Year 2 – Advanced Programming: File System Simulation

This project was developed for the Advanced Programming module during the second year of my degree.
It simulates a command-line file system , allowing users to navigate, inspect, and modify a virtual directory tree using basic shell-like commands.

Overview

The application models files and directories as C++ objects and builds an in-memory representation of the current working directory and its subdirectories using the <filesystem> library.

It provides a command-driven interface to:

• Navigate between directories (cd, dir)
• Sort files by name or size
• Create, copy, and delete files or folders dynamically
• Persist and reload the in-memory representation via CSV export/import

Available Commands

Command	Description
CD <name>	Change the current working directory. Use cd .. to move up one level.
DIR	Display the contents of the current directory.
SORTSIZE	Sort files by size (ascending). Use /r for descending.
SORTNAME	Sort files alphabetically (ascending). Use /r for descending.
MKFILE <name>	Create a new file with a random size.
MKDIR <name>	Create a new folder.
DEL <name>	Delete the specified file or folder.
COPY <source> <destination>	Copy an existing file to a new name.
WRITE	Export the in-memory representation to saved-memory.csv.
READ	Import the in-memory structure from saved-memory.csv.
COMMANDS	Display a list of all available commands.
EXIT	Terminate the program.

Files

File	Purpose
main.cpp	Entry point, input loop, and directory traversal
Item.h / Item.cpp	Base class for files and folders
File.h / File.cpp	File-specific behaviour and printing
Folder.h / Folder.cpp	Folder logic and parent/child management
Commands.h / Commands.cpp	Commands for the program

Development Notes

• Written in C++17
• My first project in C++
• Designed for Windows - Not tested on other platforms
• Originally completed in 2024 - cleaned and documented in 2025.