What is special permissions in Windows folder?

Symptoms

Article Summary: This article discusses NTFS permissions and share permissions in Windows and how they work together to regulate access to files and folders.

Windows provides two sets of permissions to restrict access to files and folders: NTFS permissions and share permissions.

• NTFS permissions are applied to every file and folder stored on a volume formatted with the NTFS file system. By default, permissions are inherited from a root folder to the files and subfolders beneath it, though this inheritance can be disabled. NTFS permissions take effect regardless of whether a file or folder is accessed locally or remotely. NTFS permissions, at the basic level, offer access levels of Read, Read and Execute, Write, Modify, List Folder Contents, and Full Control, as shown below:
  
  

  There is also an advanced set of NTFS permissions, which divides the basic access levels into more granular settings. These advanced permissions vary depending on the type of object to which they are applied. The advanced permissions on a folder are shown below:
  

• Share permissions are only applied to shared folders. They take effect when a shared folder is accessed across a network from a remote machine. The share permissions on a particular shared folder apply to that folder and its contents. Share permissions are less granular than NTFS permissions, offering access levels of Read, Change, and Full Control:
  

The most important thing to remember about NTFS permissions and share permissions is the manner in which they combine to regulate access.
The rules for determining a user's level of access to a particular file are as follows:

• If the file is accessed locally, only the NTFS permissions are used to determine the user's level of access.
• If the file is accessed through a share, NTFS and share permissions are both used, and the most restrictive permission applies. For example, if the share permissions on the shared folder grant the user Read access and the NTFS permissions grant the user Modify access, the user's effective permission level is Read when accessing the share remotely and Modify when accessing the folder locally.
• A user's individual permissions combine additively with the permissions of the groups that the user is a member of. If a user has Read access to a file, but the user is a member of a group that has Modify access to the same file, the user's effective permission level is Modify.
• Permissions assigned directly to a particular file or folder (explicit permissions) take precedence over permissions inherited from a parent folder (inherited permissions).
• Explicit Deny permissions take precedence over explicit Allow permissions, but because of the previous rule, explicit Allow permissions take precedence over inherited Deny permissions.

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Definition of NTFS Special Permissions (Windows NT) in Network Encyclopedia.

NTFS Special Permissions are individual permissions granted or denied when NTFS file system standard permissions are not sufficiently granular for specific security purposes.

The special permissions available are the same whether you are securing files or folders, with the exception that when you secure a directory you have the additional option of leaving access unspecified instead of assigning a specific set of special permissions.

NTFS Special Permissions

In both cases, six special permissions are available; these are listed in the following table.

NTFS Special Permissions in Windows NT

Special Permission	Abbreviation	User Access When Applied to Files	User Access When Applied to Folders
read	R	View file owner and permissionsRead the file	View contents of the folderView folder attributesView folder owner and permissions
write	W	View file owner and permissionsModify file attributesEdit the file	Add files to the folderAdd subfoldersModify folder attributesView folder owner and permissions
execute	X	View file owner and permissionsModify file attributesRun the executable file	View folder attributesBrowse folder hierarchyView folder owner and permissions
delete	D	Delete the file	Delete the folder
change permission	P	Change file permissions	Change folder permissions
take ownership	O	Take ownership of the file	Take ownership of the folder

How It Works

By selecting different combinations of special permissions, you can create custom sets of permissions for special purposes. In most cases, however, NTFS standard permissions are sufficient for securing files and folders. To use special permissions you must be the object’s owner, have full control of the object, or be a member of the Administrators system group. For information on which sets of special permissions comprise the various standard permissions, see the entry on NTFS permissions (Windows NT).

NOTE

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For a description of the differences between NTFS special permissions for Microsoft Windows NT and for Microsoft Windows 2000, see the entry on NTFS special permissions (Windows 2000).

See also

• NTFS permissions (Windows 2000)
• NTFS permissions (Windows NT)
• NTFS special permissions (Windows 2000)

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