However, if the file is used by any system process, the elevated Command Prompt must be initialized. For the files used by some local processes (the processes that can be started and closed by a standard – non-administrator user account), opening Command Prompt on a standard user account would suffice. This method requires you to open Command Prompt on your Windows PC.
#How to delete files on microsoft word how to#
How to Delete Search History in Windows 10.How to Use Powershell to Force Delete File and Folder.This is because some processes are stubborn and even if you terminate them forcefully, they restart automatically after a few seconds.
Note: In some cases, you need to be quick in deleting the file after force terminating the process. Once the process has been forcefully terminated, you can easily remove the file as it is no longer used until the process starts running again.
On the confirmation box that pops up, click the End process tree button from the bottom.ħ. From the context menu, click End Process or End Process Tree. From the displayed list of running processes, right-click the one that you know is using the file that you want to delete.ĥ. In the Task Manager box, if not already there, go to the Processes tab.Ĥ. From the context menu that appears, click Start Task Manager.ģ. On your desktop screen, right-click the taskbar.Ģ. It is advisable to save all your work progress before proceeding.ġ. Note: Windows 7 is used here as a reference PC.įorce terminating a process shuts down the entire program and you may lose any unsaved data that any other file that relies on the program may have. Assuming that you already know which program is using the file that you want to remove, this is how you delete the file: All you need to do is to force terminate the program that is using the file. Restore a File If It Has Been Deleted Accidentally.Force Deleting a File in Use in Windows.