Local file templates
Traverse local files
With Hugo’s readDir
and readFile
template functions, you can traverse your website’s files on your server.
Use readDir
The readDir
function returns an array of os.FileInfo
structures. It takes the file’s path
as a single string argument. This path can be to any directory of your website (i.e., as found on your server’s file system).
Whether the path is absolute or relative does not matter because—at least for readDir
—the root of your website (typically ./public/
) in effect becomes both:
- The file system root
- The current working directory
Use readFile
The readfile
function reads a file from disk and converts it into a string to be manipulated by other Hugo functions or added as-is. readFile
takes the file, including path, as an argument passed to the function.
To use the readFile
function in your templates, make sure the path is relative to your Hugo project’s root directory:
{{ readFile "/content/templates/local-file-templates" }}
readFile
Example: Add a Project File to Content
As readFile
is a function, it is only available to you in your templates and not your content. However, we can create a simple shortcode template that calls readFile
, passes the first argument through the function, and then allows an optional second argument to send the file through the Markdown processor. The pattern for adding this shortcode to your content will be as follows:
{{< readfile file="/path/to/local/file.txt" markdown="true" >}}