LakeBled

Q: I cannot move or copy Word/Excel files out of a folder that I locked. What should I do?

I cannot move or copy Word/Excel files out of a folder that I locked. When I go to Get Info to unlock the folder, it shows that the folder is locked, but does not have "locked" checked on the information panel. However, when I unlock the lock, and then enter my user name and password, the folder remains locked. I a the laptop's only administrator and the only user with read/write permissions. What should I do to be able to unlock this folder and remove the files?

MacBook Air, OS X Yosemite

Posted on May 19, 2016 1:08 PM

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Q: I cannot move or copy Word/Excel files out of a folder that I locked. What should I do?

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  • by theratter,

    theratter theratter May 19, 2016 1:30 PM in response to LakeBled
    Level 4 (3,907 points)
    Desktops
    May 19, 2016 1:30 PM in response to LakeBled

    What precisely did you do to "lock" the folder?

  • by LakeBled,

    LakeBled LakeBled May 19, 2016 9:31 PM in response to theratter
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Mac OS X
    May 19, 2016 9:31 PM in response to theratter

    I created the folder and then selected it. Then, in Finder, I went to Get Info, and chose "Locked" under "modified." 

     

    I now also cannot save screenshots because I don't have the necessary permissions, I'm told.

     

    I went through a whole help session with the Apple Support robot on Twitter. The robot had me use the First Aid/Repair Permissions twice, but this did nothing. It also had me use a function in Terminal that does the same thing. After the first time I did that, I started having the problems with not being able to save screenshots b/c I don't have the permissions. The robot could not solve the problem.

  • by theratter,

    theratter theratter May 19, 2016 9:59 PM in response to LakeBled
    Level 4 (3,907 points)
    Desktops
    May 19, 2016 9:59 PM in response to LakeBled

    You mean the Locked option in the topmost panel, I take it. Locked: By clicking on this checkbox, your document can no longer be changed until the box is unchecked. This locks the entire folder from access until you uncheck the box. Now, you say that when you uncheck the Locked box for the folder you still cannot access it nor any files within. Am I understanding correctly?

     

    So, I have tested this on my system. I created a new folder on the Desktop. First, I locked the folder. Then i tried to move a file into the locked folder but could not. So the lock did as expected. Then I unlocked the folder. I was then able to put a file into the unlocked folder. Then I locked the folder. I attempted to move the file to the Desktop, but the system only permitted me to place a copy of the file back onto the Desktop. However, I was still able to open the locked folder.

     

    I take it that what I just outlined you cannot do on your system? Have you tried repairing the disk and permissions for the disk on which this folder is presently located? Where is the locked folder located on your disk? It seems that you may have locked something you shouldn't have.

  • by Eric Root,

    Eric Root Eric Root May 20, 2016 8:49 AM in response to LakeBled
    Level 9 (69,991 points)
    iTunes
    May 20, 2016 8:49 AM in response to LakeBled

    User File Ownership - Reset   see post by Linc Davis

     

    You may need to rebuild permissions on your user account. To do this,boot to your Recovery partition (holding down the Command and R keys while booting) and open Terminal from the Utilities menu. In Terminal, type:  ‘resetpassword’ (without the ’s), hit return, and select the admin user. You are not going to reset your password. Click on the icon for your Macs hard drive at the top. From the drop down below it select the user account which is having issues. At the bottom of the window, you'll see an area labeled Restore Home Directory Permissions and ACLs. Click the reset button there. The process takes a few minutes. When complete, restart.   

     

    Repair User Permissions

  • by LakeBled,

    LakeBled LakeBled May 22, 2016 11:12 AM in response to theratter
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Mac OS X
    May 22, 2016 11:12 AM in response to theratter

    I clicked the "locked" box to lock the folder, yes. I locked the folder after I'd placed the files in it. But now even when I remove the check from "locked," it remains locked. The same with changing the lock at the bottom righthand corner. It does not affect the folder.


    I can open the locked folder. The problem is that I cannot move the files out of the folder onto the desktop. I also cannot save any changes to them or rename them.


    I've reset my permissions a few times, at Apple's suggestion. And also done the First Aid/Repair Disk option. As a result, I now also can't save changes to Excel documents that were not in the locked folder or locked themselves. I also can't save images or screenshots.


    Yes, I've definitely locked something I shouldn't have. That said, as I recall, I followed the steps in the Apple Help menu for locking the folder to begin with.

  • by LakeBled,

    LakeBled LakeBled May 22, 2016 11:16 AM in response to Eric Root
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Mac OS X
    May 22, 2016 11:16 AM in response to Eric Root

    Thanks very much, Eric. I'll give it a try. I'm starting to lose track of the string of steps I took, but earlier used Terminal and the command "diskutil resetUserPermissions / `id -u`" to reset permissions. That's when I lost the ability to save screenshots or to rename any Office documents; even those outside of the folder. But I'll see what the approach you suggest does. 

  • by LakeBled,

    LakeBled LakeBled May 22, 2016 12:02 PM in response to Eric Root
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Mac OS X
    May 22, 2016 12:02 PM in response to Eric Root

    I went through the steps. When I chose the "Reset Home Directory Permissions and ACLs," the reset button changed to a greyed-out Done button. I thought it was just working resetting the permissions, but 15-20 minutes later, it was still there. Wasn't clear what it was doing. I thought that maybe it had completed the reset, so I restarted. But the same problems exist.