                                  WIPEFILE

Description:   Overwrites selected files, the space allocated to the files,
               and the files' directory entries. You can also use this
               command to delete files.

Syntax:        Version 3.0:   WIPEFILE [(drive:)][(path)][(filespec)] [/D]
                              [/N] [/P]

               Version 3.1:   WIPEFILE [(drive:)] [(path)][(filespec)] [/G]
                              [/LOG] [/N] [/NOD] [/P] [/R(n)] [/V(n)]

               Version 4.0, 4.5l   WIPEFILE [(drive:)] [(path)] (filespec)
                                   [/G(n)] [/LOG] [/N] [/P] [/R(n)] [/S]
                                   [/V(n)]

                                 Parameters:


(drive:)       The single-letter specifier (A:, B:, C:, etc.) for the drive
               you want to use. Follow the letter with a colon. If you do not
               specify (drive:) and you specify either (path), (filespec), or
               both, the current drive is used.


(path)         The full name (C:\WP\LETTERS) of the directory containing the
               files you want to write over and/or delete. The current
               directory on the selected drive is the default.

(filespec)     The name of the file you want to write over  and/or delete. If
               you provide (drive:) or (path) in versions 3.0 and 3.1, the
               default (filespec) is *.*. You must supply (filespec) in
               versions 4.0 and 4.5.

/D             Deletes the file after it has been overwritten.

/G             Follows U.S. government erasing standards for writing over
               data. If you include this switch, WIPEFILE writes binary 1s
               (hexadecimal FF) on the first pass, binary 0s on the second
               pass, and either a default value of 246 (hexadecimal F6) or
               the value you specify with the /V switch on the third pass.
               After the third write pass, WIPEFILE read-verifies the last
               value written. In versions 4.0 and 4.5, you can specify the
               number of times you want WIPEFILE to repeat the first two
               write passes by adding a number to the /G switch; the default
               number for (n) is 3. In versions 3.1, 4.0, and 4.5, you can
               use the /R switch to specify the number of times you want
               WIPEFILE to repeat the entire write-over cycle.


/LOG           Displays diagnostic output as separate (not overlaid) output
               you can direct to either a printer or a disk file. You can
               send the output to a printer or a disk file by including the
               MS-DOS redirection character ()) followed by a printer name or
               filename at the end of the command.

/N             Deletes (erases) files but does not write over their allocated
               areas or their directory entries. If you supply thisswitch,
               WIPEFILE removes files the same way the MS-DOS command Delete
               or Erase does.

/NOD           Writes over the allocated file clusters but does not free the
               space allocated to the files or erase the directory entries.

/P             Pauses for confirmation before writing over or deleting each
               file.

/R(n)          Repeats the write passes (n) times. The default value  is 1.

/S             Writes over all files in all directories under the specified
               path.

/V(n)          Uses the binary equivalent of the decimal value (n) when
               writing over data. If you do not include the /G switch, the
               default value is 0.


                                   Notes:

The MS-DOS Delete and Erase commands do not destroy data or completely remove
directory entries. To ensure that data is completely erased and cannot be
reused, you must use WIPEDISK or WIPEFILE.


    ** CAUTION ** CAUTION  **CAUTION ** CAUTION ** CAUTION ** CAUTION **

When you use WIPEFILE to write over data, you cannot recover the data using
the FR (Format Recover), the NU (Norton Utilities), or the QU (Quick UnErase)
command. WIPEFILE always asks for confirmation before it begins execution. If
you discover you have started WIPEFILE by mistake, you can halt execution by
entering Ctrl-C (^C) or Ctrl-Break (^[).

WIPEFILE processes hidden and system files. If (filespec) might include any
such files, be sure to include the /P switch so that you can prevent WIPEFILE
from deleting and/or writing over them.







WIPEFILE bypasses read-only files unless you instruct it to remove the
read-only attribute before processing the file. WIPEFILE prompts you to
confirm that you want to remove the read-only attribute only if you instruct
the utility to pause before processing each file. You can do so in any
version by including the /P switch, by responding ``Y'' to the initial
message that asks ``Do you wish confirmation for each file (Y/N)?'' in
versions 4.0 and 4.5, or by responding ``N'' to the initial message that asks
``Proceed without pausing (Y/N)?'' in versions 3.0 and 3.1.

Example:       To delete all files with a LOG extension in the TAX directory
               and to write over the data and directory entries, pausing for
               confirmation before processing each file.

               Enter:    WIPEFILE \tax\.log /P

See <NUFA>, <NUFR>, <NUNU>, <NUQU>, <NUUD>, <NUWIPEDI>.

