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Question

Read Only on Windows 10

Aug 13, 2018 9:41AM PDT

In earlier Windows versions I could click on the read only box and make files and folders read only. I can still set the read only flag for a file. After that I cannot change the file, but I can delete it. So it is not really read only. It also does not work with making changes to the folder such as creating new files and such.

When I have a folder with over 100 files that I want to protect just from casual change or deletion, I have not found a way to do it for the folder. Doing it for individual files is too tedious even if if really worked (see above). I know there is a way if one has the explicit and esoteric knowledge of the "security" settings. That is where I cannot do it regardless of the dozens of Internet sites with procedures detailing how to do it. There is always something different between the instructions and what I have. I think that Microsoft really "stepped in it" with all this. It is supposed to work, but who can make it work? I would be willing to rely on the "read only" box for a file or a folder using administrating privileges. But no, they had to make it super safe to the extent that nobody but a Microsoft software debugger can follow it. Is there a way to make a folder and its contents read only? I share my files with family members on several computers using Dropbox. They should see some of these folders such as pictures, but I don't want accidental deletion or changes to these originals.

Discussion is locked

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Answer
As you have discovered
Aug 13, 2018 10:18AM PDT

The Read Only for a folder doesn't work. You can make items in the folder read only but not the folder.

This has been discussed at length many times and I'll pause here.

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Here's the full skinny.
Aug 13, 2018 10:30AM PDT
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Did you figure out a workaround?
Aug 13, 2018 10:35AM PDT

For NTFS you could revoke rights or add rights to the object. Fairly advanced so I'll leave this here.

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Trying to make files and folders read only
Aug 14, 2018 7:45AM PDT

I realize that this is getting tedious, but after having tried many things I am about to give up. I am a retired software engineer. I have used and developed several operating systems. I have worked on diverse computer systems and privately developed platforms. I have designed and implemented software and firmware in many languages. I am not bragging, just saying that I know what I am talking about.

I have a hierarchy of folders containing pictures, music, video, documents, spreadsheets and such files on my computers. All this data is in a DropBox folder so that I can share it with users on my computer and other computers on my private LAN. I need a way to make files and folders read only, for these are all originals, and I don't want accidental changes or deletions. Yes, I have all that backed up, but if one person accidentally changes or deletes something, and I am not aware of it, even with daily backups it is gone. So, in the good old days I made a folder and its contents read only just to avoid inadvertent changes. That meant one could not add, delete, or change any of it unless the read only attribute of the folder and subfolders were reset first.

Microsoft decided to make the folder and file read only attributes such that it is now a joke. They have gone with user privileges instead, which has made all that complex and inconsistent among versions of Windows. Since I have administrator privileges on any of my computers, I cannot protect these folders and files from myself. Other users maybe if I decide to get very specific, but that would just complicate things more than I need. My only possibility is to not share my user ID on DropBox and thus give people only a link. That in turn gets into the impracticality again. So what is really needed is file attributes rather than user privileges within Windows.

I know at this time there is not a way, I just had to get this off my chest.

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Sorry but I was UNCLEAR.
Aug 14, 2018 8:13AM PDT

This will be tough for some to follow and I accept that.

The Read Only as you found out applies to the files and not the folders. OK, done. but what can be done?

Enter NTFS PERMISSIONS. You can alter the folder's NTFS permissions and revoke all but the owner you wish for deletion and such. Takes practice.

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Re: read-only
Aug 14, 2018 9:10AM PDT

The OP said that a read-only flag on files doesn't protect against deletion. That was a surprise to me, so I checked.
And indeed, even with that flag set, the file can be totally deleted with shift-delete, and moved to the recycle bin and deleted from there with shift-delete. If it's a Word-document (all I checked) I can't save an updated version, so Word honors it, but File Explorer doesn't.

Quite a surprise indeed. https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/windows/en-US/b16d5551-37ec-4c9b-9e20-373fcaecb2ea/how-to-unset-folderfile-readonly-attribute?forum=itprovistasecurity makes clear that it already was like this in Windows Vista, like it or not (I agree with the poster that we don't like it).
So I'm afraid the first sentence of the top post is untrue, as far as it mentions files on previous versions.

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It's a mind warping area.
Aug 14, 2018 11:18AM PDT

The folder is not read only so deletion is possible by any user UNTIL we dive into NTFS permissions.

The current file system is a combination of LEGACY DOS and much more capable NTFS.

If I wanted to make a file hard to delete by others I would be into the NTFS ownerships and permissions. The right click, properties on the folder is only the first click of some dozen steps to pull this off.