Cannot delete file on USB HD

I am re-using a USB drive, previously on my XP PC, On my new Vista PC. There
are several old files on it, created by the XP PC, that Vista will not let me
delete. I removed the "read only" attribute, went to security and made sure
I had all administrative rights. The file folders have 25 or so number
filenames. In the folder is a file called "update". It may be a Microsoft
file. How can I delete these old files? Thanks.

Why dont you try to move all the files you want to save to your primary hard
drive, then just go ahead and format the usb one? That would be a simple and
easy solution

David
"dratner" <dratner@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:5658B77D-4A46-4E5B-833D-670E9A83B9CE@microsoft.com...
>I am re-using a USB drive, previously on my XP PC, On my new Vista PC.
>There
> are several old files on it, created by the XP PC, that Vista will not let
> me
> delete. I removed the "read only" attribute, went to security and made
> sure
> I had all administrative rights. The file folders have 25 or so number
> filenames. In the folder is a file called "update". It may be a
> Microsoft
> file. How can I delete these old files? Thanks.

Hi,

Try this...
See if it will let you delete the last Folder or Sub-Folder first, if so,
then delete each one starting from last to first.

--
All the best,
SG
"dratner" <dratner@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:5658B77D-4A46-4E5B-833D-670E9A83B9CE@microsoft.com...
>I am re-using a USB drive, previously on my XP PC, On my new Vista PC.
>There
> are several old files on it, created by the XP PC, that Vista will not let
> me
> delete. I removed the "read only" attribute, went to security and made
> sure
> I had all administrative rights. The file folders have 25 or so number
> filenames. In the folder is a file called "update". It may be a
> Microsoft
> file. How can I delete these old files? Thanks.

Your problem could be this: whatever virus scanner you're using has marked
it. The very things you are experiencing are synonymous with the situation I
describe, a situation I recently experienced with BitDefender.

The solution is to turn off virus scanning momentarily. You may find that
you can then access the file.

Sidebar: as I bitched to BitDefender, these virus scanners absolutely must
have a "false positives" list maintained by the user. I'm tired of BD
carping about FILES I CREATE, telling me they are virii, when, of course,
they aren't.

In the history of software--a sine wave--we are once again in a Dark Age
trough.

m

"SG" <sorry@nomail.com> wrote in message
news:ORtZrpsZIHA.2268@TK2MSFTNGP02.phx.gbl...
> Hi,
>
> Try this...
> See if it will let you delete the last Folder or Sub-Folder first, if so,
> then delete each one starting from last to first.
>
> --
> All the best,
> SG
> "dratner" <dratner@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
> news:5658B77D-4A46-4E5B-833D-670E9A83B9CE@microsoft.com...
>>I am re-using a USB drive, previously on my XP PC, On my new Vista PC.
>>There
>> are several old files on it, created by the XP PC, that Vista will not
>> let me
>> delete. I removed the "read only" attribute, went to security and made
>> sure
>> I had all administrative rights. The file folders have 25 or so number
>> filenames. In the folder is a file called "update". It may be a
>> Microsoft
>> file. How can I delete these old files? Thanks.
>