Solved Deleted Desktop Folder Keeps Reappearing

[voyager]

I have a folder on my PC's Desktop that will not stay deleted.
It reappears after rebooting, shutting down and restarting and some times it seems to spontaneously reappear without a restart.
I have loaded it with things to be deleted, then deleted it only to have it reappear again, but empty.
I have changed it's name and it reappears alongside the newly named folder.
I have done a couple of RD/RMDIR command prompt deletes and it is still reappearing on my desktop.
I am at a loss as to how to get rid of this folder once and for all.
It is driving me up the wall!

I'm considering a clean reinstall of Win7 just to stop this irritation.
Any suggestions as to an easier way to get rid of it?

 

[Callender]

How was the folder created?

Did you create this folder manually or was it created by some other method?

I've seen a problem with re-appearing folders on my machine a couple of times and the usual solution is to use secure deletion followed by running chkdsk C: r/ f/

Assumes that windows is installed on drive C:



Other than that there are some applications that write files to a folder that you specify as the default one to use for that application and if you located such a folder on your desktop the application may re-create the folder when the application runs.

 

[Layback Bear]

If you sure you don't want that folder on your computer try this.
Right click on the icon and select Open File Location. Once it opens right click and select delete.

Then go to the Start Orb and type msconfig. Open it and go to Start Up and see if you see it in there. If so uncheck it.
Reboot.

 

[voyager]

@ Callender
The folder was manually created.
I scanned some pages as JPEGs, then stored them in this folder.
After burning the folder to a CD, I copied it to another partition on another HDD to archive it.
Then, I manually deleted it from the desktop, or so I thought.

I have secure deleted it several times now with several different apps that have secure delete functions, including using the Gutmann method.
I have run "chkdsk C: r/ f/" [corrected to "chkdsk C: /r /f"] several times.

That folder is still sitting on my desktop after each reboot!!!
I have done a search on C: drive for the folder name thinking that there might be a duplicate somewhere.
No luck in finding one.
I have just gone to the copy of the original folder with its original contents on the other HDD in another partition and made a zip file of it.
Then, I deleted that folder copy and the ghost of it that keeps reappearing on my desktop.
The ghost still comes back after a reboot.

@
Layback Bear
When right clicking on the icon, "Open File Location" option is not offered.
It is not in the Startup list as found through "msconfig", or as found by several maintenance utilities.
Nor is it in the Startup folder.

 

[andrew129260]

Try http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/49819-icon-cache-rebuild.html

If this does not work, try file shredder.

File Shredder

 

[voyager]

@andrew129260
Icon cache rebuild = No changes
Tried both before and after deleting the icon.

File Shredder = Same results as the other secure delete utilities I've tried = No changes

 

[andrew129260]

Malware infected the folder maybe?

System restore somehow trying to bring it back?

Try disabling your security software and delete it and reboot it.

Or scan your pc with a full scan and see what turns up...

 

[Sir George]

@andrew129260
Icon cache rebuild = No changes
Tried both before and after deleting the icon.

File Shredder = Same results as the other secure delete utilities I've tried = No changes

Give this a try; Place one of the original files back in the folder, then change the extension to "old" so you should have something like "file name.old". Now, try deleting the folder.

HTH

 

[pominator]

You may try to disable system restore, delete the folder again and restart. File history is kept in system restore points I think and it may recover this folder every start for whatever reason.

 

[Layback Bear]

You could also go into Safe mode and see if you can find the bad guy.
You might not be able to remove it in normal mode because it is in use.

I also use this free tool to search for things and it does work great.

Download Everything

Another suggestion.
msconfic/Services/ put a check mark in Hide all Microsoft Services in the lower left corner. See if it hiding in their.

At this point I would be concerned with infections. Something put the bad guy on your computer. If you need suggestion on what scans to do just ask.

 

[voyager]

OK,
I have scanned with my AV [AVG Free], Malwarebytes, and ran HouseCall all day yesterday.
Nothing shows up.
I've disables System Restore,deleted all restore points, rebooted in safe mode, deleted it in Safe mode, checked services and startup in msconfig - nothing stands out as an anomaly.
It still reappears after deleting it and rebooting.

Added info:
The folder was created 3/11/'14 and moved to its archive location the same day after burning it to CD.
There were no restore points before the 18th.

I do have a C: drive image from Nov 6th. I may try making an image of my present C: drive, then loading the Nov image to see how much my configuration has changed. It may be acceptable to me.
I'm getting tired of chasing this, and really don't want to do a clean install.
It will be close to a week's steady work to get it in and all set up.

I am still open to suggestions.
I would like to figure out what is happening here.

EDIT:
I have opened the archived zip file and restored the original folder and it's contents to the desktop overwriting the ghost folder, then deleted it.
It still reappears.

 

[Callender]

Application used for scanning?

@ Callender
The folder was manually created.
I scanned some pages as JPEGs, then stored them in this folder.
After burning the folder to a CD, I copied it to another partition on another HDD to archive it.
/QUOTE]

What was the name of the application used to scan pages? - Pages of what? Documents, web pages or something else?

I suspect that this application is the culprit. Run the application again and choose to save the output. See where it wants to save it. Check the default location for output - within the application. My guess is that it's remembered to store files in a folder (even if you created the folder yourself) on your desktop and that it is recreating the folder automatically.

 

[voyager]

I don't think you're right about this one.
But, here goes:
I received medical record paper copies by mail and scanned them with my long time owned Brother MFC 7420.
I used the Brother ControlCenter3 software, which I have used for years without incident, to scan the 41 pages as JPEGs directly to the offending folder.

I then used Acrobat to combine the JPEGs into a PDF which was placed in the same folder with the JPEGs,
the same offending folder.

I've never had a problem similar to this with Acrobat either.

ControlCenter3 wants to save the scans to:
Libraries/Pictures/ ControlCenter3 by default.

There are no copies of the scans there.
As in other cases, I set the location to scan to as the folder I wanted it in, the offending folder.

 

[voyager]

@Callender You are CORRECT!!!

I had set CC3 up to scan to files, into the offending folder.
I just went back into CC3 set it to scan a file to a new folder, then made the scan.
I then deleted both folders.
Only the newly made folder returned as the new ghost.
I'll go back and delete the scan to file settings and the problem should be fixed.
Thank you.

Yep!
The problem is fixed.
It again points to the original default scan to location.
Even old things, when used in a new way, can screw things up.

 

[Callender]

Brother MFC-7420

Configure or change the settings of the ControlCenter 2 or&n : Brother

Well I could be wrong but I've seen folders automatically created by applications before so it's worth checking.

Check your "Scan to file" settings as shown in the above link and if it's set to "Desktop/ Problem Folder Name" - clear that location from the settings or choose another default location to save scanned files.

If you don't see these settings - then it can't be the cause of the problem! It's just something to check.

EDIT: You were quicker than me!

Glad it's sorted.