File

Read and write files

Overview

File tool allows you to read, write, and manage files from your AI agents.

The user asks to read or write a file; the agent performs the operation and returns the result.

Installation

pip install "praisonai[tools]"

Quick Start

1. Simple Usage

   from praisonai_tools import FileTool
   
   # Initialize
   file = FileTool()
   
   # Read file
   content = file.read("document.txt")
   print(content)
   
2. With Configuration

   Use the same tool with an agent — see Usage with Agent below, or pass env vars and options from the sections above.

Usage with Agent

from praisonaiagents import Agent
from praisonai_tools import FileTool

agent = Agent(
    name="FileManager",
    instructions="You help manage files.",
    tools=[FileTool()]
)

response = agent.chat("Read the contents of config.json")
print(response)

Available Methods

read(path)

Read file contents.

from praisonai_tools import FileTool

file = FileTool()
content = file.read("data.txt")

write(path, content)

Write content to a file.

file.write("output.txt", "Hello World!")

list_dir(path)

List directory contents.

files = file.list_dir("./documents")

Common Errors

Error	Cause	Solution
File not found	Invalid path	Check file path
Permission denied	No access	Check permissions

How It Works

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Best Practices

Use absolute paths

Pass absolute paths so file operations are predictable regardless of the working directory.

Confirm before overwriting

Check for existing files before write to avoid data loss.

Restrict to a safe directory

Limit file operations to a known workspace so the agent can’t touch sensitive paths.

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Related Tools

JSON

JSON files

CSV

CSV files

Shell

Shell commands