ATTRIB Command May Inadvertently Remove File Attributes (82270)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft MS-DOS operating system 5.0
  • Microsoft MS-DOS operating system 5.0a
  • Microsoft MS-DOS operating system 6.0
  • Microsoft MS-DOS operating system 6.2
  • Microsoft MS-DOS operating system 6.21
  • Microsoft MS-DOS operating system 6.22
This article was previously published under Q82270

SYMPTOMS

The following MS-DOS command removes ALL attributes (read-only, hidden, system, archive) from ALL files in the current directory:

c:\dos\attrib , (ATTRIB comma)

As a consequence, if issued from the root directory, the following command:

c:\dos\attrib , /s

removes ALL attributes from ALL files in ALL directories on the current drive.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in MS-DOS versions 5.0, 5.0a, 6.0, 6.2, 6.21, and 6.22. We are researching this problem and will post new information in the Microsoft Knowledge Base as it becomes available.

MORE INFORMATION

Both of the following commands remove all file attributes in the current directory:

c:\dos\attrib ,

c:\dos\attrib *.* -r -s -h -a

Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:5/12/2003
Keywords:KB82270
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