---
alias: user-guide-automation-task-filedrivers-emptydirectory
tags:
- automation tasks
description: "This task deletes a specified directory path, attempting multiple times with delays"
---

# Empty Directory

![Screenshot showing an empty directory with no files or subdirectories.](images/emptydirectory-lg.svg)

When activated, the `empty directory` task empties a given directory. The directory `path` can be provided either by the input port or in the task settings.

![Screenshot showing an empty directory with a filename hint of "image23".](./images/image23.png)

## Inputs

| Name                 |           | Description                                                        |
|----------------------|-----------|--------------------------------------------------------------------|
| path                 | `String`  | Directory path                                                     |
| attempts             | `Integer` | Number of attempts to perform this operation. Default is 1 attempt |
| sleepBetweenAttempts | `Integer` | Interval of time between the attempts. Default is 1000ms           |
| Activate             | `any`     | Activate the task                                                  |

## Outputs

| Name    | Data Type | Description  |
| ------  | --------- | --------- |
|  Success  |       `Boolean`         | Triggered when the task is executed with success |
|  Error           |        `Error`                | Triggered when the task failed for some reason |

## Settings

On the `General` tab, you have the usual settings and the following settings:

| Name    | Data Type | Values | Default | Description  |
| ------  | --------- | --------- | --------- | --------- |
| Directory path | `String` |  |  | Directory path |
| Number of attempts     | `Integer` |        | 1       | Number of attempts to perform this operation. |
| Sleep between attempts | `Integer` |        | 1000    | Interval of time between the attempts.        |

For the `Directory path` you can use tokens as represented below:

```bash
Available tokens:
  ${path} - Watched path
  ${archive} - Archive path
  ${temp} - Temporary directory of the user
  ${id} - DriverId ("\" chars replaced with "_")

Examples:
  ${path}\subdir
  ${temp}\files\${id}\Error
  c:\source\Processed
```

![Screenshot showing a settings page with an empty directory named "Dwrectory" and a server listed.](./images/image24.png)

## Behavior

In this task you choose a driver when dropping it into the workflow (if you have more than one driver associated with the controller).

Upon activation, will send a `EmptyDirectory` command to the driver where it will try to delete all files and subdirectories of `path` location. If it fails, will retry `attempts` times, waiting `sleepBetweenAttempts` milliseconds each time.

If the operation is executed with success, a value `true` is emitted on the `Success` output. In case of the task , for some reason, is not able perform the `copy` operation, an `Error` is emitted.

## Remarks

This task will return `success` even if the directory is already empty.