Errno 13 permission denied как исправить

If we provide a folder path instead of a file path while reading file or if Python does not have the required permission to perform file operations(open, read, write), you will encounter PermissionError: [Errno 13] Permission denied error

In this article, we will look at what PermissionError: [Errno 13] Permission denied error means and how to resolve this error with examples.

We get this error mainly while performing file operations such as read, write, rename files etc. 

There are three main reasons behind the permission denied error. 

1. Insufficient privileges on the file or for Python
2. Passing a folder instead of file
3. File is already open by other process

How to Fix PermissionError: [Errno 13] Permission denied error?

Let us try to reproduce the “errno 13 permission denied” with the above scenarios and see how to fix them with examples.

Case 1: Insufficient privileges on the file or for Python

Let’s say you have a local CSV file, and it has sensitive information which needs to be protected. You can modify the file permission and ensure that it will be readable only by you.

Now let’s create a Python program to read the file and print its content. 

# Program to read the entire file (absolute path) using read() function
file = open("python.txt", "r")
content = file.read()
print(content)
file.close()

Output

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "C:/Projects/Tryouts/python.txt", line 2, in <module>
    file = open("python.txt", "r")
PermissionError: [Errno 13] Permission denied: 'python.txt'

When we run the code, we have got  PermissionError: [Errno 13] Permission denied error because the root user creates the file. We are not executing the script in an elevated mode(admin/root).

In windows, we can fix this error by opening the command prompt in administrator mode and executing the Python script to fix the error. The same fix even applies if you are getting “permissionerror winerror 5 access is denied” error

In the case of Linux the issue we can use the sudo command to run the script as a root user.

Alternatively, you can also check the file permission by running the following command.

ls -la

# output
-rw-rw-rw-  1 root  srinivas  46 Jan  29 03:42 python.txt

In the above example, the root user owns the file, and we don’t run Python as a root user, so Python cannot read the file.

We can fix the issue by changing the permission either to a particular user or everyone. Let’s make the file readable and executable by everyone by executing the following command.

chmod 755 python.txt

We can also give permission to specific users instead of making it readable to everyone. We can do this by running the following command.

chown srinivas:admin python.txt

When we run our code back after setting the right permissions, you will get the following output.

Dear User,

Welcome to Python Tutorial

Have a great learning !!!

Cheers

Case 2: Providing the file path

In the below example, we have given a folder path instead of a valid file path, and the Python interpreter will raise errno 13 permission denied error.

# Program to read the entire file (absolute path) using read() function
file = open("C:\Projects\Python\Docs", "r")
content = file.read()
print(content)
file.close()

Output

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "c:PersonalIJSCodeprogram.py", line 2, in <module>
    file = open("C:\Projects\Python\Docs", "r")
PermissionError: [Errno 13] Permission denied: 'C:\Projects\Python\Docs'

We can fix the error by providing the valid file path, and in case we accept the file path dynamically, we can change our code to ensure if the given file path is a valid file and then process it.

# Program to read the entire file (absolute path) using read() function
file = open("C:\Projects\Python\Docspython.txt", "r")
content = file.read()
print(content)
file.close()

Output

Dear User,

Welcome to Python Tutorial

Have a great learning !!!

Cheers

Case 3: Ensure file is Closed

While performing file operations in Python, we forget to close the file, and it remains in open mode.

Next time, when we access the file, we will get permission denied error as it’s already in use by the other process, and we did not close the file.

We can fix this error by ensuring by closing a file after performing an i/o operation on the file. You can read the following articles to find out how to read files in Python and how to write files in Python.

Conclusion

In Python, If we provide a folder path instead of a file path while reading a file or if the Python does not have the required permission to perform file operations(open, read, write), you will encounter PermissionError: [Errno 13] Permission denied error.

We can solve this error by Providing the right permissions to the file using chown or chmod commands and also ensuring Python is running in the elevated mode permission.

