Trouble deleting a "nonexistent" file

and i guess that's okay.

alright, super get info, i opened legal folder, and used my user name as both owner and grop, nope. then, i tried to use my user name as owner (because admin wasn't there for selection), and group as admin, that didn't do it either? because i couldn't open the crappy vietnamese file with super get info...

as for the install disk and disk utilty. might be a dumb question, but how do i run disk utility from the install disk? are you saying to backup everything and reinstall? or just to run disk utility? and if so, how?

when i run disk utility, here is what happens:

Verifying volume “Macintosh HD”
Checking HFS Plus volume.
Checking Extents Overflow file.
Checking Catalog file.
Illegal name
Checking multi-linked files.
Checking multi-linked files.
,0)
Checking Extended Attributes file.
Checking volume bitmap.
Checking volume information.
Volume Header needs minor repair
@ needs to be repaired.",1)

Macintosh HD
Error: The underlying task reported failure on exit


1 HFS volume checked
Volume needs repair



i feel bad asking so many questions, but you've been very helpful, and i am VERY appreciative of that. also, is there an easy way to change all my system settings, just for back up?

thanks again...
 
To restart from the CD/DVD put the disk in then select restart from the Apple menu. Hold down the C key as the machine starts up till you see that it's loading from the CD.

Once it loads up, (you probably need to select English) don't start the installer. Look up at the top menu bar and you'll see a Utilities Menu. Disk Utility is one of the options.

I don't know why you're having trouble opening that file with SuperGetInfo, I have none at all.

Oh, I just reread your post. I didn't say to change the ownership of the Legal Folder, only the permissions to give write permissions to admin. I'm assuming you're logged in as a user with Admin privileges.
 
i did disk utility and when i logged back in, the folder for legal was gone too!

disk utility was able to repair the problem and everything seems good to go!

nice.

thank you again for all your help.

here is maybe another question you could answer. is it possible to change a bunch of file permissions at once, say folder and contents because sometimes, when i copy/backup, certain files don't have permissions and i have to dig through to find them. there has got to be an easier way.

oh and the settings thing, is there a way to save all your system configurations in case they are needed?

i really do appreciate the help.
 
bighired said:
here is maybe another question you could answer. is it possible to change a bunch of file permissions at once, say folder and contents because sometimes, when i copy/backup, certain files don't have permissions and i have to dig through to find them. there has got to be an easier way.
Click to expand...
Both the regular Info and SuperGetInfo allow you to apply permissions to enclosed items. So if you change a folder's permissions you can change all the items inside as well.

I don't think you'd need to find yourself changing permissions all that often in any case. I seldom need to.

oh and the settings thing, is there a way to save all your system configurations in case they are needed?

i really do appreciate the help.
Click to expand...
There is no substitute for a bootable back-up drive. They're essential.

I have two external firewire drives which I alternate for each back-up. I use SuperDuper and it works just fine.
 
i'll look into it. i do have two drives (external), but one has been strictly for music stuff. i guess, i can alter that now that a pc is not in my life!

thanks again for all your help!
 
Found this at MacOSXHints.com

http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php?story=20060208233710981&query=undeletable

In the past, I've used several apps that delete stubborn "you can't delete this file" files. However, I had a folder that the trial version of FileMaker Pro made that simply would not delete. The system said "That file is in use," despite my best efforts.

After several unsuccessful attempts at getting rid of the file. I found a completely successful way. I made a new user and gave it admin rights. Then I put the stubborn file in a common folder. Next, I logged on as the new admin user, and put the stubborn file in the trash.

Finally, I logged out and back in as the main user. Then I deleted the new user I created. The system then asked if I wanted to delete all files. And just like that, it was gone. This did what all these AppleScripts and apps couldn't seem to do.
 
SpeedyG said:
Found this at MacOSXHints.com

http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php?story=20060208233710981&query=undeletable

In the past, I've used several apps that delete stubborn "you can't delete this file" files. However, I had a folder that the trial version of FileMaker Pro made that simply would not delete. The system said "That file is in use," despite my best efforts.

