Ways to forcefully delete a file in Windows 10.

Ways to forcefully delete a file in Windows 10

Method 1: Close the linked process

It happens that when you delete a file you get a warning that it cannot be deleted because it is being used by a specific program that is running on the system at that moment.

Ways to forcefully delete a file in Windows 10

If the associated software appears in the bottom panel, simply close it as usual. When its interface is not displayed, right-click on the task and select “Close window”.

If the program is not displayed anywhere, you can turn it off via “Task Manager”:

Ways to forcefully delete a file in Windows 10
  • Open “Task Manager”. The easiest way is to right-click on the bottom taskbar and launch the application via the context menu.
  • On the tab. “Processes” search for the problematic program. If necessary, you can sort the names by name by clicking the column name at the top. Highlight an application and then select the “Cancel task” button. You can switch to the tab for a detailed search of the process “Details”. and search there.

    • Once the program is closed, you should be able to delete the file.

    Also Read: Forced Uninstall Methods for Windows 10 Programs

    Ways to forcefully delete a file in Windows 10

    Method 2: “Command line”

    You can forcibly delete a file in Windows 10 through the built-in console, using a special command and specifying the path to it. The method can work even if the file is open but not closed by the system.

  • Through “The conductor” navigate to the location of the file. If it is on the desktop or in a “Downloads” folder, you must specify the path on drive C through a personal folder (for example C:\Users\ИМЯ_ПОЛЬЗОВАТЕЛЯ\Downloads). Copy the address of the top line by right-clicking on it and selecting “Copy”.
  • Run “Command Line”. with advanced rights by clicking “Start”. and enter the name of the application in it. Among the results, select open as administrator.
  • In the console, type del /f /s /q /then put a space, open the quotes and paste the file path, put a backslash (\) and type the exact name and extension of the file you want to delete, then close the quotes. For example, if the file is on the desktop, in our example the command would be like this del /f /s /q /a “C:\Users\Professional\Desktop\документ.docx”where “Professional” – the name of our account. Press the “Enter” key to confirm the deletion.

    • This will display a message that the file has been deleted, with this approach it is deleted without temporarily placing it in “Trash”.

    Ways to forcefully delete a file in Windows 10

    Method 3: Change the owner of the file

    In case Windows reports that the user does not have rights to perform the procedure during uninstallation, the owner is the problem here. This usually happens when you have more than one account on a computer, or you plan to delete a specific file. To delete a file that belongs to another account, you’ll need to get ownership of it. Note that this is only available to a Windows 10 administrator.

  • Right-click on the file name to bring up the context menu. Navigate to “Properties”.
  • In the new window, click on the “Security” tab, and then hit the “More” button.
  • On the line. “Owner”. Click the “Change” link.
  • Enter your account name in the special field and click the confirmation button.

    • Close all windows in the properties section and try deleting the file again.

    Method 4: Boot into “Safe Mode”

    When third-party software interferes with file deletion or fails due to viruses that have infiltrated the system, Windows 10 boot in “Safe Mode”:

    Ways to forcefully delete a file in Windows 10
  • Open the “System Configuration” remedy with the help of a “Run” dialog box. Simultaneously press the “Win ​​+ R” keys and then type the msconfig command and click “OK”.
  • Click on the “Load” tab. In the “Load Parameters” block. Check the “Safe Mode” item and select the “Minimum” option. The system will only start with a critical number of drivers, services and programs. Click “Apply”.

    • After the procedure, it will remain to restart the computer to start the system in “Safe Mode”. Locate the problematic file and try to delete it again.

    Also Read: How to Get Out of “Safe Mode” in Windows 10

    Method 5: Rename the file

    Many people find the old and tried method of renaming a file useful. The problem may have occurred because there was a system crash or part of the problematic file was written to a bad sector on the hard drive, so this method may fix the situation.

    Ways to forcefully delete a file in Windows 10

    Rename the file using the context menu function. You can also try to change its extension: after the point that separates the format name, write another extension, for example, change .docx .zip.

    Method 6: File Functions

    Some archivers allow you to fine-tune the archiving procedure for the files, including deleting the original once the procedure is complete. In other words, you’ll have to archive the problematic data, select the appropriate function in the program, and then get rid of the archive itself. A free program like 7-Zip can help with this.

    Download 7-Zip

  • Install the archiver. Its functions are automatically integrated into the context menu. Right-click on the file, point to “7-Zip” and in the additional list select “Add to archive…”.
  • In the file settings window, look for the “Options” block. and check the item “Delete files after compression”. Press the “OK” button.

    • Wait for the file to be created. The original file should be deleted automatically, leaving you to manually delete the zipped folder itself.

    Ways to forcefully delete a file in Windows 10

    Method 7: Third Party Software

    If none of the above methods have helped you, try using specialized software designed to remove files that cannot be removed by conventional methods. In addition to the basic function, many programs have additional data handling functions: copy, rename, show locked and hidden files. In another article on our site, we describe the most effective and proven applications and provide links to download them.

    Read more: Programs to delete files that do not delete

    windows, windows 10