Permissions for Files and Folders

Permissions for Files and Folders

Folder permissions include Full Control, Modify, Read & Execute, List Folder Contents, Read, and Write. Each of these permissions consists of a logical group of special permissions that are listed and defined in the following sections.

Note: This article assumes that you are using Windows XP on a domain. By default, simplified sharing is enabled in Windows XP if you are not connected to a domain, which means that the Security tab and advanced options for permissions are not available.

If you are not joined to a domain and want to view the Security tab, view the Set,

View, Change, or Remove Special Permissions for Files and Folders section in this article.



File and Folder Special Permissions

The following table describes file and folder special permissions.

Special Permissions Full Control Modify Read & Execute List Folder Contents Read Write

Traverse Folder/Execute File yes yes yes yes no no
List Folder/Read Data yes yes yes yes yes no
Read Attributes yes yes yes yes yes no
Read Extended Attributes yes yes yes yes yes no
Create Files/Write Data yes yes no no no yes
Create Folders/Append Data yes yes no no no yes
Write Attributes yes yes no no no yes
Write Extended Attributes yes yes no no no yes
Delete Subfolders and Files yes no no no no no
Delete yes yes no no no no
Read Permissions yes yes yes yes yes yes
Change Permissions yes no no no no no
Take Ownership yes no no no no no
Synchronize yes yes yes yes yes yes

IMPORTANT: Groups or users who are granted Full Control on a folder can delete any files in that folder, regardless of the permissions that protect the file.

Note: Although List Folder Contents and Read & Execute appear to have the same special permissions, these permissions are inherited differently. List Folder Contents is inherited by folders but not files, and it only appears when you view folder permissions. Read & Execute is inherited by both files and folders and is always present when you view file or folder permissions.

Note: In Windows XP Professional, the Everyone group does not include the Anonymous Logon group.