DeleteFileA function
Header: fileapi.h
Link library: Kernel32.lib
DLL: Kernel32.dll
Syntax
BOOL DeleteFileA(
LPCSTR lpFileName
);
Parameters
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
lpFileName |
A null-terminated string that specifies the name of the file to be deleted. You can use either a full path or a relative path. This parameter can be a string of any valid file name characters. |
Return value
If the function succeeds, the return value is nonzero. If the function fails, the return value is zero. To get extended error information, call GetLastError.
Remarks
This function marks a file for deletion. The file is deleted only when it is the last reference to it in the system.
To delete a directory, use the RemoveDirectory function.
To delete a file that is read-only, you must first remove the read-only attribute. You can do this using the SetFileAttributes function.
You can delete a file by specifying its name. You can also delete a file by specifying its file handle using the SetHandleInformation function with HANDLE_FLAG_DELETE_ON_CLOSE.
Requirements
| Version | Minimum supported client | Minimum supported server |
|---|---|---|
| Windows XP | Windows XP | Windows Server 2003 |
| Windows Vista | Windows Vista | Windows Server 2008 |
| Windows 7 | Windows 7 | Windows Server 2008 R2 |
| Windows 8 | Windows 8 | Windows Server 2012 |
| Windows 8.1 | Windows 8.1 | Windows Server 2012 R2 |
| Windows 10 | Windows 10 | Windows Server 2016 |
| Windows 11 | Windows 11 | Windows Server 2022 |