Can't delete a .jpg file. Help.

[izac01]

I can't delelete it. Its supposed to a be a picture but its not. If i try to open it it freezes my computer. Right clikcing on it only give me these options: Preview, Print, Open, Open With, Send To. Thats all it gives me. The delete button doesn't work either. Please help.

[David Lee]

Try deleting it in safe mode. Or renaming the extension to .jpg. It should already be, but it's worth a shot.

[David Lee]

You can also try a freeware program called Killbox. I've never used it but I've heard it's good for deleting stubborn and in use files.

[izac01]

Just tried in Safe Mode but nothing.. Also can't rename it. Tried to use Killbox but I can't select it as a file to delete. Tried another program called Sure Delete witch also did not work. Any other suggestions?

[David Lee]

I'm assuming you can't cut or paste it. The only thing I can think of is finding a Linux distro that can safely delete an NTFS file. That's assuming your hdd is formatted in NTFS. Maybe the problem is related to a virus or malware. You can also try installing your hdd as a slave in another pc (or in an external case) and try removing it that way. I'm out of suggestions, maybe someone else can offer some advice. Good luck izac.

[caperjack]

download hijackthis ,run it and go to configure/misc tools and select delete file on bootup ,direct it to the file and reboot computer

[izac01]

Ok david ill try the Linux distro thing It is NTFS.

Hijackthis didn't work. Like all the other programs i've tried, when find the file I want to delete, I select it and press ok. I get a pop up saying it the wrong file format or something.

Please anyother suggestions would be great! Thanks

[Xpenetrator]

If nothing can delete it and considering the messages of the programs you tried, I have a feeling that the file is probably plain and simple damaged. Try to repair it (run CHKDSK /F or /R) and then try again to delete it.

[Trace--]

Im sorry, but i have to put in my two cents here. First off, if you do have a second computer, and they are hooked up to a router, network the two and try to delete it through the other PC

worked for me once :D

i will help you with networking if you need it

[David Lee]

I would try the other suggestions before I'd try Linux. Linux would be a big step, just to remove one file, alhough their are Linux Live cd's that don't need Linux to be installed. If you do have another pc connected, try Trace's idea or like I said before, install your hdd as a slave and remove it that way.

[izac01]

Thanks for all the help guys. I finally got rid of it. Someone had the idea to simply move all other files (since I couldnt move the .jpg one) and then delete the whole folder wich would now only contain this annoying file. It work. :) So again thanks for all the help that was given, it was much appriciated.

[Dr Cyborg]

I'm having the same problem, so I Googled my way to this site trying to find some answers.

I've tried all of the suggestions posted to this thread, but none of them worked. :mad: Unfortunately, I neither own nor have access to a second computer or Linux.

I'm thinking about simply backing up everything I know I want to keep, reformatting the drive and starting from scratch, but I'd really rather not take that step if I don't have to.

Does anybody have any other suggestions before I do so?

Thanks in advance for your help.

[jbennet]

run scandisk?

i had a directoyry that wouldnt work like that and scandisk identified ti as bad and repaired it

[Dr Cyborg]

run scandisk? i had a directoyry that wouldnt work like that and scandisk identified ti as bad and repaired it

Tried that. Multiple times. For the record, running Win 2K SP4 with NFTS system.

[jbennet]

boot to dos prompt/recovery coinsole and delete there?

[Dr Cyborg]

boot to dos prompt/recovery coinsole and delete there?

Tried that too. In the Command Prompt screen, I get the error msg "system cannot find the file specified." In recovery console, the folder the file is in doesn't even come up.

[Dr Cyborg]

boot to dos prompt/recovery coinsole and delete there?

Have tried numerous times to delete from command prompt. I kept getting the "Cannot find the specified file" message. I also tried the recovery console but the directory wouldn't even come up.

Oops, sorry for the duplicate post. It's getting late so I'm going to call it a night here and pick it up tomorrow.

[Dr Cyborg]

Success! :cheesy:

It turns out to be a simple case of my being so used to Windows that my DOS has gotten rusty.

Anyway, for the benefit of anyone that might have this problem in the future, here's how I did it.

Back up everything in the folder you want to keep (I just created a new folder on my desktop and dragged everything into it). Then, open Command Prompt and navigate to the directory that contains the directory holding the offending files. It's then a simple matter of deleting the entire folder using RMDIR /S (a DOS command that I had not used in so long that I had forgotten it even existed). Finally, drag the new folder in to take the old folder's place and rename it. Presto!

Thanks a lot, guys! This site rocks! I'll know where to look if I need help in the future.