attrib
By robinharwood
Archived: 2026-04-05 20:44:48 UTC
Displays, sets, or removes attributes assigned to files or directories. If used without parameters, attrib displays
attributes of all files in the current directory.
attrib [{+|-}r] [{+|-}a] [{+|-}s] [{+|-}h] [{+|-}o] [{+|-}i] [{+|-}x] [{+|-}p] [{+|-}u] [{+|-}b] [<drive>:][<pa
Parameter Description
{+\|-}r Sets (+) or clears (-) the Read-only file attribute.
{+\|-}a
Sets (+) or clears (-) the Archive file attribute. This attribute set marks files that
have changed since the last time they were backed up. The xcopy command uses
archive attributes.
{+\|-}s
Sets (+) or clears (-) the System file attribute. If a file uses this attribute set, you
must clear the attribute before you can change any other attributes for the file.
{+\|-}h
Sets (+) or clears (-) the Hidden file attribute. If a file uses this attribute set, you
must clear the attribute before you can change any other attributes for the file.
{+\|-}o Sets (+) or clears (-) the Offline file attribute.
{+\|-}i Sets (+) or clears (-) the Not Content Indexed file attribute.
{+\|-}x Sets (+) or clears (-) the Scrub file attribute.
{+\|-}p Sets (+) or clears (-) the Pinned file attribute.
{+\|-}u Sets (+) or clears (-) the Unpinned file attribute.
{+\|-}b Sets (+) or clears (-) the SMR Blob file attribute.
[<drive>:][<path>]
[<filename>]
Specifies the location and name of the directory, file, or group of files that you
want to view or change attributes.
You can use the ? and * wildcard characters in the filename parameter to display or
change the attributes for a group of files.
/s
Applies attrib and any command-line options to matching files in the current
directory and all of its subdirectories.
/d Applies attrib and any command-line options to directories.
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/administration/windows-commands/attrib
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Parameter Description
/l
Applies attrib and any command-line options to the Symbolic Link, rather than the
target of the Symbolic Link.
/? Displays help at the command prompt.
To display the attributes of a file named News86 that is located in the current directory, type:
attrib news86
To assign the Read-only attribute to the file named report.txt, type:
attrib +r report.txt
To remove the Read-only attribute from files in the public directory and its subdirectories on a disk in drive b:,
type:
attrib -r b:\public\*.* /s
To set the Archive attribute for all files on drive a:, and then clear the Archive attribute for files with the .bak
extension, type:
attrib +a a:*.* & attrib -a a:*.bak
Command-Line Syntax Key
xcopy command
Source: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/administration/windows-commands/attrib
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/administration/windows-commands/attrib
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