Kept or Changed? — TechKnowSurge

About this interactive

Moving a file and copying it end in the same place, a file in the new folder, but they are different operations, and you can see the difference in the file's properties. A move on the same drive does not really touch the file. Its data stays where it is on the disk; Windows only changes which folder lists it. So the creation date stays the same, and permissions you added to the file go with it. Dragging a file to another folder on the same drive is a move, and so is cutting it and pasting it there. A copy makes a new file. It gets a new creation date, the moment it was made. It does not take the permissions you added to the original; it takes on the permissions of the folder it lands in. The read-only attribute does come along, whether you copy or move. Dragging onto a different drive copies by default: the file has to be written out fresh on the other drive, so it behaves like any copy (new creation date, the destination's permissions), and the original stays where it was. Ctrl-drag, right-drag and choose Copy here, and Ctrl+C then Ctrl+V are all copies. So ask two questions: was this a move or a copy, and if it was a drag, did it stay on the same drive?

What you'll learn

Predict whether a file's creation date, permissions and read-only attribute are kept or changed when it is moved or copied, on the same drive or to another drive
Explain the rule behind it: a move on the same drive only changes where the file is listed, while a copy, including a drag onto another drive, makes a new file

Aligned to

CompTIA Tech+

3.2 Compare and contrast components of an operating system.

Key terms

File Metadata: Descriptive data associated with a file, such as creation date, modified date, and last accessed date, which may change depending on whether a file is moved or copied.
NTFS Permissions: Access control settings applied to files and folders on Windows NTFS-formatted drives that define which users or groups can read, write, execute, or modify them. NTFS permissions are preserved when files are moved within the same volume but are reset when copied.
Creation Date: A metadata attribute that records the date and time a file was originally created.
Read-Only: A file attribute that prevents a file from being modified or overwritten, allowing only read access.
Copy: An operation that duplicates selected content to the clipboard while leaving the original content in its source location unchanged.
Cut: An operation that moves selected content to the clipboard by removing it from its original location, ready to be pasted elsewhere.

Topics

File Metadata Ntfs Permissions Creation Date Copy Interactive Streak Sort

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