>>>What does FILETOSTR() do when it comes to these rules?
>>>
>>>I could just take the chance and see if there's a problem which I don't see happening but the system using this file is very critical so I can't afford to take the chance.
>>>
>>>Thanks.
>>
>>Usually there are problems with filetostr() if the file is already somewhere opened for write access. If you want to avoid conflicts, then you may check first whether the file is available and not used.
>
>I came upon FileToStr() for situations like this because I needed a way to copy a file to a different directory, and Copy File was acting up on Excel sheets which were currently open, and FileToStr() and then StrToFile() was the solution.
>
>That's all I know :).

Yes, it depends on the associated program that opens the file. AFAIK, Excel creates the temporary file and actually does not work with the original file until you want to save it. But many other programs like FTP or DOS commands with redirected output to file, they do not allow to work with this file while in process of writing.