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Original title: "file name warning" message
In the past week or so, I have been getting a warning box that shows up on my desk top (of Windows 8) whenever I boot up. It says "There is a file or folder called "c:\Program" which could cause certain applications to not function correctly. Renaming it to "c:\Program1" would solve this problem. Would you like to rename it now?" and there are 2 options: "rename" or "ignore". I "Binged" it, and there are some very old discussions about this (like 5+ yrs ago) and the consensus seems to be that it is a Windows issue. What do I need to do to get rid of it?
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.
Ok so here is how i SOLVED this problem.
In my case while investigating this on a clients device i found that a VOIP program was causing this issue and the error message popped up, and renaming the folder wont work because the program is running.
So i found the voip program (in the task bar in this case) and closed it. I then found the folder that needed renaming, "c:\program" and renamed it to "c:\program1"
Then restarted the computer and... No pop up.
Hope this helps.
That's caused by any network monitoring software as it creates a batch file called "Program" in the c:" directory upon installation, hence "c:\Program", that would initiate the network flow http port 80 on startup for monitoring. Windows throws a flag at startup thinking it is a duplicate name to Windows "c:\Program Files" or "c:\Program Files (x86)" directory because of the space, and that's a serious conflict with executing programs in those directories. The best thing to do is to let Windows rename it. You need to be logged in to Windows as an administrator through an Administrator account to do so. You can also simply delete the batch file if you uninstall the software program that created it.
Does this actually take care of the problem. I'm not sure what a VOIP is. Is this a legitimate issue and not some virus trying to get in? I ran both my virus scan & my malware.
Actually, it is a simple problem with an epic consequence. There are software programs that create a batch file to execute certain commands at startup to initiate and/or initialize certain components of their functions. They call that batch file "Program" and they store it on the "C:" directory for direct access. In my case, it was a network monitoring software program that did that. The problem is that the name of the batch file is in the DOS format, hence no spaces, and that trips Windows duplicate name flag because of the space in "C:\Program Files" and "C:\Program Files (x86)" folders names. And when any executable program in those folders is called to run, they won't because Windows would mistakenly search in the "C:\Program" batch file for them and then nothing happens. That's why Windows prompts for renaming the file to "Program 1" or so. And then, the batch file name needs to be reconfigured into the software program that created and calls it on startup. Basically, it is a third-party software mistake.
It would be nice for people like me to have a response/solution in much less technical jargon. Thanks
