PS 58,70
NHD
FL BOLD *
#
BL 8
C;^*ATTRIB\*
C;File Attribute Manipulation Utility
C;Reference Manual
B 10
C;February 1987
B
This document describes the ATTRIB File Attribute Manipulation
Utility.
This utility is unlicensed and unsupported.
B 8
LM +35
TS 35
I -35
Revision/Update Information: This is a new manual.
P -35,1,0
Operating System and Version: MS-DOS_* version 2.10 or later.
P -35,1,0
Software Version: ATTRIB version 1.0
P -35,1,0
Support: THIS SOFTWARE IS ^*NOT\* SUPPORTED BY DIGITAL
EQUIPMENT CORPORATION.
P -35,1,0
Direct Questions and Comments To: Brian Hetrick
BR;ZKO1-3/J10
BR;Digital Equipment Corporation
BR;110 Spit Brook Road
BR;Nashua NH 03062-2698
BR;USA
LM -35
B 6
_* MS-DOS is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation.
B
Digital Equipment Corporation####################Maynard Massachusetts
PG
R
February 1987
B 5
The information in this document is subject to change without notice
and should not be construed as a commitment by Digital Equipment
Corporation.
Digital Equipment Corporation assumes no responsibility for any errors
that may appear in this document.
B
The software described in this document is unlicensed and unsupported.
^*Digital Equipment Corporation assumes no responsibility for the use
or reliability of this software\*.
This software is provided "as is," without any warranty of any kind,
express or implied.
Digital Equipment Corporation will not be liable in any event for any
damages including any loss of data, profit, or savings, claims against
the user by any other party, or any other incidental or consequential
damages arising out of the use of, or inability to use, this software,
even if Digital Equipment Corporation is advised of the possibility of
such damage.
B 5
This documentation and the software it describes have been placed into
the public domain by Digital Equipment Corporation.
B 5
The following are trademarks of Digital Equipment Corporation:
B
LT
DEC MASSBUS RSX VAX
DECmate PDP RT VAXcluster
DECnet P/OS ULTRIX VAXmate
DECUS Professional ULTRIX-32 VMS
DECwriter Rainbow ULTRIX-32M VT
DIBOL RSTS UNIBUS Work Processor
_ _ _ _ _ _ _
| | | | | | | |
|d|i|g|i|t|a|l|
|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|
EL
PG
C
^*Contents\*
B 3
LT
Page
Preface v
Intended Audience v
Structure of This Document v
Associated Documents v
Conventions Used in This Document v
Acknowledgments vi
Summary 1
Format 1
Command Qualifiers 1
Command Parameters 1
Usage 1
Invoking 1
Exiting 1
Directing Output 2
Description 3
Invoking the File Attribute Manipulation Utility 3
Command Parameters 3
Display of File Names and Attributes 5
Command Qualifiers 6
Restrictions 6
Command Qualifiers 7
/HELP Command Qualifier 7
Format 7
Description 7
Example 7
/LOG Command Qualifier 8
Format 8
Description 8
Example 8
/RESET Command Qualifier 9
Format 9
Description 9
Example 10
/SET Command Qualifier 11
Format 11
Description 11
Example 12
Examples 13
Avoiding Full Backup After Restore 13
Avoiding Full Backup After Failed Incremental Backup 13
Making a File Invisible 14
Making a File Visible 14
Making a File Unmodifiable 14
Making a File Modifiable 15
EL
PG
#
PG
HD ON
LO 2,2
DNM RL
TI File Attribute Manipulation Utility
ST Preface
C;^*Preface\*
LM +5
P -5,2,3
^*Intended Audience\*
B
This manual is intended for all MS-DOS users.
P -5,2,3
^*Structure of This Document\*
B
This document has four major sections:
LS 1,"o"
LE
The Summary section is an overview of the File Attribute Manipulation
Utility and is intended as a quick reference guide.
The Format subsection describes the command that invokes the File
Attribute Manipulation Utility, listing all command qualifiers and
parameters.
The Usage subsection describes how to invoke the File Attribute
Manipulation Utility and how to redirect output.
LE
The Description section explains how to use the File Attribute
Manipulation Utility and lists any restrictions you should be aware of.
LE
The Command Qualifier section describes each command qualifier.
This section lists the command qualifiers in alphabetical order.
LE
The Examples section contains examples of common operations that you
perform with the File Attribute Manipulation Utility.