Python is a program designed for building websites, software, and more using a high-level programming language. However, users have recently reported receiving a permission denied error in Windows 11. Here’s how to fix PermissionError [Errno 13] Permission denied error in Python.

Because Python uses a general-purpose language, it can be used to build a variety of different types of programs rather than focusing on a specific variable.

For those wanting to learn more about developing and coding, Python is one of the easiest programming languages to learn, making it perfect for beginners.

Why do I get the permission denied error in Python?

Users encounter PermissionError: [Errno 13] Permission denied error if providing Python with a file path that does not have permission to open or edit the file. By default, some files do not allow certain permissions. This error may also occur if providing a folder rather than a file.

If the file is already being operated by another process, then you may encounter the permission denied error in Python. If you’re receiving the Python runtime error, we offer solutions for that as well.

How do I fix the Python permission denied error in Windows 11?

1. Check file path

One of the main causes of PermissionError: [Errno 13] Permission denied is because Python is trying to open a folder as a file. Double-check the location of where you want to open the file and ensure there isn’t a folder that exists with the same name.

Run the os.path.isfile(filename) command replacing filename with your file to check if it exists. If the response is false, then the file does not exist or Python cannot locate it.

2. Allow permissions using chomd

If the file does not have read and write permissions enabled for everyone, then you may encounter the permission denied error in Python. Try entering the chomd 755 filename command and replace filename with the name of your file.

This command gives everyone permission to read, write, and execute the file, including the owner. Users can also apply this command to entire directories. Running the ls -al command will provide a list of files and directories and their permissions.

3. Adjust file permissions

1. Navigate to the location of your file in file explorer.
2. Right-click on the file and select Properties.
3. Click the Security tab then select your name under Group or user names.
4. Select Edit and go through and check permissions.
5. Click Apply then OK.

Adjusting the permissions of the file that you’re trying to open will allow Python to read, write, and execute the file.

4. Turn off execution aliases

1. Click on Start and open Settings (or press Windows + I).
2. Open Apps then select Apps & features.
3. Open the drop-down menu next to More settings.
4. Click App execution aliases.
5. Locate the two App Installers for python.exe and python3.exe and toggle both to Off.

Python was added to the Microsoft Store for version 3.7 which introduced permission denied errors because it created two installers: python.exe and python3.exe. Disabling the Microsoft Store versions of Python should fix the permissions denied error.

5. Update Windows and drivers

1. Click on Start and open Settings (or press Windows + I).
2. Scroll down and select Windows Update.
3. Perform any available updates.
4. Select Advanced options.
5. Under Additional options, click on Optional updates.
6. Run any driver updates.

If you’re suddenly encountering the Python permission denied error and none of the above solutions worked, then check for any Windows 11 updates and perform any available driver updates.

If this method didn’t work either, we recommend you use specialized driver update software, DriverFix.

DriverFix is a fast and automated solution for finding all outdated drivers and updating them to their latest versions. The installation process it’s fast and safe so no additional issues will occur.

DriverFix

Fast and simple tool to maintain all drivers updated.

What is the latest version of Python?

As of the release of this article, the latest version of Python is 3.10.7 which is available for Windows 8 and newer and is not compatible with older versions including Windows 7. Python supports Windows, macOS, Linux/UNIX, and more.

However, If users want to use older versions of Python, they can access releases 2.7 and newer or they can download a specific version of a release.

If you want a quick way to open PY files on Windows 10 and 11, we offer a guide for that as well.

Hopefully, one of the above solutions helped you fix the Python permission denied error in Windows 11. Let us know in the comments which step worked for you or if you have any suggestions for a different solution.

The PermissionError: [Errno 13] permission denied to open, read, or write files will be encountered when we provide a folder path instead of a file path when reading a file or when Python does not have the required permissions to perform file operations (open, read, or write).

PermissionError: [Errno 13] Permission denied error is discussed in this article, along with examples of how to resolve this error.

