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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.

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Installation

pip install "praisonai[tools]"

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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.

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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)

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Available Methods

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read(path)

Read file contents. 
from praisonai_tools import FileTool

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

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write(path, content)

Write content to a file. 
file.write("output.txt", "Hello World!")

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list_dir(path)

List directory contents. 
files = file.list_dir("./documents")

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Common Errors

ErrorCauseSolution
File not foundInvalid pathCheck file path
Permission deniedNo accessCheck permissions

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How It Works

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Best Practices

Pass absolute paths so file operations are predictable regardless of the working directory.
Check for existing files before write to avoid data loss.
Limit file operations to a known workspace so the agent can’t touch sensitive paths.

JSON

JSON files

CSV

CSV files

Shell

Shell commands