Get all file recursively from C:/ - c++

Question

I'm trying to retrieve all files from the C:/ directory using Boost library.
I can retrieve all files when the input is a file path with a directory (e.g : C:\Windows), but I get an error when the specified path is only C:\. I also tried with C: but Boost search file from my project directory and not from the root.
I have also added an exclusion to C:\Windows and this part works great.
So how to launch recursive_directory_iterator from C:\ ?
Here is my code :
//string rootPath = boost::filesystem::current_path().root_directory().string();
string rootPath = "C:";
string exclusionPath = rootPath+"\\"+"Windows";
void myClass::getFile()
{
for (boost::filesystem::recursive_directory_iterator end, dir(rootPath); dir != end; ++dir)
{
string filePath = dir->path().string();
if (boost::filesystem::is_regular_file(*dir) && filePath.find(exclusionPath) == string::npos)
{
cout << filePath << endl;
}
}
}

Answer 1

If you are using the c++17 standard library, you can take advantage of the standard filesystem library. It works just like the boost filesystem and the two libraries have a very similar API.
You have to include the filesystem header via
#include <filesystem>
You can recursively iterate through each file in a directory by calling:
for (std::filesystem::directory_entry entry : std::filesystem::recursive_directory_iterator(rootPath))
That will give you a directory entry, which, just like the boost directory entry, contains a path. I was able to replicate your example code with the standard library and got a working example like so:
#include <filesystem>
#include <string>
#include <iostream>
std::filesystem::path rootPath = "C:";
std::filesystem::path exclusionPath = rootPath / "Windows";
int main()
{
for (std::filesystem::directory_entry entry : std::filesystem::recursive_directory_iterator(rootPath))
{
std::string filePath = entry.path().string();
if (std::filesystem::is_regular_file(entry.path()) && filePath.find(exclusionPath.string()) == std::string::npos)
{
std::cout << filePath << std::endl;
}
}
}
As you can see, I converted the strings you use for paths above to paths. This is not necessary but it is better to construct a path up-front, because else every function you call will construct a new path with the string you put into it. Paths weirdly use the / operator to append two paths together, so on Windows
std::filesystem::path exclusionPath = rootPath / "Windows";
will give you C:\Windows.