Re: What does the Archive setting in Properties mean?

JJ,

>>> It's just that, modern OSes don't use it anymore.
>>
>> I can't even remember it /ever/ been used. DOS era or later.
...
> In DOS, it's used by BACKUP, RESTORE,

That might explain it.

The only times I have heard the latter mentioned was when someone could not 
restore their backups, because they had a newer version of DOS installed 
(IOW, zero backwards compatibility).

> and XCOPY.

You got me there, it looks like I have forgotten it supported the Archive 
bit. :-|

... Perhaps because its a bit useless (understatement) on computers where 
every tom-dick-and-harry could muck around with it (IOW, absolutily 
un-dependable).


By the way:

"Windows NT couldn't care less about that attribute." Under XP that 
attribute is, using the GUI, accesible thru a files properties -> advanced 
dialog.

"It's FAT's file attribute." NTFS (the one I could check) also has it.

"But that attribute is not DOS' file attribute." Nobody here claimed that it 
was ("DOS *era*" is a time designation).

... though to be honest, if asked I would also have said its a filesystem 
thing.  IOW, I learned something too. :-)


Also:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archive_bit

It specifically mentions OS-es, not file systems.

https://networkencyclopedia.com/archive-attribute/

Same here,  it talks about the Windows OS having the Archive Attribute.  No 
mentioning of filesystems its limited to.

(I tried to find a list of filesystems to see which ones supported the 
Archive attribute, but could not readily find any such thing.  Which I find 
telling in itself)

Regards,
Rudy Wieser