Solution: Simplify Path
Explore how to simplify absolute Unix-style file paths by using a stack to manage directory traversals. This lesson helps you understand handling special path components, such as '.' and '..', by processing input strings and constructing clean canonical paths efficiently.
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Statement
Given an absolute path for a Unix-style file system (always beginning with '/'), transform it into its simplified canonical form.
The Unix-style file system follows these rules:
A single period
'.'represents the current directory.A double period
'..'represents the parent directory.Multiple consecutive slashes (e.g.,
'//'or'///') are treated as a single slash'/'.Any sequence of periods that does not match the above rules is treated as a valid directory or file name (e.g.,
'...'and'....'are valid names).
The resulting canonical path must satisfy the following:
It must begin with a single slash
'/'.Directories must be separated by exactly one slash
'/'.It must not end with a trailing slash
'/', unless it is the root directory. ...