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https://github.com/dreymonde/appfolder

🗂 Never use NSSearchPathForDirectoriesInDomains again
https://github.com/dreymonde/appfolder

filesystem ios swift

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# AppFolder



[![](https://img.shields.io/endpoint?url=https%3A%2F%2Fswiftpackageindex.com%2Fapi%2Fpackages%2Fdreymonde%2FAppFolder%2Fbadge%3Ftype%3Dswift-versions)](https://swiftpackageindex.com/dreymonde/AppFolder)

[![](https://img.shields.io/endpoint?url=https%3A%2F%2Fswiftpackageindex.com%2Fapi%2Fpackages%2Fdreymonde%2FAppFolder%2Fbadge%3Ftype%3Dplatforms)](https://swiftpackageindex.com/dreymonde/AppFolder)



**AppFolder** is a lightweight framework that lets you design a friendly, strongly-typed representation of a directories inside your app's container. All the system directories like **"Caches/"** and 

**"Application Support/"** are already present, and you can add yours using just a few lines of code.



**AppFolder** has a simple and beautiful interface which was made possible with the help of **Swift**'s dark magic: _inheritance_ 😱



If you want to learn more about the idea, check out [Introducing AppFolder](https://medium.com/anysuggestion/introducing-appfolder-704b007bd83b) on Medium.



## Usage



```swift

import AppFolder



let documents = AppFolder.Documents

let caches = AppFolder.Library.Caches

let cachesURL = caches.url



extension Library.Caches {

    

    class Images: Directory { }

    

    var Images: Images {

        return subdirectory()

    }

    

}



let imageCache = AppFolder.Library.Caches.Images

let imageCacheURL = imageCache.url

```



## Guide



### Your app's folder



```swift

let documents = AppFolder.Documents

let tmp = AppFolder.tmp

let applicationSupport = AppFolder.Library.Application_Support

let caches = AppFolder.Library.Caches



caches.url // full URL

caches.folderName // "Caches"

caches.subpath // "Library/Caches"



caches.baseURL

// the same as

AppFolder.baseURL



let fileURL = caches.url.appendingPathComponent("cached-file.json")

```



**AppFolder** represents a file structure of your app's container and gives you a better understanding of where your files are stored. `AppFolder` is a main entrance point to your folders. Inside you can find:



- **Documents** (`AppFolder.Documents`). Inside this directory you should store *"only documents and other data that is user-generated, or that cannot otherwise be recreated by your application."* - [iOS Data Storage Guidelines][storage-guidelines-url]

- **Library/Application Support** (`AppFolder.Library.Application_Support`). *"The Application Support directory is a good place to store files that might be in your Documents directory but that shouldn't be seen by users. For example, a database that your app needs but that the user would never open manually."* - [iOS Storage Best Practices][storage-practices-url]

- **Library/Caches** (`AppFolder.Library.Caches`). Caches directory is the place for *"...data that can be downloaded again or regenerated. ...Examples of files you should put in the Caches directory include database cache files and downloadable content, such as that used by magazine, newspaper, and map applications."* - [iOS Data Storage Guidelines][storage-guidelines-url]

- **tmp** (`AppFolder.tmp`). *"Use this directory to write temporary files that do not need to persist between launches of your app. Your app should remove files from this directory when they are no longer needed; however, the system may purge this directory when your app is not running."* - [File System Programming Guide][fs-guide-url]



### Adding your own folders



Let's assume that we want to declare a **"Files"** folder inside our **"Application Support"** directory.



Turns out that each folder in **AppFolder** is represented by a concrete `Directory` sublcass. For example, **"Application Support** is of type `Library.Application_Support`. To declare our own folder, we need to create a new `Directory` subclass:



```swift

final class Files : Directory { }

```



By default, folder name will be automatically generated from the class name.



Now we can access our new folder in a very straightforward way:



```swift

let filesFolder = AppFolder.Library.Application_Support.appending(Files.self)

```



But if we want to get a little bit more type-safety, we should put this whole logic into an extension:



```swift

extension Library.Application_Support {

    

    final class Files : Directory { }

    

    var Files: Files {

        return subdirectory()

    }

    

}

```



Now, you may wonder: since `var Files` is a property, why is `var Files`... capitalized?



Well, it's an intentional **AppFolder** design decision. In order to represent a folder structure as accurate as possible, all properties must be written according to their real world names (with spaces substituted by `_`). So, for example, **"Documents"** is `AppFolder.Documents`, and **"tmp"** is `AppFolder.tmp` - just as in the "real world".



