# File Browser

The File Browser application lets you browse and manipulate files and directories in the Hadoop Distributed File System (HDFS) while using Hue. With File Browser, you can:

Managing and viewing data in HDFS is an important part of Big Data analytics. Hue, the open source web-based interface that makes Apache Hadoop easier to use, helps you do that through a GUI in your browser — instead of logging into a Hadoop gateway host with a terminal program and using the command line.

The first episode in a new series of Hue demos, the video below demonstrates how to get up and running quickly with HDFS file operations via Hue’s File Browser application.

### Other Features

In addition to the above scenario, File Browser lets you perform more advanced file operations:

- Download
- Rename
- Move
- Copy
- Recursive change of permissions
- Recursive change of ownership
- Sort by attributes (e.g. name, size, date…)
- View content of zip/gz text
- View content of huge files
- Drag & drop files to upload

### What’s Next?

Thanks to File Browser, file operations in HDFS are only a few clicks away. Hue’s other apps leverage the File Browser as well and offer direct links to the outputs of your MapReduce jobs, Hive queries, or Pig scripts so that you can share or take a glance/visualize in no time.

Thank you for watching, and stay tuned for upcoming episodes! Feel free to ask questions in comments or via the Hue group.

- Create files and directories, upload and download files, upload zip archives, and rename, move, and delete files and directories. You can also change a file's or directory's owner, group, and permissions. See Working with Files and Directories.
- Search for files, directories, owners, and groups. See Searching for Files and Directories.
- View and edit files as text or binary. See Viewing and Editing Files.

## File Browser Installation and Configuration

File Browser is one of the applications installed as part of Hue. For information about installing and configuring Hue, see Hue Installation in http://www.cloudera.com/content/cloudera-content/cloudera-docs/CDH4/latest/CDH4-Installation-Guide/CDH4-Installation-Guide.html.

## Starting File Browser

Click the File Browser icon () in the navigation bar at the top of the Hue browser page.

## Files and Directories

You can use File Browser to view the input and output files of your MapReduce jobs. Typically, you can save your output files in `/``tmp` or in your home directory if your system administrator set one up for you. You must have the proper permissions to manipulate other user's files.

### Creating Directories

1. In the File Browser window, select New > Directory.
2. In the Create Directory dialog box, enter a directory name and then click Submit.

### Changing Directories

- Click the directory name or parent directory dots in the File Browser window.
- Click the icon, type a directory name, and press Enter.

To change to your home directory, click Home in the path field at the top of the File Browser window.

Note:

The Home button is disabled if you do not have a home directory. Ask a Hue administrator to create a home directory for you.

### Creating Files

1. In the File Browser window, select New > File.
2. In the Create File dialog box, enter a file name and then click Submit.

### Uploading Files

You can upload text and binary files to the HDFS.

1. In the File Browser window, browse to the directory where you want to upload the file.
2. Select Upload > Files.
3. In the box that opens, click Upload a File to browse to and select the file(s) you want to upload, and then click Open.

### Copying a File

1. In the File Browser window, check the checkbox next to the file you want to copy.
2. Click the Copy button.

### Downloading Files

You can download text and binary files to the HDFS.

1. In the File Browser window, check the checkbox next to the file you want to download.
2. Click the Download button.

### Uploading Zip Archives

You can upload zip archives to the HDFS. The archive is uploaded and extracted to a directory named archivename.

1. In the File Browser window, browse to the directory where you want to upload the archive.
2. Select Upload > Zip file.
3. In the box that opens, click Upload a zip file to browse to and select the archive you want to upload, and then click Open.

### Trash Folder

File Browser supports the HDFS trash folder (home directory/.Trash) to contain files and directories before they are permanently deleted. Files in the folder have the full path of the deleted files (in order to be able to restore them if needed) and checkpoints. The length of time a file or directory stays in the trash depends on HDFS properties. For information on how to configure the HDFS trash folder, see Enabling Trash. in http://www.cloudera.com/content/cloudera-content/cloudera-docs/CDH4/latest/CDH4-Installation-Guide/CDH4-Installation-Guide.html.

Action | Procedure
--- | ---
Open | In the File Browser window, click .
Move Files and Directories To | In the File Browser window, check the checkbox next to one or more files and directories. Select Delete > Move to trash
Empty | In the File Browser window, click . Click Empty.

### Renaming, Moving, Deleting, and Restoring Files and Directories

Action | Procedure
--- | ---
Rename | In the File Browser window, check the checkbox next to the file or directory you want to rename. Click the Rename button. Enter the new name and then click Submit.
Move | In the File Browser window, check the checkbox next to the file or directory you want to move. Click the Move button. In the Move dialog box, browse to or type the new directory, and then click Submit.
Delete | In the File Browser window, check the checkbox next to the file or directory you want to delete. If you select a directory, all of the files and subdirectories contained within that directory are also deleted. Choose one of the following: Delete > Move to trash Delete > Delete forever Click Yes to confirm. When you move a file to trash it is stored in the .Trash folder in your home directory.
Restore | In the File Browser window, open the .Trash folder. Navigate to the folder containing the file you want to restore. Check the checkbox next to the file. Click Restore.

### Changing a File's or Directory's Owner, Group, or Permissions

Note:

Only the Hadoop superuser can change a file's or directory's owner, group, or permissions. The user who starts Hadoop is the Hadoop superuser. The Hadoop superuser account is not necessarily the same as a Hue superuser account. If you create a Hue user (in User Admin) with the same user name and password as the Hadoop superuser, then that Hue user can change a file's or directory's owner, group, or permissions.

Change | Procedure
--- | ---
Owner or Group | In the File Browser window, check the checkbox next to the select the file or directory whose owner or group you want to change. Choose Change Owner/Group from the Options menu. In the Change Owner/Group dialog box: Choose the new user from the User drop-down menu. Choose the new group from the Group drop-down menu. Check the Recursive checkbox to propagate the change. Click Submit to make the changes.
Permissions | In the File Browser window, check the checkbox next to the file or directory whose permissions you want to change. Click the Change Permissions button. In the Change Permissions dialog box, select the permissions you want to assign and then click Submit.

## Searching for Files and Directories

To search for files or directories by name using the query search box, enter the name of the file or directory in the query search box. File Browser lists the files or directories matching the search criteria.

## Viewing and Editing Files

You can view and edit files as text or binary.

Action | Procedure
--- | ---
View | In the File Browser window, click the file you want to view. File Browser displays the first 4,096 bytes of the file in the File Viewer window. If the file is larger than 4,096 bytes, use the Block navigation buttons (First Block, Previous Block, Next Block, Last Block) to scroll through the file block by block. The Viewing Bytes fields show the range of bytes you are currently viewing. To switch the view from text to binary, click View as Binary to view a hex dump. To switch the view from binary to text, click View as Text.
Edit | If you are viewing a text file, click Edit File. File Browser displays the contents of the file in the File Editor window. Edit the file and then click Save or Save As to save the file.
View Location in HDFS | Click View File Location. File Browser displays the file's location in the File Browser window.