Problem deleting file

[jibril5]

hi all
i am new here
i have a problem with deleting a file that is not in use
but i get error saying the file is in use or write protected
i restarted my comp n tried several times but to no avail
time to time i get a message from McAfee regarding Buffer Overflow
i dunno how to proceed here....please help
i am using Win XP professional on a Intel Dual Core Sys with 1GB RAM

 

[gurusan]

Which file is it?

Anyway boot up into safe mode by pressing F8 before windows starts...then try deleting it.

 

[jibril5]

tried that no avail
its an avi file
i have a screenshot of the message i get from McAfee when i try to delete it but no idea how to post it here

 

[veedubfreak]

When in doubt use dos. Boot up in safe mode, start > run > cmd
navigate to the folder the file is in and del (insert file name here)

 

[bobojuice]

he already posted that it didnt work with safe mode.

You can try two other things. Boot up safe mode with command prompt and do it from the command line. OR...

Download a distro of linux that uses a live cd, like Ubuntu. Run it from the cd and delete the file from there.

 

[Schecters]

Download a program called wholockme. It's a very small program that will tell you which process is not letting you delete something. Then just kill the process that's holding you back.

 

[KSoD]

Okay well lets see here. It is a .avi which means that it could be in use you jsut dont know it. Open your task manager and make sure there isnt any instances of WMP or any other app that could run it. Maybe that will solve your problem.

2nd get rid of McAffee. It is a resource hog and just flat out nasty. It has found more Windows files to be viruses than actual viruses. When you have a .doc file that is a virus from McAffee when it isnt there is something wrong with that app.

Also can jsut use this:

http://downloads.pcworld.com/pub/new/utilities/hard_disk/ForceDel.zip

it is called Force Delete. That should do it.