Solved Folders stuck on "read-only" mode?

TheColdOne

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This is the closest I could find as far as a relevant forum section for this problem.

The sub-folders within my "My Pictures" folder won't let me save directly to them. For example, I would just save an image from the internet directly to a specific folder for organizational reasons, but it says "access denied". BUT when I try to save it to "My Pictures" it works just fine! And then I have to move it later to the folder I wanted it in originally.

I tried going to the main Pictures folder and un-checking the "Read Only" box (which was checked for some reason), but that didn't work (included all sub folders). I also tried to doing that directly to a folder I wanted to save to, no luck.

I also seem to just not be able to do much of any basic things with the images inside of "My Pictures", including just a simple rotation! This seems like a real issue.
 

My Computer My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Dell XPS430
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Windows 7 Professional 64-bit
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Intel Core2 Quad 2.5Ghz
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8GB
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Galaxy GTX 660 GC 2GB
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Dell 19"
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that is weird. When you unchecked the folders, was it a tick in the box or a blue square? a tick means it is read only, a blue square just means its in a 'no-attributes' state (counter-intuitive i know).
 

My Computer My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Dell Inspiron 1545
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Windows 7 build 7100 x86
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Intel Core 2 Duo 2.1GHz
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GM45 chipset
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3GB
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Intel(TM) Graphics Media Accelerator X4500HD
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Take ownership of the folder/file....
 

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Computer type
PC/Desktop
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LENOVO K450 @3.0GHZ
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64-bit Windows 8.1 Pro
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Core(TM) i5 CPU 4330 Haswell @ 3.20GHz
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LENOVO
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12.00 GB
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Intel(R) HD Graphics
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Intel HD integtrated
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* BFK Customs *
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W 7 64-bit Ultimate
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Intel Q9550 Yorkfield
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ASUS P5Q Pro
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Corsair 620HX
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Cooler Master RC-690
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Tuniq Tower 120, 2x 140mm and 3x 120mm case fans
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Microsoft 500
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Razer Diamondback 3G
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1x Koutech 3Gb/s SATA HDD Hot Swap Rack
Taking ownership worked, but I'm surprised I had to resort to that.

And antt, it was a blue box, not a tick/check.
 

My Computer My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Dell XPS430
OS
Windows 7 Professional 64-bit
CPU
Intel Core2 Quad 2.5Ghz
Memory
8GB
Graphics Card(s)
Galaxy GTX 660 GC 2GB
Monitor(s) Displays
Dell 19"
Screen Resolution
1920x1080
Hard Drives
Hitachi 750GB

Western Digital 500GB
Cooling
Heat Sink + Fans
Mouse
N/A
Internet Speed
14 Mb/s
Glad to see you have it sorted.
 

My Computer My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
* BFK Customs *
OS
W 7 64-bit Ultimate
CPU
Intel Q9550 Yorkfield
Motherboard
ASUS P5Q Pro
Memory
8GB Dominator 8500C5D
Graphics Card(s)
ATI : XFX 5870
Sound Card
Realtek HD Audio 7-1
Monitor(s) Displays
1x 47" LCD HDMI & 3x 26" LCD HDMI
Screen Resolution
1920x1080P & 1920x1200
Hard Drives
1x 80GB Intel X25-M G2 SSD : 1x 500GB & 1x 640GB WD Caviar Black(s)
PSU
Corsair 620HX
Case
Cooler Master RC-690
Cooling
Tuniq Tower 120, 2x 140mm and 3x 120mm case fans
Keyboard
Microsoft 500
Mouse
Razer Diamondback 3G
Internet Speed
14 Mb/s
Other Info
1x Koutech 3Gb/s SATA HDD Hot Swap Rack
Hi

I have made ownership of the my documents folder and when I i check the box (blue square in the box) it makes everything unread but when i open it up again all the folders in the my documents are still read only but the my documents as unread. I have tried the attrib -r in the cmd.exe

I am running windows 7 home basic on a 32bit system
 

My Computer My Computer

OS
windows 7 home basic 32 bit
I've had this problem ever since I reinstalled Windows. It didn't do it before. It's annoying, just about every folder on both my drives defaults to read-only and I can't save or extract any files in say the TEMPORARY FOLDER!!!! AAARRRRRRGHHHH!!!!! I hate you, Microsoft! Fix this problem NOW! I can't install my new wireless card because it can't write two driver files to the C:\Users\(me)\Temp folder. I uncheck read-only and run it...it's back to read only before it finishes applying. It's read-only no matter what I do. I've run cmd as administrator and applied the attrib -r C:\Users and it drops to the next line, but the folder is still Read-Only! I've downloaded that registry file to take ownership and I've then unchecked read only and it still comes back. Am I going to have to reinstall Windows to fix this problem?!
 

