TalkingSoft.com Forums: Unable to delete AVI files in Windows XP's Explorer? - TalkingSoft.com Forums

Hello!

I just installed the latest v2.65 full package of K-Lite Codec Pack in Windows XP Pro. SP2 (all updates). Before that, I did uninstall all my installed codecs except DivX Pro v5.21 (use it for encoding videos!).

Everything seems to work, but one thing. I am having problems deleting AVI (DivX) files in Windows Explorer. The deletedm files disappear and then come back. Trying to delete them again resulted access denied (even in command line). The file is physically gone. According to System Internals' Process Explorer, there are AVI 4 handles for each AVI file. I have to either kill Explorer. reboot, or kill these handles to make the files vanish for good.

Thank you in advance.

You can try to unregister shmedia.dll. See this guide for details about how to do it.

Thanks. That worked! I am wondering. What program/feature of codec is causing this problem? What did I lose to unregister this shmedia.dll? Just preview feature?

In http://www.free-codecs.com/reviews/K_Lite_Codec_Pack.htm ... I was told to try Unlocker: http://www.scanwith.com/download/Unlocker.htm ... It worked! I will be reregistering my shmedia.dll.

This glitch happened in my Windows XP Pro. SP2 at work too!

The problem is caused by a windows 'feature'. Avi Preview. When you go to directory with a/v files in it windows scans it and then goes to supply the info i8n the little pop up ballons. Well, when you have a crap load of filters it can take forever for windows to complete the lookup for the whole dir. In many cases explorer will actually crash when you mouse over an avi file. To deal with thjis you can remove/unreg the .dll file bor run the app called avi preview fix. Just google avi preview

here's a quote from another site with the attribution included.

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If you have a large movie clip and it either is corrupt (ie. no index from a partial download) or it uses an unsupported codec, then Explorer tries to load the whole file. This can slow your computer a lot and prevent deleting/renaming/moving/etc the file until it's finished.
Simply do the following steps:
1) Open a command window (Start->Run, type in 'cmd' hit enter)
2) To remove image preview, type and hit enter
regsvr32 /u shimgvw.dll
3) To readd image preview, type and hit enter
regsvr32 shimgvw.dll
4) To remove media preview, type and hit enter
regsvr32 /u shmedia.dll
5) To readd media preview, type and hit enter
regsvr32 shmedia.dll


The Credit goes to http://www.tweakxp.com/tweak2123.aspx
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Hope that helps. Of course Unlocker 1.75 is very useful as well, for this and other problems. It puts an unlock addition to your right click menu.

luck!

topcat139

Excellent tip, TopCat.
I usually end up just terminating Explorer process after opening a command window.
Usually deleting in DOS works or booting into safemode.

Yeah, but I hate losing some of my icons in Explorer.

You only lose the desktop temporarily. After you delete file in DOS with DEL command,
you just go back to task manager (CTRL+alt+DEL, applications.. new task) and restart new task... EXPLORER.EXE. Everything goes back to normal.