Click here to get back home

Deleting Files With System Attribute

 HomeNewsGroups | Search | About
 microsoft.public.smartphone.developer    Post an article   get this group's latest topics as an RSS feed add this group's latest topics to your My MSN content add this group's latest topics to your My Yahoo content
Subject Author Date
Deleting Files With System Attribute MS 09-25-2005
Get Chitika Premium
Posted by MS on September 25, 2005, 10:14 pm
Please log in for more thread options
I am not a developer, but I have a problem that perhaps only the developers
could solve, therefore the post to the developer forums.

On my Windowsmobile 2003 Smartphone (Audiovox SMT5600) I found a .tmp file
in the folder \Storage\Windows\AppMgr from an application that had been
uninstalled. (In a subfolder with the application's name.) I of course tried
to delete the file and its subfolder, as I had uninstalled that application.
I tried with various file managers, and with Explore from the Desktop via
ActiveSync, but I always got an error message, that I could not delete that
file, and therefore that folder.

In looking at the "Properties" of that file, I saw it has the attribute
"System". I tried to uncheck that attribute. A couple file managers would
not let me uncheck that box at all. A couple others would let me uncheck
that box----but------after clicking OK, file would still not delete, and if
I went to "Properties" again, I'd see the System attribute checked again. In
ActiveSync Explore/Properties the checked System attribute was grayed out,
no way to uncheck it.

So---I have not been able to find any way to delete a .tmp file installed by
a program that has been uninstalled!

I did a Google search for the problem, and found out that it is indeed not
just my phone, and not just that one application. Many people have had this
problem (on PPCs as well), some have many such undeletable "system" files,
left over from uninstalled apps, clogging their system. Apparently it is
impossible in WindowsMobile 2003 to remove the system attribute from a file
(at least by any kind of normal means), which makes it impossible to delete,
rename, move that file, even though said file is not really part of the
system! (Of course, one way to delete it would be a hard reset, completely
wiping out all apps and configurations, but that is a major hassle, starting
over from scratch!)

I can understand that files in ROM would not be changeable, and that perhaps
Microsoft wished to protect the OS by making it impossible to alter or
delete system files. However, that should only pertain to files that are
really part of the OS. If it is impossible to change a file with the
attribute "system", then third party app developers should not be able to
mark their installed files with that attribute, which makes it impossible
for users to delete them, even after uninstallation.

What if a virus or spyware writer used that "system" attribute, to put
viruses or spyware on a user's system, and those malware files could then
not be deleted, due to that "system" attribute?

I sure hope this problem is fixed in WM2005!

Is there any way around this, any way I can delete that "system" file left
over by an uninstalled app? It looks like it can't be done by normal means,
therefore I'm posting this to the developer's NGs, in that developers might
know some way to get around this limitation. Perhaps a different way to boot
up the phone, where the system files might be changeable? Or, a way for the
files to be accessed by the desktop PC (in a different way than ActiveSync
Explore, as that does not allow the changing of "system" files)?

Are there any applets that will do this-- change the system attribute,
allowing for deletion?

I hope someone will post a solution to this problem, and describe it in a
way that not only a developer/programmer would understand, but users as
well. (at least a so-called "power user").

I would appreciate any response that could help with this problem, and I'm
sure others would as well.

Thank you.




Posted by Eric Baines on September 26, 2005, 4:16 am
Please log in for more thread options
I'd go for one of two possibilities:-

1) Factory reset the phone and re-install all the OK apps and configurations

2) Don't worry about it.

Not necessarily in that order.

"MS" wrote:

> I am not a developer, but I have a problem that perhaps only the developers
> could solve, therefore the post to the developer forums.
>
> On my Windowsmobile 2003 Smartphone (Audiovox SMT5600) I found a .tmp file
> in the folder \Storage\Windows\AppMgr from an application that had been
> uninstalled. (In a subfolder with the application's name.) I of course tried
> to delete the file and its subfolder, as I had uninstalled that application.
> I tried with various file managers, and with Explore from the Desktop via
> ActiveSync, but I always got an error message, that I could not delete that
> file, and therefore that folder.
>
> In looking at the "Properties" of that file, I saw it has the attribute
> "System". I tried to uncheck that attribute. A couple file managers would
> not let me uncheck that box at all. A couple others would let me uncheck
> that box----but------after clicking OK, file would still not delete, and if
> I went to "Properties" again, I'd see the System attribute checked again. In
> ActiveSync Explore/Properties the checked System attribute was grayed out,
> no way to uncheck it.
>
> So---I have not been able to find any way to delete a .tmp file installed by
> a program that has been uninstalled!
>
> I did a Google search for the problem, and found out that it is indeed not
> just my phone, and not just that one application. Many people have had this
> problem (on PPCs as well), some have many such undeletable "system" files,
> left over from uninstalled apps, clogging their system. Apparently it is
> impossible in WindowsMobile 2003 to remove the system attribute from a file
> (at least by any kind of normal means), which makes it impossible to delete,
> rename, move that file, even though said file is not really part of the
> system! (Of course, one way to delete it would be a hard reset, completely
> wiping out all apps and configurations, but that is a major hassle, starting
> over from scratch!)
>
> I can understand that files in ROM would not be changeable, and that perhaps
> Microsoft wished to protect the OS by making it impossible to alter or
> delete system files. However, that should only pertain to files that are
> really part of the OS. If it is impossible to change a file with the
> attribute "system", then third party app developers should not be able to
> mark their installed files with that attribute, which makes it impossible
> for users to delete them, even after uninstallation.
>
> What if a virus or spyware writer used that "system" attribute, to put
> viruses or spyware on a user's system, and those malware files could then
> not be deleted, due to that "system" attribute?
>
> I sure hope this problem is fixed in WM2005!
>
> Is there any way around this, any way I can delete that "system" file left
> over by an uninstalled app? It looks like it can't be done by normal means,
> therefore I'm posting this to the developer's NGs, in that developers might
> know some way to get around this limitation. Perhaps a different way to boot
> up the phone, where the system files might be changeable? Or, a way for the
> files to be accessed by the desktop PC (in a different way than ActiveSync
> Explore, as that does not allow the changing of "system" files)?
>
> Are there any applets that will do this-- change the system attribute,
> allowing for deletion?
>
> I hope someone will post a solution to this problem, and describe it in a
> way that not only a developer/programmer would understand, but users as
> well. (at least a so-called "power user").
>
> I would appreciate any response that could help with this problem, and I'm
> sure others would as well.
>
> Thank you.
>
>
>


