input type file path is fake - JavaScript

Question

the code below must out put the path of the file BUT the out put is "C:\fakepath(file name)"

<html>

<body>
<form>
    <input type="file" id="file" onchange="document.getElementById('p').innerHTML = this.value;">
</form>
<p id="p"></p>
</body>

</html>

what are you saying ? please show your codes – Ken Lee Dec 14 '20 at 15:15 — Ken Lee, Dec 14 '20 at 15:15
ok i added it ... there was a problem – Mohamed Maher Dec 14 '20 at 15:20 — Mohamed Maher, Dec 14 '20 at 15:20

Guerric P · Answer 1 · 2020-12-14T15:42:00.407

1

The value of an input[type=file] will never show anything related to the client filesystem. Only the file name is shown and the beginning of the path will always be C:\fakepath on a Windows machine (C also being a fake drive letter). That's just a feature implemented by browsers in order to preserve their users privacy and security (as a web application provider, you don't need to know the local path of the file that's being uploaded to you).

The reason why it returns a fake path (while it could just return the bare file name) is probably for backwards compatibility for old code that was written at a time when the real path was shown, and possibly parsed by the code. When the fakepath feature came up, this kind of code didn't break.

edited Dec 14 '20 at 15:42

answered Dec 14 '20 at 15:32

Guerric P

30,447
6
48
86

i have another input type file in the same page and its working but it is in a function and i dont know how does it show the true path – Mohamed Maher Dec 14 '20 at 15:44
Really? Could you add the code that shows the real path in your question? – Guerric P Dec 14 '20 at 15:46

input type file path is fake - JavaScript

1 Answers1