ELS 0
P -5,2,3
^*Associated Documents\*
B
To use the File Attribute Manipulation Utility, you should also be
familiar with the following manual:
LS 1,"o"
LE
^&MS-DOS User's Guide\&, or ^&Disk Operating System\& manual, as
appropriate.
ELS 0
P -5,2,3
^*Conventions Used in This Document\*
LM +30
P -30,1,3
Convention Meaning
P -30,1,2
E_>^*ATTRIB _/SET:SYSTEM _*._*\* Command examples show
output lines or prompting characters that the system prints or
displays in normal type.
All user-entered commands are shown in ^*bold\* type.
P -30,1,3
_/[NO]LOG Format descriptions use square brackets to indicate
that the enclosed item is optional.
P -30,1,3
ATTRIB ^&wildspec\& [^&qualifier\&] Format descriptions show all portions of the
command or command qualifier.
Upper case letters and special characters must be entered exactly as
shown.
Lower case italic letters indicate portions of the command for which
you must substitute values which determine the effect of the command.
P -30,1,3
_/SET:(^&value\&[,^&value\&]...) Ellipses (...) in format
descriptions indicate that the immediately preceding item may be
repeated several times.
P -30,1,3
_<CTRL_/x_> The symbol _<CTRL/x_> indicates that you must press
the key labeled CTRL while you simultaneously press another key, for
example, _<CTRL/C_>.
LM -30
P -5,2,3
^*Acknowledgments\*
B
The ATTRIB File Attribute Manipulation Utility uses the public domain
command line parsing package written by Bela Lubkin of Borland
International Inc.
B
Several employees of Digital Equipment Corporation served as beta
testers for various preliminary versions of this documentation and the
software it describes.
The author thanks these persons for their contribution to this
utility.
LM -5
PG
DNM D
NMPG 1
ST Summary
C;^*Summary\*
LM +5
P 0,2,3
The ATTRIB File Attribute Manipulation Utility displays, sets, and
resets attributes of files.
P -5,2,3
^*Format\*
B
ATTRIB [^&wildspec\&]...#[^&qualifier\&]...
B
^*Command Qualifiers\* ^*Defaults\*
B
/[NO]HELP /NOHELP
BR
/[NO]LOG /LOG
BR
/RESET:^&value\& [none]
BR
/SET:^&value\& [none]
B
^*Command Parameters\*
LM +5
P -5,1,3
^&wildspec\&
B
A path specification, the last component of which may contain wild
card characters, describing the files whose attributes are to be
displayed, set, or reset.
If several path specifications are given, each is processed in turn.
LM -5
B
Command parameters and command qualifiers may be given in any order.
P -5,2,3
^*Usage\*
LM +5
P -5,1,3
^*Invoking\*
B
You invoke the File Attribute Manipulation Utility with the ATTRIB
command.
P -5,1,3
^*Exiting\*
B
You exit the File Attribute Manipulation Utility normally by waiting
until processing is complete.
The File Attribute Manipulation Utility will return control to the
command interpreter when processing is complete.
B
You can exit the File Attribute Manipulation Utility abnormally by
typing _<CTRL/C_>, if the /NOLOG command qualifier has not been given
or if the MS-DOS BREAK parameter is ON.
P -5,1,3
^*Directing Output\*
B
By default, messages from the File Attribute Manipulation Utility are
directed to the console device.
Such messages may be redirected to another device or a file with the
I/O redirection facilities of the command interpreter.
LM -10
PG
ST Description
C;^*Description\*
LM +5
B 2
The File Attribute Manipulation Utility is a command-line oriented
program used to display, set, and reset file system attributes of
individual files or groups of files.
B
Through the use of the File Attribute Manipulation Utility, you can
display the names of hidden and system files, protect files against
alteration or deletion, make files eligible or ineligible for display
with the MS-DOS DIR command, and force files to be backed up or not
backed up with an incremental backup utility.
P -5,2,3
^*Invoking the File Attribute Manipulation Utility\*
B
You invoke the File Attribute Manipulation Utility with the ATTRIB
command, optionally followed by one or more wild card path
specifications of the files whose attributes are to be displayed or
manipulated.
B
If you do not specify any wild card path specifications and also do
not specify any command qualifiers, the File Attribute Manipulation
Utility will display the names and attributes of all files in the
current directory of the volume in the current drive.
B
If you specify command qualifiers other than /HELP but do not specify
any wild card path specifications, the File Attribute Manipulation
Utility will take no action.