Posted by MS on September 26, 2005, 10:08 am
Please log in for more thread options

> I'd go for one of two possibilities:-
>
> 1) Factory reset the phone and re-install all the OK apps and
configurations
>
> 2) Don't worry about it.
>
> Not necessarily in that order.

1) No, I'm not going to spend hours re-installing and configuring apps, just
to delete one .tmp file. Not a good option. That would then have to be
repeated every time an app leaves an undeletable system file after
uninstallation. (From reading other posts, this seems to be a common
problem.) No way.

2) I'm not worrying about it. However, I'd like to find a solution to the
problem. (I wouldn't exactly call looking for a solution to a problem
"worrying".) That is why I wrote here about it.

Yes, there doesn't seem to be a normal way to do it, other than your #1,
that is why I posted to the developer's forums, as one would think that
developers would know a way to do this.






Posted by Beverly Howard [Ms-MVP/MobileD on September 26, 2005, 10:26 am
Please log in for more thread options
>> On my Windowsmobile 2003 Smartphone (Audiovox SMT5600) I found a
..tmp file
in the folder \Storage\Windows\AppMgr from an application that had been
uninstalled. (In a subfolder with the application's name.) I of course tried
to delete the file and its subfolder, as I had uninstalled that application.
I tried with various file managers, and with Explore from the Desktop via
ActiveSync, but I always got an error message, that I could not delete that
file, and therefore that folder. <<

Use your pc's file explorer while connected via activesync and
manipulate the attributes and delete as you would on the pc... third
party file explorers do not have this capability.

If the program shipped in rom, it cannot be deleted, but takes no
storage space on your device.

Beverly Howard [MS MVP-Mobile Devices]


Posted by MS on September 26, 2005, 10:18 am
Please log in for more thread options

"Beverly Howard [Ms-MVP/MobileDev]" <BevNoSpamBevHoward.com> wrote in

> Use your pc's file explorer while connected via activesync and
> manipulate the attributes and delete as you would on the pc... third
> party file explorers do not have this capability.
>
> If the program shipped in rom, it cannot be deleted, but takes no
> storage space on your device.
>
> Beverly Howard [MS MVP-Mobile Devices]

Thanks for your response, Beverly.

I thought I made it clear in my post, however, that I tried that, using
Windows Explorer via ActiveSync. The attributes boxes are grayed out, it is
not possible to manipulate the attributes that way.

I also thought I was clear about the aspect mentioned in your second
paragraph. That is quite obvious, that a file in ROM cannot be deleted. The
file I referred to is not a ROM file, it did not come with the product, it
was installed with a third party app. The app was uninstalled, but it left a
..tmp file with the system attribute, which apparently cannot be deleted. (As
I said, in researching this, I found several other posts from people who had
this problem, some with multiple large files like that, left by uninstalled
apps, yet undeletable.) This is a problem, that there should be some way of
dealing with. (I hope fixed in later versions of WM!!)




Similar ThreadsPosted
problem in loading dll when C files are replaced by .asm files August 11, 2007, 3:59 pm
set folder attribute problem August 9, 2005, 5:15 am
How tu set file attribute on smartphone? January 17, 2007, 4:53 am
system restarting March 1, 2006, 6:15 am
System Color August 4, 2006, 6:36 am
Set system volume September 22, 2006, 5:34 pm
System-wide Hooks September 8, 2005, 1:33 am
system wide hook December 27, 2005, 11:49 am
File System Access July 10, 2006, 12:36 am
There are not seven pairs of XPVCOM in system November 2, 2007, 4:17 pm

Our other projects:

Art Dolls, Fairies and Mermaids - Sunnyfaces.net

Roy's Linux, Programming and Search Engines messages

1-Script XML SitemapXML Sitemap