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N/A
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Windows 7 Ultimate x86
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AMD Phenom II X3 720
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MSI...something
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2gb DDR2
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nVidia GeForce GTX 260
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Realtek HD Audio
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Sceptre 23" LCD 1080p
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Samsung 60gb, WD 320gb
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650W
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generic
Cooling
4 fans + heatsink
My problem was that Windows Live Photo Gallery would not let me make changes in the files in the folder... I tried several things noted on the forum but what ultimately worked was something that struck me when I planned to merge all partitions into one so that I may have to save the default pictures folder too in the main C drive... I created new folder in my D and pasted one photo from somewhere into it and checked whether Windows Live Photo Gallery would let me make changes in the folder... It worked and so I copied all child folders and files back into same named folders from my C-drive. So this is a new folder that was created in the D partition only and not something that was inherited by copying or other processes...
 

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Lenovo SL 410
OS
windows 7, ultimate
CPU
Intel
Memory
4GB
Hard Drives
320 GB
All Windows folders are always marked read-only. This does not mean that they are read-only. The Windows folder read-only flag can never be changed by the user, all Windows folders will always be flagged as read-only.

Windows uses the folder read-only flag for internal purposes. Improper Windows permissions may stop access to a folder but a user with proper permissions can always write into a folder regardless of the setting of the folder read-only flag.

The folder read-only flag setting serves only one purpose, it is there to allow a user to mark all the files inside the folder as read-only or not read-only all at one time.

It is possible for a programmer to change the folder read-only flag to "not read-only" but absolutely nothing is gained by doing this.

From a technical point of view it's true, a folder "object" is read-only to the user. A folder is a Windows object, much like an ordinary file, that is a collection of data containing information about the folder. The folder object is managed by the Windows file system and only Windows has permission to change any of that folder object data.
 

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XP SP3 32bit, Vista HP 64bit, Seven Pro 64bit
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nVidia GTX275 896Mb
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Antec 650 Trio
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Zalman 9700
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G15,G13
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MX518
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330Kbps down
Not really solved.

...
 
Last edited:

My Computer My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Dell
OS
Windows 7 x86 Home Premium
the posted info is definitively not a complete solution

I found many problems.

I think they originated when i confused Explorer. I accidentally deleted the folder it stored "favorites" in, so my favorites disappeared. Not quite dumb as it sounds, some expletive install hijacked the folder. Anyway, fixed that and this read only problem began. Could be coincidence.

If you look at properties permissions, it showed i had permissions, but they were grayed out.
It showed incorrect owner on some root folders, not others. Grayed out permissions everywhere.

Fixed owner. Still grayed out.

Properties - security - advanced - permissions tab - change permissions
Uncheck "include inheritable..." - OK - it should change all subfolders.

close all, reopen properties, still blue check on read-only

try and turn off read only says worked ...
but close/open permissions, still messed up.

It shows i have all permissions with black checkmarks and it still wont modify readonly
 

My Computer My Computer

OS
windows 7 home premium 64 and others
Seems fixed

ok, the blue checkbox stays on, but i can now save over files
 

My Computer My Computer

OS
windows 7 home premium 64 and others
Its blankety blank word, not windows 7

At least my issue was. The "read only" checkbox in folders confused me.


Word is opened to do preview files in Windows Explorer.

And Word wont let you save over the document opened in word.

Since you clicked the document to open it, its guaranteed to be the document currently being "previewed".

And they wonder why they lose market share.
 

My Computer My Computer

OS
windows 7 home premium 64 and others
someone please help me!!

after a regular windows update... all my files and folders suddenly became "Read Only"

- i tried running anti-spyware, anti-malwar and anti-virus but nothing happened
- i tried changing permissions for Users\App Data and Windows\Temp but nothing happened
- i tried the CMD prompt and used the -r -s command on my c:\users\(my folder) but nothing happened
- i tried going back to 10 different system restore points but the process always fails towards the end

now, my computer is constantly throwing up errors "cannot create temporary directory" when i try to open my Google Drive.

how can i fix this without doing a factory setting reset which will kill all the programs and license keys that i bought?

HELP!! :cry:
 

My Computer My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
HP
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64
Memory
12 GB
This is a different problem than I posted, which is ultimately a MS word bug.
Solutions mentioned in this thread for other problems with similar effect are worth looking in to.

A) I ran into a similar problem when i allowed something to install which was spam-ware and it changed ownership of the files.
First, I'd suggest checking ownership, the most likely culprit.

Before you change owenership wholesale, check related (google) user access control and ownership
for YOUR VERSION OF WINDOWS. MS made it extra bad in Windows 8, wherein user access control cannot be turned off, and even admin is prevented from accessing some files. If you are on windows 8,
the behavior of all this stuff is just different.

If you are on prior windows, try turning off user access control, which should allow you to access anything.
Log in to admin account.

