How to Create A File Even If Sub-Directories Dont Exist

Question

How can I create a file even if the some sub-directories dont exist? I am aware of this Question and its answer that suggests I use Directory.CreateDirectory(path) to create both my file and its directories.

But when I attempt to create my file using Directory.CreateDirectory(path) it creates the file as a directory/folder and not as a file?

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Directory.CreateDirectory (@"C:\Users\me\AppData\LocalLow\company\product\database.db");

Why is database.db a folder and not a file? Am I doing something wrong? How can I create a file even if the some sub-directories dont exist?

Your question is the same as the one you've linked to, but you're using your full filename instead of the folder name. — Dan Puzey, Jun 25 '14 at 05:36
In fairness, the question is a duplicate of the marked one, but the OP is correct in complaining that the accepted answer doesn't address their issue. — Douglas, Jun 25 '14 at 05:41
On second thoughts, I've reopened. The *title* of the question is a duplicate; the question itself is clearly a follow-up on the accepted answer from the other one. — Douglas, Jun 25 '14 at 05:52

Douglas · Accepted Answer · 2014-06-25T05:57:43.423

You need to specify the directory path to the CreateDirectory method, not the full file path. You can extract this from the full path using GetDirectoryName:

string filePath = @"C:\Users\me\AppData\LocalLow\company\product\database.db";
string dirPath = Path.GetDirectoryName(filePath);   
                 // gives @"C:\Users\me\AppData\LocalLow\company\product"

Directory.CreateDirectory(dirPath);
File.Create(filePath);   // can use any file API call here, such as File.Open

How to Create A File Even If Sub-Directories Dont Exist

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