IPA FE Subject A sample Question 18

The path from the root directory to the target file — an absolute path lists every directory from the top of the tree, so it means the same file wherever you start.

On Unix an absolute path begins with the root, as in /home/user/docs/report.txt. A relative path such as docs/report.txt or ../docs/report.txt starts from the current directory, so its meaning changes when the current directory changes.

Answer (c)

Why not others:

• •(a) — a path from the current directory is a relative path
• •(b) — the home directory is itself a directory below the root and differs per user, so a path from it still depends on a starting point
• •(d) — the length of a path plays no part in the definition; an absolute path is fixed by where it starts, the root

Key rule: Absolute paths start at the root and are the same from anywhere; relative paths start at the current directory, where . is the current and .. the parent directory.

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