Let us write an example code that would throw the above error message and then we will see how we can fix that error quickly.

1. Insufficient Privilege Issues

Consider a scenario in which you have a local CSV file containing confidential or sensitive data that must be kept secure. If you want to make a file only accessible to you, you can change the file permissions. In order to read the file, we’ll write a Python program that will print its contents.

# Program to Read A file
# Make Sure that Python is not running
# In Admin or Root Mode.
demoFile = open("demoFile.txt", "r")

getContentOfFile = demoFile.read()

print(getContentOfFile)

demoFile.close()

Output:

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "C:/Coduber/demoFile.txt", line 4, in <module>
    demoFile = open("demoFile.txt", "r")
PermissionError: [Errno 13] Permission denied: 'demoFile.txt'

When we run the code, we receive the following error: PermissionError: [Error code 13] Because the file is created by the root user, a permission denied error occurs. In this case, we are not running the script in elevated mode (admin/root).

If you are using Windows, you can resolve this issue by opening the command prompt in administrator mode and running the Python script to resolve the issue.

In the case of Linux, we can work around the problem by using the sudo command to run the script as the root user. Running the following command will also allow you to determine whether a file’s permissions have been granted.

ls -la

In the preceding example, the file is owned by the root user, and we are not running Python as the root user, so Python is unable to read the file.

We can resolve the problem by modifying the permissions for a specific user or for all users at the same time. The following command will make the file readable and executable to anyone who has access to it.

chmod 755 demoFile.txt

In addition, we can restrict access to specific users rather than making it available to the general public. This can be accomplished by executing the following command.

chown yourUserName:admin demoFile.txt

The following output will be produced when our code is rerun after the appropriate permissions have been granted:

This is Test File.

2. Providing Folder Path Instead Of File Path

As shown in the following example, we provided a folder path rather than a valid file path, resulting in the Python interpreter returning an Errno 13 permission denied error.

# Program to Read A file
# Make Sure that Python is not running
# In Admin or Root Mode.
demoFile = open("C:\Users\Coduber\", "r")

getContentOfFile = demoFile.read()

print(getContentOfFile)

demoFile.close()

Output:

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "c:UsersCodubertest.py", line 4, in <module>
    demoFile = open("C:\Users\Coduber", "r")
PermissionError: [Errno 13] Permission denied: 'C:\Users\Coduber'

It is possible to resolve the error by providing a valid file path; however, if we accept the file path dynamically, we must change our code in order to verify that the given file path is a valid file before processing it.

# Program to Read A file
# Make Sure that Python is not running
# In Admin or Root Mode.
demoFile = open("C:\Users\Coduber\demoFile.txt", "r")

getContentOfFile = demoFile.read()

print(getContentOfFile)

demoFile.close()

Output:

This is Test File.

3. File Is Already Open By Other Program

If we forget to close the file after performing file operations in Python, it will remain open indefinitely. As a result, we will receive a permission denied error the next time we attempt to access the file because it is already in use by another process and we did not close the file.

Ensure that a file is closed after an i/o operation is performed on it in order to avoid this error from occurring again. For more information on how to read files in Python and how to write files in Python, please see the following articles.

Wrap Up

You will receive the PermissionError: [Errno 13] Permission denied error in Python if you attempt to read a file from a folder path rather than a file path or if the Python does not have the required permissions to perform file operations (open, read, and write).

It is possible to resolve this error by ensuring that the file has been given appropriate permissions by using the chown or chmod commands, as well as by ensuring that Python is running in elevated mode.

Please let me know in the comments if you are still experiencing this problem or if you have a better solution than the one discussed above. I’ll gladly include it here.

Further Read:

1. Python ValueError: could not convert string to float [Fix]
2. Python pip: command not found Quick Fix
3. Python Write Text File
4. [Fixed] Python TypeError: ‘NoneType’ Object Is Not Subscriptable
5. [Fixed] Python TypeError: ‘list’ object is not callable