FLAG

Purpose

Use at a workstation to

View or modify file and directory attributes to determine which operations can be performed with the file or directory

Modify the owner of a file or directory

View or modify the search mode of executable files to determine how the program uses search drives when looking for a file

Syntax

FLAG path [[+ | -] attribute ...] [/option ...] [/? | /VER]

Parameter	Use to
(no parameter)	If you type FLAG with no parameters, the attribute status of all the files in the current directory appears.
path	Specify the path to the file or directory whose attributes or search modes you want to modify.
+ \| -	Add attributes to a file or directory with the + (plus). Remove attributes from a file or directory with the - (minus). If neither + nor - is used, the attributes will be assigned to the file/directory as specified. If you add and remove attributes in the same command, group all + (plus) attributes together and all - (minus) attributes together.
attribute	Specify one or more file or directory attributes. See Directory Attributes and File Attributes.
/option	Replace option with any available option. See General FLAG Options.
/?	View online help. All other parameters are ignored when /? is used.
/VER	View the version number of the utility and the list of files it uses to execute. All other parameters are ignored when /VER is used.

NOTE: For help with tasks, press <F1> in the utility.

Using FLAG

Use FLAG options to add or delete directory and file attributes, as defined in the preceding parameters table.

For attributes that can be applied to directories, see Directory Attributes.

For attributes that can be applied to files, see File Attributes.

When you add or delete multiple attributes, include a space between attribute abbreviations.

You can't remove the Execute Only attribute. You must delete the file and then reinstall it.

You can use wildcard characters.

General FLAG Options

Option	Use to
/NAME GROUP name	Change the owner of a file or directory.
/D	View details about a file or directory.
/DO	View or modify only directories in the specified path.
/FO	View or modify only files in the specified path.
/OWNER=name	View all files or directories owned by a user.
/M=mode	Modify search modes of executable files. See Search Modes for Executable Files.
/S	Search the subdirectory in the specified path and any subdirectories below that level.
/C	Scroll continuously through output.

Directory Attributes

Option	Use to
ALL	Specify the Di, H, Ic, P, Ri, and Sy attributes as a group. Primarily used to assign directories these specific attributes.
Di (Delete Inhibit)	Prevent the directory from being deleted.
Dc (Don't Compress)	Prevent the directory from being compressed (regardless of what the volume is set to).
Dm (Don't Migrate)	Prevent the directory from being migrated to a secondary backup system (regardless of what the volume is set to).
H (Hidden)	Prevent the directory from being seen with a DOS DIR command.
Ic (Immediate Compress)	Compress the directory as soon as the OS can.
N (Normal)	Specify no attributes.
P (Purge)	Purge the directory immediately when the directory is deleted.
Ri (Rename Inhibit)	Prevent the directory from being renamed.
Sy (System)	Prevent the directory from being seen with a DOS DIR command; also to prevent it from being copied or deleted.

File Attributes

Option	Use to
ALL	Specify the A, Ci, Di, H, Ic, P, Ri, Ro, Sh, Sy and T attributes as a group. Primarily used to assign files these specific attributes.
A (Archive needed)	Indicate that the file has been modified since the last backup.
Dc (Don't Compress)	Prevent a file from being compressed (regardless of what the volume or directory is set to).
Di (Delete Inhibit)	Prevent a file from being deleted or copied over.
Dm (Don't Migrate)	Prevent a file from being migrated to a secondary backup system (regardless of what the volume or directory is set to).
Ds (Don't Suballocate)	Prevent an individual file from being suballocated, even if suballocation is enabled for the system. Use on files which are enlarged or appended to frequently, such as certain database files.
H (Hidden)	Prevent a filename from being displayed with the DOS DIR command. The file can't be copied or deleted.
Ic (Immediate compress)	Compress a file as soon as the OS can.
N (Normal)	Specify the Rw attribute.
P (Purge)	Purge a file immediately if the file is deleted.
Ri (Rename Inhibit)	Prevent a file from being renamed.
Ro (Read Only)	Allow a file to only be read; it can't be written to or deleted (in other words, Ro includes Ri and Di).
Rw (Read Write)	Allow a file to be read and written to.
Sh (Shareable)	Allow a file to be used by several users simultaneously.
Sy (System)	Prevent a filename from being displayed with the DOS DIR command. It can't be copied or deleted.
T (Transactional)	Protect a file by using the Transaction Tracking System.
X (Execute Only)	Prevent a file from being copied or copied over. This attribute can be given only to .EXE or .COM files, and cannot be removed.

Search Modes for Executable Files

IMPORTANT: The syntax is /M=mode . Replace mode with a mode number from the following table .

Mode	Use to
0	Search for instructions in the NET.CFG file (the default mode).
1	Search the path specified in the file. If there is no path, the file searches the default directory, and then all search drives.
2	Search the path specified in the file. If there is no path, the file searches only the default directory.
3	Search the path specified in the file. If there is no path, the file searches the default directory; then if the open request is read only, the file searches the search drives.
4	Reserved; don't use.
5	First search the path specified and then all search drives. If there is no path, the file searches the default directory and then all search drives.
6	Reserved; don't use.
7	First search the path specified. If the open request is read only, the file searches the search drives. If there is no path, the file searches the default directory and then all search drives.

Status Flags

NOTE: Status flags show attribute information for a file or directory. You can't change these flags.

Status	Indicates
Cc (Can't Compress)	The file can't be compressed because of limited space savings.
Co (Compressed)	The file has been compressed.
M (Migrated)	The file has been migrated.

Examples

To add Rw and Ic and remove Di and A from all files in the current directory, type

FLAG *.* +R W Ic -Di A

To view attributes for file STUDENTS in directory SYS:\COURSE\WINTER, type

FLAG SYS:\COURSE\WINTER\STUDENTS

To give files in drive G: the Hidden attribute, type

FLAG G:*.* H /FO

To set the search mode to 7 for all executable files in the current directory, type

FLAG *.* /M=7

To set the search mode to 1 and assign all files in the current directory the Read Write attribute, type

FLAG *.* RW /M=1

Additional Information

Topic	See
Search modes	Search modes in Concepts .
Directory attributes	Attributes in Concepts .
File attributes	Attributes in Concepts .
System directory	Attributes in Concepts .
Hidden attribute	Attributes in Concepts .
File compression	Enabling File Compression on a Volume in Supervising the Network .