# Setting the content type of a file extension

CVS repositories distinguish between files that contain ASCII data and those that do not. For ASCII files, additional helpful functionality is available to the user. This includes:

- Proper end of line conversion between the client and the server. This ensures that a Windows user and a UNIX user can work on the same file without introducing incompatibilities.
- Auto merging of conflicts. If a file contains both incoming and outgoing changes but none on the same line as another, then the file may be automatically merged when updating.

Certain file types invariably contain either ASCII data or binary data. For example, *.txt files usually contain ASCII data, and *.exe files usually contain binary data. Eclipse comes with a pre-defined set of file types, which you may add to or modify.

To set the content type associated with a file extension:

1. From the main menu bar, select Window > Preferences to open the Preferences dialog.
2. In the dialog, select the Team > File Content preference page. This page displays a list of file extensions and content type (ASCII or Binary) for file extensions whose content type is known.

3. To add a file extension, click the Add Extension button and enter the file extension in the text prompt that appears. Once OK is clicked, the extension will be added to the list with a content type of ASCII.

4. To change the content type for an existing file extension, select the file extension entry and click the Change button. This will toggle the type from ASCII to Binary or vice versa.
5. To remove a file extension, select the file extension entry and click the Remove button.

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