Saving My Files

Mike Magnus

I can’t seem to save my files. It keeps saying that despite me closing everything that could, and does, contain it.

PeterJones

You didn’t give us much to go on. Please see the list of possibly-pertinent information in the FAQ, and then reply in this thread with additional details which will help the Community understand your problem, and hopefully help us find a solution for you.

Mike Magnus

Unfortunately, there’s nothing really to go on. What happened was that the laptop I’m working on added some updates, and then suddenly I couldn’t save a thing.

PeterJones

Without more information, we cannot help you. Some specific pertinent information that you should be able to give.

Do you get an error message, or does it just silently not save?
- Error messages are essential to debugging an error.
- either quote the exact text or embed an image in your post with the syntax ![](https://i.imgur.com/_______.png)), where you give the URL to an imgur.com or other website which allows you to host an image
- If there isn’t an error message, how do you know it’s not saving?
If you edit the same file with another program (like window’s builtin notepad.exe), can you save? Or does it give an error?
Does notepad++ not save any file, or is it just refusing to save the one specific file (or a small set of files)
Where are the files located? (this was asked in the FAQ)
- some locations, like c:\windows\system32, have some unique behavior
- network locations, like \\hostname\path\to\file.txt, are notoriously misbehaved

Mike Magnus

Every time I try to save it, it says that it’s open in another place.
I haven’t tried to edit it with another program.
It’s the only file that Notepad++ doesn’t save.
They’re located in Computer Assignment.html

PeterJones

Since you haven’t tried to edit it with another program, it would have been helpful if you then did try after I asked. That information would have told us whether the problem is unique to Notepad++, or whether the problem is with the file(s) you’re trying to save. But since it’s only the one file that NPP doesn’t save, I’m going to assume it’s a problem with that file, rather than with Notepad++ itself.

I was hoping for a full location, rather than just a file name. I wanted to know if it was in some location that can do strange things. (The c:\windows\system32\ has some strange magic that goes on for 64bit OS. Network locations have intermittent connection problems that affect Notepad++ and other apps. Dropbox, OneDrive, and other such folders linked to remote file services can sometimes temporarily lock files while they’re actively archiving the files.) If you aren’t willing to share the true directory name, you could redact some information, such as saying, “it’s in c:\users\my.secret.user.name\super.secret.project.directory\Computer Assignment.html”, or c:\users\user.name\OneDrive\...\Computer Assignement.html, or similar. That may have given more information than just the filename.

Can Notepad++ save other files in the same directory as Computer Assignment.html – I ask, because this might help confirm whether it’s just the one file, or whether it’s the whole directory, that is somehow preventing saving.

Given that you said Computer Assignment.html, I am guessing that maybe some browser or scripting plugin or browser plugin, or some other helper application or DLL, still has the file open and/or locked.

Or maybe some backup utility has locked the file: I know that CrashPlan Backup has often locked my spreadsheets and word documents, and Excel or MS Word aren’t able to save the file until CrashPlan has finished backing up the file.

Microsoft has a utility “ProcessExplorer”: if you download and run that utility, then use Ctrl+F and type part of the name, for example Assignment: it should show any application or other process that has locked any file with “Assignment” in the name. (It doesn’t actually find files that are opened only by Notepad++, because NPP doesn’t lock the files, so other applications are free to save or delete those files, even while Notepad++ has them open.) But if it is locked by another application or DLL, ProcessExplorer should show you. You can then either try to close it via that application, or kill that application, and see if you’re able to then edit and save the file in Notepad++.

If you don’t want to try the ProcessExplorer, you could just try a reboot … that generally frees any locks that other applications have on a file.

Mike Magnus

I repaired it by simply copying the whole code and saving it on another file in a place where I’m sure nothing like this will ever happen again. Sorry for taking up your time.