# Fs Read

> Read a text, JSON, or PDF file under scenarios/<world_name>/fs and return a Note.

- Skill: `bdambrosio/fs-read` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 3 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add bdambrosio/fs-read`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/bdambrosio/fs-read/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Docs & Writing
- Author: bdambrosio (https://skillmd.com/u/bdambrosio)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/bdambrosio/fs-read

---


# fs-read

Read a file from the filesystem sandbox and return its content as a Note. Supports text, JSON, and PDF files.

## Input

- `path`: Relative path under `scenarios/<world_name>/fs` (required)
- `max_chars`: Optional maximum characters to read (text and PDF files only)
- `as_json`: Force JSON parse (default: false, text files only)
- `grobid_url`: Optional GROBID server URL for enhanced PDF parsing (from world_config)

## File Types

- **Text files**: Read as plain text
- **JSON files**: Returned as text (JSON string body)
- **PDF files**: Extracted using GROBID (if `grobid_url` provided) or pymupdf fallback. Returns extracted text body

## Output

Success returns:
- `resource_id`: Note ID containing text content.
- Note content format:
  - metadata Note linked by meta Relation (path/format/size/mtime and parser metadata)
  - body text (file content)

Example content shape:
```text
<file contents...>
```

Related metadata Note content shape:
```json
{"path":"docs/readme.md","format":"text","size":1234,"mtime":"2026-02-15T10:00:00"}
```

## Examples

```json
{"type":"fs-read","path":"notes/todo.txt","out":"$todo"}
{"type":"fs-read","path":"data/config.json","as_json":true,"out":"$config"}
{"type":"fs-read","path":"papers/article.pdf","out":"$paper"}
{"type":"fs-read","path":"papers/article.pdf","max_chars":5000,"out":"$paper_preview"}
```