*Naming your classes with `_` (for example, `class User_Files : Directory`) will automically generate folder name with a space ("User Files" in this case)*



So, this part should be clear. Now we can use our folder completely intuitively:



```swift

let files = AppFolder.Library.Application_Support.Files

let filesURL = files.url

```



**IMPORTANT:** Describing folders doesn't automatically create them. **AppFolder** provides a way to organize your folder structure in code, not to actively manage it on disk. In order to be used, all non-system directories should be explicitly created with `FileManager.default.createDirectory(at:)` or similar APIs.



### Using AppFolder with app groups



**AppFolder** also supports containers shared with app groups via `AppGroupContainer`:



```swift

enum MyAppGroup : AppGroup {

    static var groupIdentifier: String {

        return "group.com.my-app.my-app-group"

    }

}



let sharedCaches = AppGroupContainer.Library.Caches

```



This way you can, for example, simplify a creation of a shared **Core Data** stack without losing control over the process:



```swift

let applicationSupportURL = AppGroupContainer.Library.Application_Support.url

let sqliteFileURL = applicationSupportURL.appendingPathComponent("db.sql")

let model = NSManagedObjectModel(contentsOf: sqliteFileURL)

let container = NSPersistentContainer(name: "my-app-db", managedObjectModel: model!)

```



To learn more about app groups, check out the [App Extension Programming Guide: Handling Common Scenarios](https://developer.apple.com/library/content/documentation/General/Conceptual/ExtensibilityPG/ExtensionScenarios.html) (section "Sharing Data with Your Containing App").



### Customizing folder name



If you're not happy with automatically generated name, you can provide your own:



```swift

final class CustomNamedFolder : Directory {

    override var folderName: String {

        return "Custom"

    }

}

```



### Using AppFolder on macOS



`AppFolder` uses `NSHomeDirectory()` under the hood, so, depending on your **macOS** app, it might just locate you to the user's home directory, as documentation states:



> In macOS, it is the application’s sandbox directory or the current user’s home directory (if the application is not in a sandbox)



*[NSHomeDirectory() reference](https://developer.apple.com/documentation/foundation/1413045-nshomedirectory)*



`AppFolder.tmp` is also *deprecated* on macOS because it may give results different from `NSTemporaryDirectory()`. To use temporary directory on macOS, we recommend using `FileManager.default.temporaryDirectory`.



## Disclaimer



**AppFolder** is in a very early stage. Some stuff will probably be broken at some point.



## Installation



#### Swift Package Manager



Starting with Xcode 11, **AppFolder** is officially available *only* via Swift Package Manager.



In Xcode 11 or greater, in you project, select: `File > Swift Packages > Add Pacakage Dependency`



In the search bar type



```

https://github.com/dreymonde/AppFolder

``` 



Then proceed with installation.



> If you can't find anything in the panel of the Swift Packages you probably haven't added yet your github account.

You can do that under the **Preferences** panel of your Xcode, in the **Accounts** section.



For command-line based apps, you can just add this directly to your **Package.swift** file:



```swift

dependencies: [

    .package(url: "https://github.com/dreymonde/AppFolder", from: "0.2.0"),

]

```



#### Manual



Of course, you always have an option of just copying-and-pasting the code - **AppFolder** is just a few files, so feel free.



#### Deprecated dependency managers



Last **AppFolder** version to support [Carthage][carthage-url] and [Cocoapods][cocoapods-url] is **0.2.0**. Carthage and Cocoapods will no longer be officially supported.



Carthage:



```ruby

github "dreymonde/AppFolder" ~> 0.2.0

```



Cocoapods:



```ruby

pod 'AppFolder', '~> 0.2.0'

```



[swift-badge]: https://img.shields.io/badge/Swift-5.1-orange.svg?style=flat

[swift-url]: https://swift.org

[platform-badge]: https://img.shields.io/badge/platform-iOS%20%7C%20macOS%20%7C%20watchOS%20%7C%20tvOS-lightgrey.svg

[platform-url]: https://developer.apple.com/swift/

[storage-guidelines-url]: https://developer.apple.com/icloud/documentation/data-storage/index.html

[storage-practices-url]: https://developer.apple.com/videos/play/fall2017/204/

[fs-guide-url]: https://developer.apple.com/library/content/documentation/FileManagement/Conceptual/FileSystemProgrammingGuide/FileSystemOverview/FileSystemOverview.html

[carthage-url]: https://github.com/Carthage/Carthage

[cocoapods-url]: https://github.com/CocoaPods/CocoaPods