How do I empty a directory (delete all files) under Linux / Unix without deleting directory itself?
You can use the following commands:
[a] rm command – Delete one or more files or directories.
[b] find command – Find and delete all files from a specific directory.
Linux Empty Directory Using the rm Command
Consider the following directory structure:
/tmp/ | |------foo/ |---file1 |---file2 |---file3
To delete all files from /tmp/foo/ directory (i.e. empty /tmp/foo/ directory), enter:
$ cd /tmp/foo/
$ rm *
OR
$ rm /tmp/foo/*
Delete All Files Using the Find Command
Consider the following directory structure:
/tmp/ | |------bar/ | |---file1.txt |---file2.txt | |---subdir1/ | |---file1.doc | |---file2.doc | |---subdir2/ |---image1.jpg |---image2.png
To delete all files from /tmp/bar/ directory (including all files from subdirectories such as /tmp/bar/dir1), enter:
$ cd /tmp/bar/
$ find . -type f -delete
OR
$ find /tmp/bar/ -type f -delete
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