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.
| Attribute | Meaning |
|---|---|
| FILE_ATTRIBUTE_ARCHIVE | The file or directory is an archive file. Applications use this attribute 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 | The handle identifies a directory. |
| FILE_ATTRIBUTE_ENCRYPTED | The file or directory is encrypted. For a file, this means that all of the data in the file is encrypted. For a directory, this means that encryption is the default for newly created files and subdirectories. |
| 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 attribute 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_REPARSE_POINT | The file has an associated reparse point. |
| FILE_ATTRIBUTE_SPARSE_FILE | The file is a sparse file. |
| 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 the file attributes by using the GetFileAttributes or GetFileAttributesEx function. The CreateFile and SetFileAttributes functions can set many of the attributes . However, applications cannot set all attributes. For more information on how to set these attributes, see SetFileAttributes.