Can I Set the Value of an HTML File Input to a Local File Path?

Setting Disk File Path for HTML File Input

An HTML file input element is a form field used to select one or more files from a local computer. However, a common question arises: can we set the value of this input to a client-side disk file system path?

Answer: Restricted Due to Security Concerns

Unfortunately, it is not possible to directly set the value of a file input to a local file path due to security reasons. Setting such a value would allow websites to access the user's file system without their consent, potentially leading to privacy and security breaches.

Understanding the Security Risk

Consider the following malicious HTML code with a file input element:

<form name="foo" method="post" enctype="multipart/form-data">
    <input type="file" value="c:/passwords.txt">
</form>

This form could allow the website to access the user's confidential passwords file "passwords.txt" located at "c:/." Such code could be used for malicious purposes, such as stealing sensitive data or compromising the user's system.

Alternative Option: Accessible Web Resource

The only way to set the value of a file input is to point it to a publicly accessible web resource, as demonstrated in the following answer:

<input type="file" value="https://example.com/image.png">

However, this approach is not useful for accessing local file system paths, as the resource must be available online.

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