File in use when it's not?

Ste_Moore01

Active Member
Joined
Jul 13, 2005
Messages
467
Hi guys,

I'm trying to delete a file that is no longer needed but it says it is in use by another user.

I've tried opening the file and it tells me who the user is, but I've asked this person and they are not in the file.

Is there any way of deleting the file even though it thinks someone is usign it.
 

Excel Facts

Waterfall charts in Excel?
Office 365 customers have access to Waterfall charts since late 2016. They were added to Excel 2019.
I have gotten that error message before when files have been closed "unnaturally" (cutting off power while in the file, re-booting computer while in file, etc). Essentially the "lock" on the file is not released.

In order to fix it, sometime re-booting the offending computer worked, but more often than not I have had to re-boot the server the file is found on. Then the lock was released and I was able to delete the file.
 
Upvote 0
Thanks for your reply.

The computer that the person who it says is using the file has been shut down and so has my computer.

Shutting down the server it is on is going to cause some trouble though.

Thanks anyway!
 
Upvote 0
This has worked for me in the past. run winfile.exe then highlight the offending file. click on file/properties and you will see an "Open BY" tab. Click on this and clear the entry.
Hope this helps
 
Upvote 0

Forum statistics

Threads
1,223,309
Messages
6,171,336
Members
452,396
Latest member
ajl_ahmed

We've detected that you are using an adblocker.

We have a great community of people providing Excel help here, but the hosting costs are enormous. You can help keep this site running by allowing ads on MrExcel.com.
Allow Ads at MrExcel

Which adblocker are you using?

Disable AdBlock

Follow these easy steps to disable AdBlock

1)Click on the icon in the browser’s toolbar.
2)Click on the icon in the browser’s toolbar.
2)Click on the "Pause on this site" option.
Go back

Disable AdBlock Plus

Follow these easy steps to disable AdBlock Plus

1)Click on the icon in the browser’s toolbar.
2)Click on the toggle to disable it for "mrexcel.com".
Go back

Disable uBlock Origin

Follow these easy steps to disable uBlock Origin

1)Click on the icon in the browser’s toolbar.
2)Click on the "Power" button.
3)Click on the "Refresh" button.
Go back

Disable uBlock

Follow these easy steps to disable uBlock

1)Click on the icon in the browser’s toolbar.
2)Click on the "Power" button.
3)Click on the "Refresh" button.
Go back
Back
Top