Databricks: Download a dbfs:/FileStore File to my Local Machine?

Question

I am using saveAsTextFile() to store the results of a Spark job in the folder dbfs:/FileStore/my_result.

I can access to the different "part-xxxxx" files using the web browser, but I would like to automate the process of downloading all files to my local machine.

I have tried to use cURL, but I can't find the RestAPI command to download a dbfs:/FileStore file.

Question: How can I download a dbfs:/FileStore file to my Local Machine?

I am using Databricks Community Edition to teach an undergraduate module in Big Data Analytics in college. I have Windows 7 installed in my local machine. I have checked that cURL and the _netrc files are properly installed and configured as I manage to successfully run some of the commands provided by the RestAPI.

Thank you very much in advance for your help! Best regards, Nacho

Answer 1

There are a few options for downloading FileStore files to your local machine.

Easier options:

• Install the Databricks CLI, configure it with your Databricks credentials, and use the CLI's dbfs cp command. For example: dbfs cp dbfs:/FileStore/test.txt ./test.txt. If you want to download an entire folder of files, you can use dbfs cp -r.
• From a browser signed into Databricks, navigate to https://<YOUR_DATABRICKS_INSTANCE_NAME>.cloud.databricks.com/files/. If you are using Databricks Community Edition then you may need to use a slightly different path. This download method described in more detail in the FileStore docs.

Advanced options:

• Use the DBFS REST API. You can access file contents using the read API call. To download a large file, you may need to issue multiple read calls to access chunks of the full file.