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title: Read a File Using the FTP Connector Example
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product: FTP Connector
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# Read a File Using the FTP Connector Example

> For the full documentation index, see: https://docs.mulesoft.com/llms.txt

Anypoint Connector for FTP (FTP Connector) provides a **Read** operation that reads a file at any
point in the flow. The operation reads the file in the given path and returns a Mule message with
the following attributes:

- The file’s content as the payload

- The file’s metadata in the message attributes

- If the file does not exist, you receive an `FTP:ILLEGAL_PATH` error

  Note that the operation does not read directories. When the file is read from the FTP source
  folder, the file remains in the same folder until it is manually deleted.

The **Read** operation makes use of the repeatable streams functionality. The operation returns a
list of messages, where each message represents a file in the list and holds a stream to the file. A
stream is repeatable by default.

For more information about repeatable streams, refer to the
[Streaming in Mule Apps](https://docs.mulesoft.com/mule-runtime/latest/streaming-about) documentation.

## Configure the Read Operation in Studio

To add and configure the **Read** operation in Studio, follow these steps:

1.  In the **Mule Palette** view, search for `ftp` and select the **Read** operation.

2.  Drag the **Read** operation onto the Studio canvas.

3.  In the **General** tab of the operation configuration screen, click the plus sign (**+**) next
    to the **Connector configuration** field to access the global element configuration fields.

4.  Specify the connection information and click **OK**.

5.  In the **General** tab, set **File Path** to the path of the file to read, for example,
    `#[path]`.

6.  In the **MIME Type** tab, set **MIME Type** to `application/xml` and set **Encoding** to
    `ISO 10646/Unicode(UTF-8)`.

![Read operation configuration in Studio](/mulesoft/current/en-us/ftp-connector/latest/_images/ftp-read-operation.png)

In the **Configuration XML** editor, the `<ftp:read>` configuration looks like this:

```xml
<ftp:read path="#[path]"
  lock="true|false"
  outputEncoding="UTF-8"
  outputMimeType="application/xml" />
```

## MIME Types and Encoding

Each connector tries to determine a file’s MIME type from its extension. You can force the MIME type
to a different value with the **MIME Type** (`outputMimeType`) parameter.

The same process works for encoding. By default, the connector assumes that the default encoding in
the Mule runtime matches the MIME type of the file; however, you can set the encoding through the
**Encoding** (`outputEncoding`) parameter.

## Why MIME Types Matter

DataWeave expressions are embeddable inside operations that generate payloads and other values.
Having the correct MIME type set helps DataWeave auto-assign types and also generate the correct
outputs. Also, maximizing the use of DataSense’s functionality improves the user experience.

## File Locks

File system level locks are not possible in FTP or SFTP, so each operation uses a Mule lock that
protects only the file from other flows in the same Mule application. These locks do not protect the
file from external processes. However, if the Mule application is running on a cluster, the lock is
distributed.

The file lock is automatically released when either of the following occur:

- The Mule flow that locked the file ends

- The file content has been fully read

> [!NOTE] If the file is already locked by someone else, the connector cannot unlock it, resulting
> in a `FTP:FILE_LOCK` error.

## See Also

- [FTP Connector Examples](https://docs.mulesoft.com/ftp-connector/latest/ftp-examples#write)

- [Salesforce Help](https://help.salesforce.com)