Databricks Essentials Reference

Core Databricks functions, notebooks utilities, and DBFS storage integrations.

dbutils.fs.ls

Return: List

Lists the contents of a directory on DBFS.

Syntax signature:dbutils.fs.ls(path)

Code snippet:

python

dbutils.fs.ls('dbfs:/FileStore/data/')

Remember: Perfect for auditing incoming staging folders inside Databricks notebooks.

dbutils.widgets.text

Return: None

Creates a dynamic text parameter widget on Databricks UI header.

Syntax signature:dbutils.widgets.text(name, defaultValue)

Code snippet:

python

dbutils.widgets.text('run_date', '2026-07-10')

Remember: Use dbutils.widgets.get('run_date') to capture runtime scheduler parameter dates.