File path names

The path name for each file and directory in the file system consists of the names of every directory that precedes it in the tree structure.

Because all paths in a file system originate from the /(root) directory, each file in the file system has a unique relationship to the root directory, known as the absolute path name. Absolute path names begin with the slash (/) symbol. For example, the absolute path name of file h could be /B/C/h. Notice that two files named h can exist in the system. Because the absolute paths to the two files are different, /B/h and /B/C/h, each file named h has a unique name within the system. Every component of a path name is a directory except the final component. The final component of a path name can be a file name.