Label (command)


In computing, label is a command included with some operating systems. It is used to create, change, or delete a volume label on a logical drive, such as a hard disk partition or a floppy disk. Used without parameters, label changes the current volume label or deletes the existing label.

History

The command was originally designed to label floppy disks as a reminder of which one is in the machine. However, it can also be applied to other types of drive such as mapped drives.
It is available in MS-DOS versions 3.1 and later and IBM PC DOS releases 3 and later.
It is an external command. MS-DOS 4.0x and earlier used label.com as the external file. MS-DOS 5.0 and Windows use label.exe as the external file. DR DOS 6.0 includes an implementation of the command. The FreeDOS version was developed by Joe Cosentino and is licensed under the GPL.
In modern versions of Microsoft Windows, changing the disk label requires elevated permissions. The Windows dir command displays the volume label and serial number as part of the directory listing.
In Unix and other Unix-like operating systems, the name of the equivalent command differs from file system to file system. For instance, the command e2label can be used for ext2 partitions.

Syntax

LABEL
LABEL
Arguments:
Flags:
Note: If volume name is specified, the /MP flag is unnecessary.

Example for the command.


C:\Users\root>label D: Backup

Supported file systems

FAT volume labels

volumes have the following limitations: