James Harries

Q: Can't unlock file

I can unlock the padlock but can't change the permissions to read and write.

The file is an alias of another which isn't locked.

thanks in advance.

Macbook Pro 13"/Mac Mini Core Duo, Mac OS X (10.5.7), 2.26GHz -2Gb RAM

Posted on Mar 18, 2011 11:32 AM

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Q: Can't unlock file

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  • by Kappy,

    Kappy Kappy Mar 18, 2011 11:58 AM in response to James Harries
    Level 10 (271,328 points)
    Desktops
    Mar 18, 2011 11:58 AM in response to James Harries
    What are the permissions?
  • by James Harries,

    James Harries James Harries Mar 19, 2011 2:51 AM in response to Kappy
    Level 1 (33 points)
    iPhone
    Mar 19, 2011 2:51 AM in response to Kappy
    I have Custom Access to the original and Read Only for the alias.
  • by jsd2,

    jsd2 jsd2 Mar 19, 2011 1:24 PM in response to James Harries
    Level 5 (6,210 points)
    Mar 19, 2011 1:24 PM in response to James Harries
    If it's only an alias, why not just trash it and make a new one?
  • by James Harries,

    James Harries James Harries Mar 19, 2011 3:03 PM in response to jsd2
    Level 1 (33 points)
    iPhone
    Mar 19, 2011 3:03 PM in response to jsd2
    Because you can't trash a locked file.
  • by jsd2,

    jsd2 jsd2 Mar 19, 2011 3:42 PM in response to James Harries
    Level 5 (6,210 points)
    Mar 19, 2011 3:42 PM in response to James Harries
    You can generally still trash a locked item, provided that you own it:


    But if you don't own a locked item, you will get this instead:



    Is this what you see?
    If you again Get Info and look under General, is the "Locked" checkbox checked and greyed out even if you unlock the padlock at the bottom of the window?
  • by James Harries,

    James Harries James Harries Mar 20, 2011 3:28 AM in response to jsd2
    Level 1 (33 points)
    iPhone
    Mar 20, 2011 3:28 AM in response to jsd2
    Yes I get the bottom one with the greyed out business
  • by jsd2,

    jsd2 jsd2 Mar 20, 2011 4:26 AM in response to James Harries
    Level 5 (6,210 points)
    Mar 20, 2011 4:26 AM in response to James Harries
    I would try the following:

    Open Terminal (in /Applications/Utilities) , and copy-paste the following line into the Terminal window, *followed by typing a single space. Do not type <Return> yet.*

    sudo chflags nouchg


    After typing the single space, drag the icon of the locked alias into the Terminal window, click inside the Terminal window, and type <Return>.

    Enter your admin password at the prompt (it will not echo on the screen), and again type <Return>.

    Now again Get Info on the file, and see if the Locked checkbox in the General section is now unchecked. If it is, you should now be able to either trash the file or change its permissions, as you wish.
  • by Gogo159,

    Gogo159 Gogo159 Dec 4, 2014 7:19 PM in response to jsd2
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Dec 4, 2014 7:19 PM in response to jsd2

    Thanks for the instructions JSD2............I tried this to delete a file that was locked and it worked a charm.

  • by LisaLou711,

    LisaLou711 LisaLou711 Feb 18, 2015 7:34 AM in response to jsd2
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Feb 18, 2015 7:34 AM in response to jsd2

    Thanks, this worked for me too.

  • by happygoluck,

    happygoluck happygoluck Sep 5, 2015 10:18 AM in response to jsd2
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 5, 2015 10:18 AM in response to jsd2

    Thanks for this, it worked out great.

  • by datsylove,

    datsylove datsylove Nov 1, 2015 5:18 PM in response to jsd2
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Notebooks
    Nov 1, 2015 5:18 PM in response to jsd2

    Hello jsd2, thank you for sharing this post.

     

    I just wanted to say I am having the same desire

    to delete unlocked files I cannot unlock,

    and get the same bottom message.

     

    the Problem is I have followed the instructions

    for terminal you provided and get this message:

     

    -bash: Return: No such file or directory

     

    This is almost any file I'm having the issue on...

    and it's Right after I type <Return>. after typing

    your quote and dragging in a file.

     

    and It's done one-at-a-time.

     

    Do you happen to have any further

    ideas or suggestions? or any other Questions?

     

    Again, thank you for sharing, it was worth a try!

  • by BDAqua,

    BDAqua BDAqua Nov 2, 2015 10:25 AM in response to datsylove
    Level 10 (123,765 points)
    Nov 2, 2015 10:25 AM in response to datsylove

    Sadly I haven't seen jsd2 post in a long time.

     

    Can you paste an exact command here that doesn't work for you?

  • by datsylove,

    datsylove datsylove Nov 2, 2015 11:16 AM in response to BDAqua
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Notebooks
    Nov 2, 2015 11:16 AM in response to BDAqua

    Hi BDAqua, thank you for taking the time

    to read what I wrote.

     

    the Command I am copying and pasting into terminal

    (well actually typing in now, got it memorized...) is this:

    sudo chflags nouchg

     

    After the single space, a file is dragged

    and dropped-in, and then the next command

    I type in terminal is:

    <Return>.

     

    Immediately after, I do not see an authentication

    login or anything of the sort; the immediate

    response is:

    -bash: Return: No such file or directory

     

    I am actually this is noticing with almost any file

    I drop into terminal, not just the alias files.

     

    -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ]

     

    Macbook: MacBook Pro Silver / had for 2½ years

    Currently on Version 10.8.5

     

    About the files, there are a few alias files

    I have on my computer (no external drive,

    the computer drive).

     

    These are all files that were transferred from

    another macbook (my older one) to this one

    via Time Machine.

     

    These are all copies that are all locked,

    thus I also have read-only permissions

    and cannot revise, delete, or unlock

    the files on their own.

     

    So, the result I get for trying to delete

    without any terminal business is:

    The operation can't be completed because the item

    "xxxxfilename.docx" is locked.

     

    -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ]

     

    Again, thank you for taking the time to read what I wrote!

    If I don't hear from you again today, enjoy your day!

  • by BDAqua,

    BDAqua BDAqua Nov 2, 2015 11:20 AM in response to datsylove
    Level 10 (123,765 points)
    Nov 2, 2015 11:20 AM in response to datsylove

    Are the files mostly in one location?

     

    Might try BatchMod, it's much better/easier than the Finder for recursive Permission changes, but careful, it's powerful...

     

    http://www.lagentesoft.com/batchmod/index.html

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