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this is annoying
the files or folders in question are not open in another program, windows is just refusing to let them be moved or deleted due a recent action ie: photographs moved elsewhere etc
Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.
This may also be helpful:
Open Windows explorer.
Click ‘Organize -> Folder and search options’ (or ‘View -> Folder options’).
Select the ‘View’-tab.
In the ‘Advanced settings’ window, disable ‘Launch folder windows in a separate process’.
You may need to force restart all explorer instances (via task manager) or reboot your computer if the setting is not applied immediately.
This trick doesn't work at all for me (and tried it in two different configurations)
This may also be helpful:
Open Windows explorer.
Click ‘Organize -> Folder and search options’ (or ‘View -> Folder options’).
Select the ‘View’-tab.
In the ‘Advanced settings’ window, disable ‘Launch folder windows in a separate process’.
You may need to force restart all explorer instances (via task manager) or reboot your computer if the setting is not applied immediately.
Thank you, this did the trick for me. What about this fix that makes it work. Is windows locking the process?
For those who wan't to replicate it or don't mind disabling the following features so that you don't need to recur to any workaround:
the problem just happens when you have the Preview pane opened and display a file like an image or a pdf on it, and also when under Folder Options / View / Advanced Settings this options are selected: "Always show icons, never thumbnails" and "Display file icon on thumbnails".
(Most of us have relied on the preview and thumbnails for several years, but if you don't mind this will help you.)
Having these settings as mentioned, trying to move or rename a folder, specially a parent folder of a file that has been displayed on the preview pane, will be impossible; normally after 3 or more renames or moves. The more you do the more likely it will happen.
I just spent an entire day with a Microsoft technician at the phone and controlling the pc remotely doing all sort of tests. At the end he could just reccomend to not to install windows 8.1 and make a clean installation. I have done it. Just windows 8. The problem is the same as with windows 8.1 and happens before installing anything else...
sigh, sigh, sigh... Hope at least my pain helps someone, even Microsoft...
Thanks Taylor42, this "worked" for me most of the times. It still pretty tiring that we need to do this everytime, and totally discouraging to see that it is happening in both windows 8 and windows 8.1 even right from a clean install... (Microsoft posted somewhere that they had seen that the activity we do most is renaming and reclassifying files and folders...) but still thanks Taylor for alleviating the pain a little bit.
Regarding Microsoft I supposed that allowing you/them to compile data from our PCs would help them/you detect the real issues to solve them... I know this happens to everyone who wants to work efficiently moving and organizing files (probably not to those who move files just occasionally and with the mouse); it is not dependant on the computer, so please. It is better late than never.