After several unsuccessful attempts at getting rid of the file. I found a completely successful way. I made a new user and gave it admin rights. Then I put the stubborn file in a common folder. Next, I logged on as the new admin user, and put the stubborn file in the trash.

Finally, I logged out and back in as the main user. Then I deleted the new user I created. The system then asked if I wanted to delete all files. And just like that, it was gone. This did what all these AppleScripts and apps couldn't seem to do.
Click to expand...

This totally worked! I just tried it. There's something magical about putting it in the new user's Trash and then wiping out their account. It doesn't work if you leave it in their user folder anywhere; you have to move it to their Trash first.

Thanks so much; it's amazing that a fix this simple works when all the techie solutions don't. Mac rules.
 
scottbmorton said:
This totally worked! I just tried it. There's something magical about putting it in the new user's Trash and then wiping out their account. It doesn't work if you leave it in their user folder anywhere; you have to move it to their Trash first.

Thanks so much; it's amazing that a fix this simple works when all the techie solutions don't. Mac rules.
Click to expand...


Okay, this doesn't work for me. I'm having the same exact problem with the Ti?ng Viê?t.html file installed for both IllustratorCS2 and PhotoshopCS2. I've tried the following

Here are my machine specs:

Machine Name: iMac
Machine Model: iMac4,1
CPU Type: Intel Core Duo
Number Of Cores: 2
CPU Speed: 2 GHz
L2 Cache (shared): 2 MB
Memory: 2 GB
Bus Speed: 667 MHz
Boot ROM Version: IM41.0055.B03
Serial Number: XXXXXXXXXXX
SMC Version: 1.1f5

Here is the System info:

System Version: Mac OS X 10.4.7 (8J2135)
Kernel Version: Darwin 8.7.1
Boot Volume: Hard_Disk
Computer Name: XXXXXXXXX
User Name: ########

Here is the current path to the file ~/Desktop/Adobe Illustrator CS2/Legal.localized

When I use ls on the directory I get this:

Tie????ng Vie????t.html

When I ls -alF on the directory I get thiss:

ls: Ti?ng Viê?t.html***: No such file or directory
total 16
drwx------ 4 ##### 502 136 Jul 5 15:37 ./
drwx------ 4 ##### 502 136 Jul 5 15:37 ../
-rw------- 1 ##### 502 6148 Jul 5 15:37 .DS_Store

***note: special unicode characters not displayed

Notice that the file seems to exist for a unflagged ls, but not for ls -alF?

Here are the steps I've taken to delete the file (all steps taken as the admin user):

step 1
Click to expand...
I move the Adobe Illustrator CS2 directory to the trash and empty the trash. The trash makes the "trash deleted" sound, but the Adobe Illustrator CS2 directory remains. There is no error message.

step 2
Click to expand...
I leave the Adobe Illustrator CS2 directory in the trash and restart the computer. Once the computer has restarted and my desktop comes up, I empty the trash. The trash makes the "trash deleted" sound, but the Adobe Illustrator CS2 directory remains. There is no error message.

step 3
Click to expand...
I try secure empty trash. This time I get an error message: The operation cannot be completed because the item "Legal" is in use.

Exactly what is using Legal? It's in the trash and the host has been restarted.

step 4
Click to expand...
I remove Adobe Illustrator from my trash and place it on the desktop. I fire up terminal and cd to the directory: (~/Desktop/Adobe Illustrator CS2/Legal.localized) where this file is located.

I type: rm Ti and hit tab to complete. I get: rm Tie\314\202\314\201ng\ Vie\314\202\314\243t.html

When I hit return to initiate the command I get:

rm: Ti?ng Viê?t.html: No such file or directory

I try sudo rm Ti (tab completed to Tie\314\202\314\201ng\ Vie\314\202\314\243t.html) and get the same result.

step 5
Click to expand...
I copy the file name and enter the following at the command line:
rm ./ and when I paste I get: Tie\314\202\314\201ng\ Vie\314\202\314\243t.html. Command runs with the same result:

rm: Ti?ng Viê?t.html: No such file or directory

step 6
Click to expand...
Determined, I type rm * and hit return which results in:

rm: Ti?ng Viê?t.html: No such file or directory

step 7
Click to expand...
I cd to ~/Desktop and enter the following command:

rm -R Adobe\ Illustrator\ CS2/

Which results in:
rm: Adobe Illustrator CS2//Legal.localized/Ti?ng Viê?t.html: No such file or directory
rm: Adobe Illustrator CS2//Legal.localized: Directory not empty
rm: Adobe Illustrator CS2/: Directory not empty

step 8
Click to expand...
I download and install Super Get Info. I launch and open the file in question. I get the following error:

Super Get Info could not get info for "/Users/#####/Desktop/Adobe Illustrator CS2/Legal.localized/Ti?ng Viê?t.html".

step 9
Click to expand...
I move the Adobe Illustrator CS2 directory back into /Applications.
I create a new admin user.
I log into the new admin user account.
I move the Adobe Illustrator CS2 directory that account's desktop.
I log out of the new admin account.
I log into my main admin account.
I delete the new admin account, telling it to delete all the files in the account.
I look under /Users and low and behold, the new admin account home directory still exists. All files for it are deleted, but the Desktop which holds the Adobe Illustrator CS2 directory which houses the undeleteable file. Unknown user is assigned to the permissions for these files.

what next?
Click to expand...

Anybody have any more insite? I can change the owner/group permissions on everything but the file in question.
 
I guess the only thing I can suggest is to try using SuperGetInfo's Empty Trash feature. It's under the SuperGetInfo menu.

I had no problems using SuperGetInfo to change ownership or permissions on that file or the containing folder but I never moved the file or folder at all. It's still in the original location as installed. Maybe moving the folder (the Illustrator Legal.localized is 755 with root as owner, the Photoshop one is 777) orphans the file.

I have no intention of deleting either Illustrator or Photoshop since they're full, registered copies.
 
simbalala said:
I guess the only thing I can suggest is to try using SuperGetInfo's Empty Trash feature. It's under the SuperGetInfo menu.

I had no problems using SuperGetInfo to change ownership or permissions on that file or the containing folder but I never moved the file or folder at all. It's still in the original location as installed. Maybe moving the folder (the Illustrator Legal.localized is 755 with root as owner, the Photoshop one is 777) orphans the file.

I have no intention of deleting either Illustrator or Photoshop since they're full, registered copies.
Click to expand...

Okay-- I gave that a try and it didn't work, but I did finally figure out the problem.

This was all occuring on a clean install of Mac OS X. I had prevoiusly erased the HD via DiskUtility, installed 10.4 and updated to 10.4.7. So I didn't initially suspect a corrupt drive. I was going to reinstall everything since I hadn't lost much other than time and when I scanned the disk for problems it found two files with bad names (imagine that) and some issues with the btree. I was able to delete the files afterwards.

Thanks again!
 
Hi MOSx86, I suspect that there was nothing wrong with your disk volume. I'd deleted my trial version of Adobe Photoshop CS2 only this morning and have had the same problems as everyone else here. I tried all the suggested fixes (just like you did) and ended up with the same results.

I had a read of your last post and followed what you did - used Disk Utility and found that it mirrored your scan and results almost exactly - but probably since I'd only had Photoshop installed, I only had one illegal filename, but I did have a Btree error as well.

I don't think there was anything wrong with your reinstall of Mac OSX. It was simply the effects of having had Adobe products installed.

My iMac is barely a month old and I haven't done all that much tinkering with it.

Hope this helps in some sort of way.

Waiton.
 
I am having the exact same problem with the same file.

However when I make another Admin user account, I can delete the file, but after I delete the other user account I created, the file still remains in the ./Trashes file.

How can I get it out of there an delete it completely?
Thanks.
 
Hi Xipher

I managed to delete it following Mosx86's method in the post prior to mine.

Quoting Mosx86: I scanned the disk for problems it found two files with bad names (imagine that) and some issues with the btree. I was able to delete the files afterwards.

Open up Disk Utility and click on your harddrive volume. Then under First Aid, click on Verify Disk Permissions. It will pop up with at least one file with bad names. Follow the prompts to delete it after that. You'll need your MacOSX install disk to complete it.

Cheers
 
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