delete-a-file.md

Delete a file

FileDeleteTransaction() deletes a file stored on the Hedera network. Once the file has been deleted, it will be marked as deleted until it expires and will not retain any of its contents.

Constructor	Description
FileDeleteTransaction()	Initializes the FileDeleteTransaction object

new FileDeleteTransaction()

Basic

Methods	Type	Description
setFileId(<fileId>)	FileId	The ID of the file to delete

Example

{% tabs %} {% tab title="Java" %}

TransactionId fileDeleteTxnId = new FileDeleteTransaction()
     .setFileId(newFileId)
     .execute(client);

// if this doesn't throw then the transaction was a success
fileDeleteTxnId.getReceipt(client);

System.out.println("File deleted successfully.");

FileInfo fileInfo = new FileInfoQuery()
     .setFileId(newFileId)
     .execute(client);

{% endtab %}

{% tab title="JavaScript" %}

const operatorAccount = process.env.OPERATOR_ID;
const operatorPrivateKey = process.env.OPERATOR_KEY;
const operatorPublicKey = Ed25519PublicKey.fromString(process.env.OPERATOR_PUB_KEY);

 if (operatorPrivateKey == null || operatorAccount == null) {
  throw new Error(
    "environment variables OPERATOR_KEY and OPERATOR_ID must be present"
  );
}

const client = new Client({
   network: { "0.testnet.hedera.com:50211": "0.0.3" },
   operator: {
     account: operatorAccount,
     privateKey: operatorPrivateKey
   }
});

// First, we'll create a file with our operator as an admin
const transactionId = await new FileCreateTransaction()
   .setContents("creating a file to test deletion")
   .setMaxTransactionFee(Hbar.of(100))
   .addKey(operatorPublicKey)
   .execute(client);

// The receipt will contain the FileId, or where it exists on the network
const createFileReceipt = await transactionId.getReceipt(client);
console.log("create file receipt ", JSON.stringify(createFileReceipt) + "\n");

// Then we'll delete this newly created file
const deleteFileTransactionId = await new FileDeleteTransaction()
   .setFileId(createFileReceipt._fileId) // Define which file to delete
   .setMaxTransactionFee(Hbar.of(100))
   .execute(client); // Presumes the client is the file's admin key

// After deletion, the receipt should NOT contain a file ID
const deleteFileReceipt = await deleteFileTransactionId.getReceipt(client);
console.log("deleted file receipt, won't contain a file ID ", JSON.stringify(deleteFileReceipt) + "\n");  

{% endtab %} {% endtabs %}