My suggestions are diagnostic. Figure out what changed. Changing ownership of critical windows files
to you (such as in the windows folder) can break things. Its usually safe in your own documents folder.

good luck.
 

My Computer My Computer

OS
windows 7 home premium 64 and others
Hey you guys, upload in your own thread! Unless the problem is directly related, please move to another thread!
 

My Computer My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Dell Vostro 400/Dell XPS 8700(Slightly Customized for me by Dell)/Toshiba Satellite T135
OS
Windows 7 Professional 32-bit/Windows 8 64-bit/Win7 Pro64-bit
CPU
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600/Intel Core i7 4790/Intel Pentium
Memory
2GB/16GB/4GB
Graphics Card(s)
Intel G33/G31 Express(Vostro)/NVIDIA GeForce GTX 745(XPS)
Monitor(s) Displays
HP 2009m(Vostro)/ViewSonic VX2250wm-LED(XPS)
Screen Resolution
1600x900(Vostro)/1920x1080(XPS)
Hard Drives
Seagate ST3160815AS(Vostro)/Western Digital Blue(Satellite)
External:
Western Digital My Passport 0748
Samsung HM121HC
Keyboard
Dell L100)(Vostro)/Dell KB2133p(XPS)
Mouse
Dell M-UAV-DEL8(XPS)
Internet Speed
100 Mbit/s(Only when IPTV is plugged out)
Antivirus
Avast, Malwarebytes PRO
Browser
Internet Explorer 11
Other Info
Note: Names with slashes between two different parts mean that the left is my old desktop and the right is my old laptop and the middle is my new desktop.(Unless specified)
Ping is horrible for servers overseas in US and Europe.
New laptop:LG Gram(Not available in US) Processor:Intel Core i3 4th Gen Ultra Low Power RAM:4GB Hard Drive:SK Hynix OEM MSATA or M.2 Graphics:Intel HD
Dude, I think nik321's problem matches this thread exactly, and my reply was to that.
Posting a new thread would likely get some other HELPFUL person say not to post duplicate topics.

I'm sure the guy with the ruined computer appreciates your helpful response.
 

My Computer My Computer

OS
windows 7 home premium 64 and others
Thanks for defending my post, mrbi11... I do feel this post is fully relevant to this thread.

I have some good news... I downloaded the "Take Ownership" zip file to add the take ownership option to my right-click options.

Then I right-clicked the following folders and ran the take ownership option:

- C:\Windows
- C:\Users\<my folder>
- C:\Program Files (x86)

Now, everything looks like it is working :D

THANKS SO MUCH FOR YOUR HELP!!

I visited so many different support forums for this issue, but you were the only ones who could point me in the right direction.
 

My Computer My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
HP
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64
Memory
12 GB
Thanks for defending my post, mrbi11... I do feel this post is fully relevant to this thread.

I have some good news... I downloaded the "Take Ownership" zip file to add the take ownership option to my right-click options.

Then I right-clicked the following folders and ran the take ownership option:

- C:\Windows
- C:\Users\<my folder>
- C:\Program Files (x86)

Now, everything looks like it is working :D

THANKS SO MUCH FOR YOUR HELP!!

I visited so many different support forums for this issue, but you were the only ones who could point me in the right direction.

Ok, I am sorry for that. Its just that I thought it is wrong to do that but I get the point.
 

My Computer My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Dell Vostro 400/Dell XPS 8700(Slightly Customized for me by Dell)/Toshiba Satellite T135
OS
Windows 7 Professional 32-bit/Windows 8 64-bit/Win7 Pro64-bit
CPU
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600/Intel Core i7 4790/Intel Pentium
Memory
2GB/16GB/4GB
Graphics Card(s)
Intel G33/G31 Express(Vostro)/NVIDIA GeForce GTX 745(XPS)
Monitor(s) Displays
HP 2009m(Vostro)/ViewSonic VX2250wm-LED(XPS)
Screen Resolution
1600x900(Vostro)/1920x1080(XPS)
Hard Drives
Seagate ST3160815AS(Vostro)/Western Digital Blue(Satellite)
External:
Western Digital My Passport 0748
Samsung HM121HC
Keyboard
Dell L100)(Vostro)/Dell KB2133p(XPS)
Mouse
Dell M-UAV-DEL8(XPS)
Internet Speed
100 Mbit/s(Only when IPTV is plugged out)
Antivirus
Avast, Malwarebytes PRO
Browser
Internet Explorer 11
Other Info
Note: Names with slashes between two different parts mean that the left is my old desktop and the right is my old laptop and the middle is my new desktop.(Unless specified)
Ping is horrible for servers overseas in US and Europe.
New laptop:LG Gram(Not available in US) Processor:Intel Core i3 4th Gen Ultra Low Power RAM:4GB Hard Drive:SK Hynix OEM MSATA or M.2 Graphics:Intel HD
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