B
If you specify at least one wild card path specification, the File
Attribute Manipulation Utility will process all files with names
matching the wild card path specifications and then exit.
P -5,2,3
^*Command Parameters\*
B
The File Attribute Manipulation Utility processes the files whose
names are selected by the wild card path specifications.
For example, the following command displays the attributes and names
of all files on the current directory of the volume in drive C:
LM +5
B
TP 14
E_>^*ATTRIB C:_*._*\*
BR
ATTRIB version 1.0
LT
C:\*.*:
IBMBIO.COM Arc R/O Hid Sys
IBMDOS.COM Arc R/O Hid Sys
AUTOEXEC.BAT Arc
BIN Dir
LIB Dir
USR Dir
CONFIG.SYS Arc
M2LOD Dir
M2LIB Dir
EL
LM -5
B
If a drive letter is specified in a wild card path specification, the
path is interpreted as residing on the volume in the specified drive.
Otherwise, the path is interpreted as residing on the current default
drive.
If the path starts with a back slash (_\), the path is interpreted as
relative to the root directory of the volume.
Otherwise, the path is interpreted as relative to the current default
directory of the volume.
In all of these cases, the absolute form of the wild card path
specification is displayed, followed by a line for each of the files
selected by the wild card path specification.
B
The last component of the path specifications given in the command may
contain wild card characters.
An asterisk (_*) in the file name portion of the last component of the
path specification indicates that all files whose names match the
portion of the file name before the asterisk will match the file name
portion.
An asterisk as the first or only character of the file name portion of
the last component of the path specification will match the file name
of all files.
Similarly, an asterisk in the file extension portion of the last
component of the path specification indicates that all files whose
extensions match the portion of the file extension before the asterisk
will match the file extension portion.
An asterisk as the first or only character of the file extension
portion of the last component of the path specification will match the
file extension of all files.
B
A question mark (_?) in any position of the last component of the path
specification will match any single character in a file name or file
extension.
Question marks as the last characters of the file name or file
extension portions of the last component of the path specification
will also match null (nonexistent) characters of the file name or file
extension.
B
If the current directory on the volume in drive B is the root
directory, then the command:
P 5,1,3
E_>^*ATTRIB B:???.D_*\*
B
will list the attributes and names of all files in the root directory
of the volume in drive B whose file names are at most three
characters long, and whose file extensions start with the letter D.
B
Except in the root directory of a volume, a single period (_.) in the
place of a directory name refers to the directory which would be
specified in the absence of the period, while two periods (_._.)
refers to the parent of the directory which would be specified in the
absence of the two periods.
When the directory which would be specified without the periods is the
root directory of a volume, both a single period and two periods
refers to the root directory.
A single back slash also refers to the root directory of a volume.
B
If the path specification ends in either a colon (_:) or a back slash
(_\), the File Attribute Manipulation Utility appends the wild card
specification _*._* to the path appearing in the command line.
For example, the command:
P 5,1,3
E_>^*ATTRIB A:\*
B
lists the attributes and names of files in the current directory of
the volume in drive A.
P -5,2,3
^*Display of File Names and Attributes\*
B
The File Attribute Manipulation Utility lists the attributes and names
of the files matching each the wild card path specification in the
following format:
LM +5
B
pathspec:
BR
##filename.ext##Arc Dir R/O Hid Sys
LM -5
B
"Pathspec" is the wild card path specification specified in the
command line, expressed in absolute terms.
It includes a drive letter and a complete path specification relative
to the root directory of the volume in the drive.
B
"Filename.ext" is the name of a file selected by the path
specification, relative to the directory containing the last component
of the path specification.
B
"Arc," if present, indicates that the file has the "archive" attribute
set.
This attribute is set whenever the file is written to, and is reset
only by specific programmed requests.
This attribute is often used by incremental backup utilities to
determine whether a file has changed since the last backup.
B
"Dir," if present, indicates that the file has the "directory"
attribute set.
This attribute is set when the file is an MS-DOS subdirectory, rather
than a data file.
B
"R_/O," if present, indicates that the file has the "read only"
attribute set.
This attribute prevents the file from being written to or deleted.
B
"Hid," if present, indicates that the file has the "hidden" attribute
set.
This attribute prevents the file from being found by normal directory
searches, such as used by the MS-DOS DIR command.
B
"Sys," if present, indicates that the file has the "system" attribute
set.
