Getting Information About Files
The
GetFileInformationByHandle function retrieves information about a file and stores it in a structure of
type BY_HANDLE_FILE_INFORMATION. This information includes creation time, file
size, and attributes.
Eight characteristics called attributes may be associated with a file. The
attributes can be one or more of the following values.
Value
| Meaning
|
FILE_ATTRIBUTE_ARCHIVE
| The file or directory is an archive file. Applications use this value to mark
files for backup or removal.
|
FILE_ATTRIBUTE_COMPRESSED
| The file or directory is compressed. For a file, this means that all of the
data in the file is compressed. For a directory, this means that compression is
the default for newly created files and subdirectories.
|
FILE_ATTRIBUTE_DIRECTORY
| This is a directory.
|
FILE_ATTRIBUTE_HIDDEN
| The file or directory is hidden. It is not included in an ordinary directory
listing.
|
FILE_ATTRIBUTE_NORMAL
| The file or directory has no other attributes set. This value is valid only if
used alone.
|
FILE_ATTRIBUTE_OFFLINE
| The data of the file is not immediately available. Indicates that the file
data has been physically moved to offline storage.
|
FILE_ATTRIBUTE_READONLY
| The file or directory is read-only. Applications can read the file but cannot
write to it or delete it. In the case of a directory, applications cannot
delete it.
|
FILE_ATTRIBUTE_SYSTEM
| The file or directory is part of the operating system or is used exclusively
by the operating system.
|
FILE_ATTRIBUTE_TEMPORARY
| The file is being used for temporary storage. File systems attempt to keep all
of the data in memory for quicker access rather than flushing the data back to
mass storage. A temporary file should be deleted by the application as soon as
it is no longer needed..
|
An application can retrieve and set file attributes by using the
GetFileAttributes,
GetFileAttributesEx, and
SetFileAttributes functions. These attributes can also be used in the
CreateFile function. Applications cannot, however, use
CreateFile or
SetFileAttributes to set the directory attribute, because files cannot be converted into
directories. For more information, see
Directory Operations. It is also not possible to use
SetFileAttributes to set the compressed attribute. For information, see
File Compression.
The
GetFileType function returns the type of a file: disk, character (such as a console),
pipe, or unknown. The
GetBinaryType function determines whether a file is executable, and if so, what type of
executable file it is. The
GetFileSize function returns the size of a file.
Applications can retrieve and set the date and time a file was created, last
modified, or last accessed by using the
GetFileTime and
SetFileTime functions. For more information about file times, see
Time.
- Software for developers
-
Delphi Components
.Net Components
Software for Android Developers
- More information resources
-
MegaDetailed.Net
Unix Manual Pages
Delphi Examples
- Databases for Amazon shops developers
-
Amazon Categories Database
Browse Nodes Database