What Is Unlocker File

Posted on - 20.08.2019

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Unlocker File Delete
File Unlocker Filehippo

IObit Unlocker unlocks files and folders that Windows won't let you delete because they're 'locked' or 'open in another program.' Free, fast, and lightweight, IObit Unlocker unlocks files and folders from Windows context menus, by drag and drop, or by browsing and adding. With a small, dialog-style interface and few options, it's extremely easy to use but nevertheless boasts a user's manual and optional tool tips.

How to unlock files using Process Explorer. Click on File, and select the Show Details for All Processes option. Click on Find, and select the Find Handle or DLL option. Type the name of the locked file in the field, and click the Search button. Select the file from the search result. Behind the search window.

Pros

Easy access: IObit Unlocker automatically integrates with shell menus in Windows. Right-clicking any file or folder and selecting IObit Unlocker quickly does the job. The compact drag-and-drop interface offers more options for selecting items to unlock and also accesses the Languages menu, User Manual, and other resources.

Five unlock options: IObit Unlocker offers five actions: Unlock, Unlock & Delete, Unlock & Rename, Unlock & Move, and Unlock & Copy.

Forced Mode: If IObit Unlocker's standard modes can't unlock a file or folder, Forced Mode often does the job. Beware: Forced Mode terminates all related processes.

Languages: Different interface languages are among IObit Unlocker's program options.

Cons

Few options: While having comparatively few options isn't always a bad thing in software, IObit Unlocker could use more than it has. For example, you might prefer to skip context menu integration.

Bottom Line

Being unable to delete a file or folder (or uninstall an app) can be a frustrating experience, especially when closing the item doesn't work. With IObit Unlocker on the context menu, you won't have time to be annoyed.

IObit Unlocker Preview

Windows won’t allow you to modify files that open programs have locked. if you try to delete a file and see a message that it’s open in another program, you’ll have to unlock the file (or close the program).

In some cases, it may not be clear which program has locked a file. Sometimes, a program or background process may have finished with a file, but not unlocked it properly when it was done. In that case, you must unlock the stubborn file or folder in order to modify the file.

Note: Unlocking certain files and deleting them can cause problems with open programs. Don’t unlock and delete files that should remain locked, including Windows system files.

Unlock a File with Process Explorer

You can unlock a file by using the excellent Process Explorer task manager. We’ve covered Process Explorer in detail before, so here we’ll just dive right into how to unlock a file. You won’t need to install it first—it’s a portable app—but you will need to run it with administrative privileges. You actually can do this from within Process Explorer by clicking the “File” menu and selecting “Show Details for All Processes.”

Next, click the “Find” menu and select “Find Handle or DLL.” (Or press Ctrl+F.)

Search for the name of the locked file or folder.

Unlocker File Delete

Select the locked file or folder and you’ll see the handle in the details box at the bottom of the Process Explorer window.

Right-click the handle and select “Close Handle.” If multiple processes are listed in the search window, you’ll have to repeat this step to close the handle for each process.

You can now delete or modify the file normally.

IObit Unlocker

IObit Unlocker is a useful utility for unlocking files, and it’s free. It even puts a command for unlocking files right on the context menu. After you install the program, you can right-click a stubborn file or folder and select “IObit Unlocker” to open the app with that file selected.

You’ll see a list of processes that have locked the file or folder. You can quickly unlock the file by clicking the “Unlock” button. This method unlocks the file while leaving the process running. Note that this may cause problems if a process expects exclusive access to a file.

You can also click the “Forced Mode” checkbox and then click “Unlock” to forcibly close whatever program is locking access to the file. You’ll lose any unsaved data in any program killed this way.

Once the file is unlocked, you can delete, move, or rename it normally. In fact, the IOBit Unlocker application has easy “Unlock & Delete”, “Unlock & Rename”, and “Unlock & Move” options. Just click the arrow to the right of the “Unlock” button.

Restart Your Computer

Generally, a file won’t be locked after you restart your computer—unless the program that locked it is a startup program that locks the file as soon as you log in. If you have a stubborn file or folder and don’t want to use any of the tricks here, you can try restarting your computer. You should be able to delete, move, or rename the file as soon as Windows comes back up.

File Unlocker Filehippo

RELATED:Three Ways to Access the Windows 8 or 10 Boot Options Menu

If the file is being locked by a startup program, you can boot to safe mode to delete it instead. If you’re on Windows 7, press the F8 key during the startup process and select Safe Mode to boot into safe mode. If you’re using Windows 8 or 10, you’ll have to access safe mode from the boot options menu. Delete (or move) the file in safe mode and restart your computer.

There are a variety of other ways to delete locked files. For example, you could use a program to schedule a file deletion when you next restart your computer—the file will be automatically deleted when you reboot. But we’ve found it much easier using one of the methods we’ve detailed here.