This attribute prevents the file from being found by normal directory
searches, such as used by the MS-DOS DIR command.
P -5,2,3
^*Command Qualifiers\*
B
You can obtain a description of the File Attribute Manipulation
Utility's command parameters and command qualifiers with the /HELP
command qualifier.
B
You can suppress the listing of the file names and attributes with the
/NOLOG command qualifier.
B
You can modify the attributes of the files selected with the /RESET
and /SET command qualifiers.
In this case, the attributes listed are the file attributes as
modified by the /RESET and /SET command qualifiers, rather than the
file attributes before modification.
P -5,2,3
^*Restrictions\*
B
You cannot set or reset the directory attribute of a file.
This is a limitation of the MS-DOS file system.
B
You can use wild card characters only in the last component of a path
specification.
This is a limitation of the directory search process provided by the
MS-DOS operating system.
LM -5
PG
ST Command Qualifiers
C;^*/HELP Command Qualifier\*
LM +5
P -5,2,3
^*Format\*
B
/HELP
BR
/NOHELP
P -5,2,3
^*Description\*
B
By default, the File Attribute Manipulation Utility does not give a
description of the command parameters and command qualifiers it
accepts.
The /HELP command qualifier controls the generation of this
description of command parameters and command qualifiers.
If you specify /HELP, the description is produced.
If you omit the qualifier or specify /NOHELP, no description is
produced.
B
The HELP keyword may be abbreviated to any leading substring which
does not also abbreviate another command qualifier.
The minimum abbreviation of the HELP keyword is H.
The minimum abbreviation of the NOHELP negated keyword construct is
NOH.
B
If the /HELP command qualifier is specified several times in a single
command, the rightmost occurrence of the qualifier is effective.
P -5,2,3
^*Example\*
B
E_>^*ATTRIB /HELP\*
BR
LT
ATTRIB version 1.0
Command line: ATTRIB filespec [qualifier]...
'filespec' is a path specification possibly with wild card characters
in the last component
'qualifier' is one of /[NO]HELP, /[NO]LOG, /SET:value, /RESET:value,
/CLEAR:value, /REMOVE:value
/SET grants attributes
/RESET, /CLEAR, and /REMOVE remove attributes
'value' is either name or (name[,name]...)
'name' is one of ARCHIVE, HIDDEN, SYSTEM, READ_ONLY
All keywords may be uniquely abbreviated
EL
LM -5
PG
C;^*/LOG Command Qualifier\*
LM +5
P -5,2,3
^*Format\*
B
/LOG
BR
/NOLOG
P -5,2,3
^*Description\*
B
By default, the File Attribute Manipulation Utility lists the
attributes and names of all files selected by the command line.
The /LOG command qualifier controls this listing of file attributes
and names.
If you specify /NOLOG, no listing is produced.
If you omit the qualifier or specify /LOG, the listing is produced.
B
The LOG keyword may be abbreviated to any leading substring which does
not also abbreviate another command qualifier keyword.
The minimum abbreviation of the LOG keyword is L.
The minimum abbreviation of the NOLOG negated keyword construct is
NOL.
B
If the /LOG command qualifier is specified several times in a single
command, the rightmost occurrence of the qualifier is effective.
P -5,2,3
^*Example\*
B
E_>^*ATTRIB /SET:SYSTEM _*._* /NOLOG\*
BR
ATTRIB version 1.0
B
E_>^*ATTRIB _*._*\*
LT
ATTRIB version 1.0
E:\*.*:
ABSTRACT Dir Sys
M2LIB Dir Sys
M2LOD Dir Sys
EL
B
E_>^*ATTRIB _*._* /RESET:SYSTEM /LOG\*
LT
ATTRIB version 1.0
E:\*.*:
ABSTRACT Dir
M2LIB Dir
M2LOD Dir
EL
LM -5
PG
C;^*/RESET Command Qualifier\*
LM +5
P -5,2,3
^*Format\*
B
/RESET:^&value\&
BR
/RESET:(^&value\&[,^&value\&]...)
BR
/CLEAR:^&value\&
BR
/CLEAR:(^&value\&[,^&value\&]...)
BR
/REMOVE:^&value\&
BR
/REMOVE:(^&value\&[,^&value\&]...)
P -5,2,3
^*Description\*
B
By default, the File Attribute Manipulator Utility leaves unchanged
the attributes of the files selected by the wild card path
specifications.
The /RESET command qualifier directs the File Attribute Manipulation
Utility to reset (remove) specific attributes for the selected files.
