Who doesn’t hate those pesky error messages telling you that you can’t access a certain file or folder on windows, like:
- Access denied.
- The file is in use by another program or user.
- The source or destination file may be in use.
- Cannot delete file: It is being used by another person or program.
- Cannot delete Folder: It is being used by another person or program.
- The process cannot access the file because it is being used by another process.
- There has been a sharing violation.
- Close any programs that might be using the file and try again.
- Make sure the disk is not full or write-protected and that the file is not currently in use.
File & Folder Unlocker (freeware) could provide a solution by offering the following functions:
- Unlocking files or folders that are locked
- Searching for files that are open or locked
- Finding which process has a specific file or folder being opened
- Listing of all files & folders held open by processes or by remote (network) users
Folder Unlocker is not the only freeware application to do the unlocking job, but it’s the first I have heard of that also has a search function.
Apparently Windows 7 is not as pesky anymore as its predecessors; it supposedly tells you which process is responsible for the locking. I haven’t encountered this problem yet on Windows 7 and therefore can’t comment on what actually is happening in such an event. For example, knowing the process is one thing – having an easy way to shut it down is another, which means there still could be room for using unlockers in the next Windows incarnation.
