ASSIGN has two options, FORMAT LSB FIRST and FORMAT MSB FIRST, to specify byte ordering of binary numeric data transfers. This provides the ability to do binary transfers with any device or computer, regardless of the byte ordering that device uses. If an ASSIGN fails, the previous state of the I/O path is not preserved. Also, directory entries do not reflect changes made with ASSIGN until the file is closed. Since Windows buffers read and write to disk, portable media should not be removed or powered off while a file is ASSIGNed. If you ASSIGN two or more I/O paths simultaneously to the same file, it can produce unexpected results due to buffering.