The value specified for the /RESET command qualifier may be a single
item from the list:
LM +10
P -5,1,3
ARCHIVE - Specifying this item directs the File Attribute Manipulator
Utility to reset the "archive" attribute
P -5,1,3
HIDDEN - Specifying this item directs the File Attribute Manipulator
Utility to reset the "hidden" attribute
P -5,1,3
READ__ONLY - Specifying this item directs the File Attribute
Manipulator Utility to reset the "read only" attribute
P -5,1,3
SYSTEM - Specifying this item directs the File Attribute Manipulator
Utility to reset the "system" attribute
B
LM -10
The value specified for the /RESET command qualifier may also be a
combination of these values, separated by commas and enclosed in
parentheses.
B
The ARCHIVE, HIDDEN, READ__ONLY, and SYSTEM keywords may be abbreviated
to any leading substring which does not also abbreviate another of these
keywords.
The minimum abbreviations of these keywords are A, H, R,
and S, respectively.
B
The CLEAR, REMOVE, and RESET keywords are synonyms.
The CLEAR, REMOVE, and RESET keywords may be abbreviated to any
leading substring which does not also abbreviate another command
qualifier keyword.
The minimum abbreviation of these keywords are C, R, and R,
respectively.
R and RE are accepted for both the REMOVE and RESET keywords as these
keywords are synonyms.
B
An equals sign (=) may be used in place of a colon (:) to separate the
command qualifier keyword from the command qualifier value.
B
If the /RESET command qualifier is specified several times in a single
command, attributes appearing in any of the /RESET command qualifiers
are reset.
B
No item specified in the /RESET command qualifier may also be
specified in the /SET command qualifier.
P -5,2,3
^*Example\*
B
E>^*ATTRIB G:_\BIN_\C_*.COM /SET:(ARCHIVE,HIDDEN,READ__ONLY,SYSTEM)\*
LT
ATTRIB version 1.0
G:\BIN\C*.COM:
CHKDSK.COM Arc R/O Hid Sys
COMMAND.COM Arc R/O Hid Sys
EL
B
E>^*ATTRIB G:_\BIN_\C_*.COM /RESET:HIDDEN\*
LT
ATTRIB version 1.0
G:\BIN\C*.COM:
CHKDSK.COM Arc R/O Sys
COMMAND.COM Arc R/O Sys
EL
LM -5
PG
C;^*/SET Command Qualifier\*
LM +5
P -5,2,3
^*Format\*
B
/SET:^&value\&
BR
/SET:(^&value\&[,^&value\&]...)
P -5,2,3
^*Description\*
B
By default, the File Attribute Manipulator Utility leaves unchanged
the attributes of the files selected by the wild card path
specifications.
The /SET command qualifier directs the File Attribute Manipulation
Utility to set specific attributes for the selected files.
The value specified for the /SET command qualifier may be a single
item from the list:
LM +10
P -5,1,3
ARCHIVE - Specifying this item directs the File Attribute Manipulator
Utility to set the "archive" attribute
P -5,1,3
HIDDEN - Specifying this item directs the File Attribute Manipulator
Utility to set the "hidden" attribute
P -5,1,3
READ__ONLY - Specifying this item directs the File Attribute
Manipulator Utility to set the "read only" attribute
P -5,1,3
SYSTEM - Specifying this item directs the File Attribute Manipulator
Utility to set the "system" attribute
B
LM -10
The value specified for the /SET command qualifier may also be a
combination of these values, separated by commas and enclosed in
parentheses.
B
The ARCHIVE, HIDDEN, READ__ONLY, and SYSTEM keywords may be abbreviated
to any leading substring which does not also abbreviate another of these
four keywords.
The minimum abbreviations of these keywords are A, H, R,
and S, respectively.
B
The SET keyword may be abbreviated to any leading substring which does
not also abbreviate another command qualifier keyword.
The minimum abbreviation of the SET keyword is S.
B
An equals sign (=) may be used in place of a colon (:) to separate the
command qualifier keyword from the command qualifier value.
B
If the /SET command qualifier is specified several times in a single
command, attributes appearing in any of the /SET command qualifiers are
set.
B
No item specified in the /SET command qualifier may also be specified
in the /RESET command qualifier.
P -5,2,3
^*Example\*
B
E>^*ATTRIB G:_\BIN_\C_*.COM /SET:(HIDDEN,ARCHIVE)\*
LT
ATTRIB version 1.0
G:\BIN\C*.COM:
CHKDSK.COM Arc Hid
COMMAND.COM Arc Hid
EL
LM -5
PG
ST Examples
C;^*Examples\*
LM +5
P -5,2,3
^*Avoiding Full Backup After Restore\*
B
Many file backup and restore utilities permit incremental backups,
where only files having the archive attribute are copied from the disk
being backed up to the backup media.
These utilities generally exactly restore the files' attributes when
such files are restored.
At the next incremental backup, all restored files are backed up
again, as they have the archive attribute, this being the reason
they were included in the first backup.
B
You can use the File Attribute Manipulation Utility to reset the
archive attributes of such files, making them ineligible for an
incremental backup.
This is useful when large files are restored from a previous backup,
and it is not desired to back up these files yet again.
The command:
P 5,1,3
E>^*ATTRIB /RESET:ARCHIVE _*._*\*
B
will reset the archive attribute of all files in the current directory
of the current drive, making these files ineligible for future
incremental backups until their contents are changed.
P -5,2,3
^*Avoiding Full Backup After Failed Incremental Backup\*
B
Many file backup and restore utilities permit incremental backups,
where only files having the archive attribute are copied from the disk
being backed up to the backup media.
Some of these utilities remove the archive attribute from files as the
files are copied to the backup media, before it is known whether the
backup as a whole is successful.
With such utilities, if the backup process fails before completion,
the files may be unrecoverable from the backup media created by the
failed backup process.
Even after the cause of the backup utility's failure has been removed,
an incremental backup will not back up the files whose archive
attributes were removed by the failed backup process.
B
You can use the File Attribute Manipulation Utility to set the archive
attribute of the files whose archive attribute has been removed by a
failed incremental backup.
The command:
P 5,1,3
E>^*ATTRIB /SET:ARCHIVE _*._*\*
B
will give the archive attribute to all files in the current directory
of the current drive, making these files eligible for a future
incremental backup.
P -5,2,3
^*Making a File Invisible\*
B
You can use the File Attribute Manipulation Utility to make a file
undetectable through normal directory searches, such as used by the
MS-DOS DIR command.
Files with either the hidden attribute or the system attribute are not
found through normal directory searches.
The command:
P 5,1,3
E_>^*ATTRIB /SET:HIDDEN ^&filename\&\*
B
will set the hidden attribute of the file specified by ^&filename\&,
and so make it undetectable through normal directory searches.
If ^&filename\& specifies a subdirectory, then it will not appear in
directory listings, but otherwise will act normally.
P -5,2,3
^*Making a File Visible\*
B
You can use the File Attribute Manipulation Utility to make a file which
has one or both of the hidden and system attribute detectable through
normal directory searches, such as used by the MS-DOS DIR command.
The command:
P 5,1,3
E_>^*ATTRIB /RESET:(HIDDEN,SYSTEM) ^&filename\&\*
B
will reset the hidden and system attributes for the file specified by
^&filename\&.
B
As files with the hidden or system attributes are not detectable
through normal directory searches, a utility that uses special
directory searches must be used to detect their presence.
The File Attribute Manipulator Utility uses such searches.
The command:
P 5,1,3
E_>^*ATTRIB _*._*\*
B
will list the attributes and names of all files in the current
directory, including files with the hidden or system attributes.
P -5,2,3
^*Making a File Unmodifiable\*
B
You can make a file ineligible to be written upon or deleted, with the
File Attribute Manipulation Utility.
This protects the files against accidental deletion or modification.
The command:
P 5,1,3
E_>^*ATTRIB /SET:READ__ONLY ^&filename\&\*
B
gives the file specified by ^&filename\& the read only attribute.
The MS-DOS operating system will not permit a file with the read only
attribute to be written upon or deleted.
To modify or delete the file, it is first necessary to remove the
read only attribute.
P -5,2,3
^*Making a File Modifiable\*
B
You can make a file which has the read only attribute eligible for
modification and deletion using the File Attribute Manipulation
Utility.
This would be necessary, for example, if you wanted to delete a
data file which contained obsolete information, but which had been
protected against accidental modification or deletion.
The command:
P 5,1,3
E_>^*ATTRIB /RESET:READ__ONLY ^&filename\&\*
B
removes the read only attribute from the file specified by
^&filename\&.
The MS-DOS operating system will then permit the file to be written
upon or deleted.
LM -5
