Hiding Period Files on Windows

Please first note that I can only verify this works on Windows 7 as I don’t use any older versions of Windows.

I have noticed a distinct need for someone to comment on an easy method of hiding files that start with a period on Windows and finally have found a solution that I myself find acceptable. You may be wondering why someone might need to do this, being a keen supporter of open-source software yet not wanting to relinquish my ability to play games and run commercial software properly I have throughout  the years stuck with using Windows for my computing. Most open-source software on Windows is usually a port from Linux aimed source code, this means they usually use periods at the beginning of the name to hide a file or directory, and rarely do they modify that file or directory’s attributes. For me and anyone using a Windows version greater than XP this means the home directory becomes littered with files and folders. You might say that you could just hide them manually but some programmes such as the GIMP regenerate the files after each use and in doing so reset the attributes and revealing the file. So there’s that a justification of the need for my script.

My solution is to use a hidden (using vbs) batch script timed to run every fifteen minutes to hide all files beginning with a period. This should for most modern computers have no noticeable effect on performance.

You can either follow my simple instructions below or use the installer I complied that will place the appropriate files in the appropriate places automatically.

Period File Hider Setup (exe)

Manual Instructions (for the untrusting or inquisitive)

First you need to create a vbs file we’ll name it invis.vbs note that this file can be used to run any batch script in the back ground. Its contents follows:

CreateObject("Wscript.Shell").Run """" & WScript.Arguments(0) & """", 0, False

Next we’ll create the batch file which I named hpf.bat. The contents follows:

cd %userprofile%
:START
attrib +h .* /S /D /L
attrib -h .htaccess /S
::prevents those files being hidden as usually they are worked on
timeout /T 900 /NOBREAK
goto START

Now we need to create a shortcut which is best placed in the startup folder.

the shortcut should be as follows

wscript "ENTER\PATH\TO\invis.vbs" "ENTER\PATH\TO\hpf.bat"

of course substituting “ENTER\PATH\TO” with the path to the files on my system its wscript “C:\batch\invis.vbs” “C:\batch\hpf.bat” for example.

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