rmpath — Remove folders from the active MATLAB search path with MATLAB-compatible argument handling.
rmpath removes one or more folders from the active MATLAB search path used for function and script resolution. Updates apply immediately and follow MATLAB-compatible validation and error reporting for missing, invalid, or non-path folders.
Syntax
oldpath = rmpath(folder1)
oldpath = rmpath(folder1, folder2, ...)Inputs
| Name | Type | Required | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
folder1 | Any | Yes | — | Folder, path-list string, or container of folders to remove. |
folder1 | Any | Yes | — | First folder argument. |
folderN | Any | Variadic | — | Additional folder arguments. |
Returns
| Name | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
oldpath | StringScalar | Previous search path string. |
Errors
| Identifier | When | Message |
|---|---|---|
| — | Folder arguments are not character vectors, string scalars/arrays, tensors of character codes, or cell arrays containing those forms. | rmpath: folder names must be character vectors, string scalars, string arrays, or cell arrays of character vectors |
| — | No folder arguments are provided, or all provided folder tokens are empty. | rmpath: at least one folder must be specified |
| — | Current directory cannot be resolved while normalizing a relative folder. | rmpath: unable to resolve current directory |
| — | The requested path exists but is not a folder. | rmpath: path is not a folder |
| — | The requested folder exists but is not on the active search path. | rmpath: folder not on search path |
| — | The requested folder path does not exist. | rmpath: folder not found |
How rmpath works
- Folder arguments may be character vectors, string scalars, string arrays, or cell arrays of character vectors or strings. Multi-row char arrays contribute one folder per row (trailing padding is stripped).
- Numeric inputs, including every integer class and resident numeric handles, reject before path mutation or provider access rather than being converted to text.
- Multiple folders can be passed inside a single argument using the platform path separator (
:on Linux/macOS,;on Windows); this is compatible withgenpathoutput. - RunMat accepts any ordering of arguments. Each requested folder is removed at most once even if it appears repeatedly.
- Inputs are resolved to absolute, normalised paths. Relative inputs are interpreted relative to the current working directory, and
~expands to the user’s home directory. - Folders must exist and must currently be present on the MATLAB path. RunMat raises
rmpath: folder '<name>' not foundwhen a directory cannot be located, orrmpath: folder '<name>' not on search pathwhen the directory exists locally but is absent from the current search path. rmpathreturns the previous path so callers can restore it later viapath(old), matching RunMat’saddpathandpathbuiltins.
Does RunMat run rmpath on the GPU?
rmpath manipulates host-side configuration. Numeric provider handles are rejected before gathering because they cannot represent path text; no acceleration provider hooks or kernels are involved.
GPU memory and residency
No. rmpath operates entirely on CPU-side strings and does not treat resident numeric storage as text.
Examples
Removing a single folder from the MATLAB search path
old = rmpath("util/toolbox");
disp(old);
path()Expected output:
old =
'/Users/you/runmat/toolbox:util/toolbox'
% The folder util/toolbox no longer appears in the active search path.Removing multiple folders at once
rmpath("shared/filters", "shared/signal");
path()Expected output:
% shared/filters and shared/signal are both removed from the MATLAB path.Removing folders produced by genpath
tree = genpath("third_party/toolchain");
rmpath(tree)Expected output:
% Every directory returned by genpath is pruned from the search path.Removing folders specified in a cell array
folders = {'src/algorithms', 'src/visualization'};
rmpath(folders{:});
path()Expected output:
% Both folders are removed from the MATLAB search path.Capturing and restoring the previous path after removal
old = rmpath("analysis/utilities");
% ... run experiments ...
path(old); % Restore the previous path
path()Expected output:
% The original search path is restored when you call path(old).Handling attempts to remove folders that are not on the path
rmpath("nonexistent/toolbox")Using rmpath with coding agents
Open a RunMat example with live inputs, then ask the agent to explain how rmpath changes the result.
Run a small rmpath example, explain the result, then change one input and compare the output.
FAQ
Does rmpath insist on absolute paths?⌄
No. Relative inputs are resolved against the current working directory and stored as absolute paths before matching against the path.
What happens with duplicate folders in the argument list?⌄
Each folder is processed once per call. Duplicate input values are ignored after the first removal.
How do I confirm removal succeeded?⌄
Call path() or which to confirm that the folder (or files within it) no longer appear on the MATLAB search path.
Does rmpath update the RUNMAT_PATH environment variable?⌄
Yes. Changes are reflected immediately so other RunMat tooling observes the new path.
Can I remove folders that were added via path(newPath)?⌄
Yes. rmpath matches entries exactly as they appear in the stored search path string, regardless of how they were inserted.
Will rmpath accept GPU strings?⌄
Yes. Inputs are gathered automatically, then processed on the CPU.
What happens if the folder exists locally but is not on the search path?⌄
RunMat raises rmpath: folder '<name>' not on search path, matching MATLAB’s expectation that only active path entries are removed.
Does rmpath return the new or previous path?⌄
It returns the previous path so you can restore it later with path(old).
Is there a bulk reset option?⌄
To clear the path entirely call path(""). rmpath intentionally targets specific folders.
Related Io functions
Repl Fs
addpath · cd · copyfile · delete · dir · exist · fileattrib · fileparts · fullfile · genpath · getenv · getpref · isenv · isfile · isfolder · ispref · ls · matlabroot · memmapfile · mkdir · movefile · open · opentoline · path · pathsep · pcode · pwd · readstruct · rehash · restoredefaultpath · rmdir · run · savepath · setenv · setpref · system · tempdir · tempname · uigetdir · uigetfile · uiputfile · unsetenv · userpath · what · winqueryreg · xmlread · xmlwrite
Tabular
arrayDatastore · csvread · csvwrite · detectImportOptions · dlmread · dlmwrite · fileDatastore · parquetDatastore · parquetinfo · parquetread · readcell · readmatrix · readtable · readtimetable · spreadsheetImportOptions · writecell · writematrix · writetable · writetimetable · xlsread · xlswrite
Filetext
fclose · feof · fgetl · fgets · fileread · filewrite · fopen · fprintf · fread · frewind · fwrite · readlines · writelines
Import
Json
Open-source implementation
Unlike proprietary runtimes, every RunMat function is open-source. Read exactly how rmpath is executed, line by line, in Rust.
- View the source for rmpath in Rust on GitHub
- Learn how the RunMat runtime works
- Found a bug? Open an issue with a minimal reproduction.
About RunMat
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