What are the differences between recursive and iterative DFS?

Can you explain the differences between recursive and iterative depth-first search?

Sure! Recursive DFS uses the call stack to explore nodes, while iterative DFS uses an explicit stack.

Which one is more efficient in terms of memory usage?

Recursive DFS can lead to stack overflow for deep trees, while iterative DFS can handle larger depths more safely.

Are there any scenarios where one is preferred over the other?

Yes, recursive DFS is simpler to implement, but iterative DFS is better for large graphs to avoid stack overflow.

Can you give me a code example for both?

Absolutely! Here’s a simple recursive DFS example in Python:

def recursive_dfs(node):
    if node is None:
        return
    print(node.value)
    for child in node.children:
        recursive_dfs(child)

And here’s an iterative version:

def iterative_dfs(root):
    stack = [root]
    while stack:
        node = stack.pop()
        print(node.value)
        stack.extend(node.children)