Ask Juan - Question and Answer
Deleting a Stubborn File That Won't Go
Question:
I am trying to delete a file and I keep getting this message: Cannot delete ABGSE.dll Access is denied. Can you please help me. Eunice
Answer:
First of all, I would not recommend deleting any file that with a ".dll" extension. Usually these files are a part of a much larger set of programs or drivers that make your computer, your sound, video, network, or other component or service function. What I would recommend is to let a specialized remover delete it for you.
The first place where I would go is the "Add/Remove Programs" in the control panel to remove any unwanted programs. After you've uninstalled the offending program you may find the file you've been trying to delete is gone. If you have confirmed that this is a virus or spyware, then let the virus scanner get rid of it, or spyware remover as the case may be.
On the other hand, if you KNOW for sure this file is truly unnecessary and you've tried all the above safe methods to remove it without avail, keep reading.
The reason you are seeing "Access is denied" when you try to delete the file is that the file is in use by an active program. You must first stop the program that depends on this file to free it.
Sometimes these DLL files are automatically started when you turn your computer on. The trick is to NOT let it run automatically. The easiest way to do this is to turn your computer on in safe mode. If you've never done this buckle your seatbelts.
Here's how it is done:
First, turn your computer off (You might want to print these instructions first) or restart it. As it comes up, you will hear a BEEP. One beep means your computer hardware has passed all the tests for it to boot normally.
The important thing here is that you press the F8 key on your keyboard immediately after the beep to get a boot menu. This is the same menu you might see if your computer was not shut down properly or if there was something wrong with the boot up process.
If you did not get a boot menu by doing this, you may have to try a few times each time increasing the frequency in which you press the F8 key after the beep. Once you get this menu you will see options like 1) Start Normally, 2) Start in Safe Mode, etc.
There are many other choices but the one you need is "Safe Mode". Press the number corresponding to this menu item and the computer will boot to a screen with an extra username - "Administrator". Log in as the administrator (type in your secret code if necessary) and browse for that pesky file you had trouble deleting.
This time you should have no trouble deleting this file - or any other for that matter. SO, BE VERY CAUTIOUS AND BE WARNED. YOUR COMPUTER COULD STOP WORKING IF YOU DELETE THE WRONG FILES. USE AT YOUR OWN RISK.
When you are done. Reboot your computer. It should come back to normal. The file is now gone.