNotableFile SystemHIGH confidence

A path that is a directory was used as a file.

Production Risk

Medium. This points to a logic flaw in file system interactions. It will cause the specific operation to fail, which could leave the application in an inconsistent state.

What this means

This error, whose name comes from 'Error, Is Directory', occurs when a file system operation that expects a file path is given a path that points to a directory. For example, trying to read the contents of a directory with `fs.readFile()` will fail with this error, as that function is only for files.

Why it happens
  1. 1Calling `fs.readFile()`, `fs.appendFile()`, or `fs.writeFile()` on a path that is a directory.
  2. 2Attempting to delete a directory using `fs.unlink()` instead of `fs.rmdir()` or `fs.rm()`.
  3. 3Providing a directory path to an API that expects a file path.
How to reproduce

This error is thrown by the `fs` module when an operation specific to files is attempted on a directory.

trigger — this will error
trigger — this will error
const fs = require('fs');
// Assuming './my-directory' exists and is a directory.
try {
  fs.readFileSync('./my-directory');
} catch (err) {
  console.error(err.code);
}

expected output

EISDIR

Fix 1

Use the Correct FS Method

WHEN Interacting with directories.

Use the Correct FS Method
const fs = require('fs');
// To read the contents of a directory, use fs.readdir().
fs.readdir('./my-directory', (err, files) => {
  if (err) throw err;
  console.log(files);
});

Why this works

Use the appropriate file system method for the target path type. For reading directory contents, use `fs.readdir()`. For deleting directories, use `fs.rmdir()` or `fs.rm()` with the `recursive` option.

Fix 2

Check Path Type with fs.stat()

WHEN The type of a path is unknown before the operation.

Check Path Type with fs.stat()
const fs = require('fs');
const path = './some-path';

fs.stat(path, (err, stats) => {
  if (err) throw err;
  if (stats.isDirectory()) {
    console.log('Path is a directory.');
  } else if (stats.isFile()) {
    console.log('Path is a file.');
  }
});

Why this works

Before performing an operation, you can use `fs.stat()` or `fs.lstat()` to get metadata about the path, including whether it is a file or a directory, and then call the correct subsequent function.

Code examples
Triggerjs
const fs = require('fs');
// Assuming './my-directory' exists and is a directory.
try {
  fs.readFileSync('./my-directory');
} catch (err) {
  console.error(err.code);  // this triggers ERR_FS_EISDIR
Handle in try/catchjs
try {
  // operation that may throw ERR_FS_EISDIR
  riskyOperation()
} catch (err) {
  if (err.code === 'ERR_FS_EISDIR') {
    console.error('ERR_FS_EISDIR:', err.message)
  } else {
    throw err
  }
}
Defensive pattern to avoid itjs
const fs = require('fs')
const stats = fs.statSync('./my-path')
if (stats.isFile()) {
  const data = fs.readFileSync('./my-path', 'utf8')
}
What not to do

✕

Sources
Official documentation ↗

https://github.com/nodejs/node/blob/main/src/node_file.cc

More information ↗

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