What Is It?

Unlocker is a program that will unlock or release files and folders that have been locked by the system. It is simple to use as a standalone solution when a locked file or folder situation occurs or it can run in the background and monitor for problems.

Warning

Deleting some files may make the system crash or unbootable, or it may stop certain applications working. So proceed with care. Only use Unlocker on files you are sure it is safe to move or delete. The file/folder was originally locked for a good reason so be sure that it is now safe to unlock. As always make sure you have adequate backups of your system and data. .

Why Would You Want It?

Locked files or folders are generally ones that are currently opened by an application or a system process. They are automatically locked to prevent another process from changing them (when they may be altered by the process that already has the file open). Sometimes the lock is not released due to a malfunction or crash somewhere in the system or with an application. This leaves a file that cannot be moved or deleted.

A typical error message will show:

(Click on pictures to enlarge where necessary)

Other typical error messages may say:

• Cannot delete file: Access is denied
• There has been a sharing violation
• The source or destination file may be in use
• The file is in use by another program or user
• Make sure the disk is not full or write-protected and that the file is not currently in use

Why Do I Want It?

Unlocker provides a simple and unobtrusive way for me to unlock files quickly and easily when a problem occurs with moving or deleting a file. This may be using Windows Explorer or a file manager, Teracopy, Duplicate Cleaner or some other utility. I generally have Unlocker (Assistant) running in the background on my main PC’s and laptops.

What Does It Do - The Essentials?

Summary:

• Unlocks files whose locking handle is set
• Can be set to monitor for lock file/folder error messages

Pros: What’s Good?

Features & Benefits

• Freeware

• Easy to Use
• Automatic “locked file error” monitoring option
• Unlocks files/folders or terminates locking process
• Handles “No Locked File” situation usefully

Cons:What’s Not So Good?

• Short on Help
• Short on information about locked files and potential dangers

More About What it Does in Detail:

Go to Page 2 for details and screenshots

Go to Page 3 for ProReviewer Summary

Popularity: 24% [?]

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This entry was posted on Sunday, July 20th, 2008 at 10:03 am and is filed under Freeware. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.