Mechling/Mechcom Support Group
Windows XP says access denied when I try to delete a file?
How to delete a file when:
Despite all its quirks, Windows does do some things for a good reason.
Some files need to be locked down when they are in use, otherwise you
risk damaging the file or harming the Operating System. Unfortunately
Windows XP seems to be plagued by files that cannot be deleted. These
are frequently simple files like videos (AVI), MP3s or other seemingly
harmless files. You try to delete the file, Windows waits a few seconds
before announcing that access is denied, the file is currently in use
and cannot be deleted. However, you know it's not in use and you just
want it deleted. If you have encountered this problem, here is a step-by-step process for trying to purge the files you can't delete. It starts with the basics for Windows XP and moves on to more involved tricks. The process will work for all recent Windows releases, but Windows XP has been causing the most the problems, so we will focus on it. Please note: we are assuming that the file is not crucial to the operation of Windows - deleting important system files can cause havoc. |