Can't delete temp files!

[ClayStation]

Using version 1.4.37.20, and I can't delete the temp files! I have taken ownership, and reset all the permissions, but it just won't delete them. Now my hard drive is full of junk, and I can't get rid of it. Any ideas? I really don't want to reformat and reinstall windows to clean this mess up, that will really piss me off. I run my system from a PCIe SSD, so space is somewhat limited.

On a brighter note, at least thanks to win toolkit, if I do have to reinstall, at least all the drivers for my SSD are integrated already!

Edited April 9, 2018 by ClayStation

[clarkg888]

Well, you could burn a bootable OS to DVD and boot from it to delete the files (assuming you have a DVD drive on your system). Something like Windows PE or a Linux Live.

Clark.

[Legolash2o]

Interesting... Does it say the files are in use? What folder path are you using?

UPDATE: It looks like you're using an old version.

[ClayStation]

I have a couple of different PE's already installed on my hard drive, and my BCD store, I'll try one of those, good idea. I'm not sure how effective that will be, though. I have more than one windows installation on my machine, and I tried from one of those, too, and didn't get anywhere. Maybe if the PE lacks support for NTFS file permissions, it might work.

I do have an old version, but what I think might be going on is that these are somehow flagged as mounted, somewhere, somehow. I do remember getting some kind of error, but I can't recall what it was, other than a dismount failure of some kind. I bet that's what locked up the temp files. It's been a while since I used it, now. I got all the drivers for all my hardware integrated, even my PCIe SSD card drivers into both the install.wim image, and the boot.wim PE image, so they recognize that. Maybe I should get the latest version, but I'm kind of finished, until some other reason to rebuild a windows installation source arises.

You wanna know what I did? I used it to pack a complete running and ready os, with everything installed and configured, into an install.wim, and it worked! I think it has to be on the same drive, so the windows disc signature matches, but it worked! Now it installs my old system as a fresh install. Well, old as in everything the way I like it with everything I need. Imagine your current os you are using now, as an installation source. I really didn't think that was going to fly at all. Well, you never know what you can do until you try, I suppose. That was something, and I'm not that easily impressed.

[ClayStation]

Here is a possible reason to need a new source. I am happy with win7, and HATED win8. But I'm already encountering issues with new programs that don't want to run with anything less than NetFramework 4.6, and I can't install anything past 4.0. So I know the time is coming, but win10 will need a BUNCH of things changed before I will use it. For one, NO SPYING ON ME, all the services that relate to that sort of activity will have to be disabled by default, if not removed entirely. And some kind of retrofit, or retro theme that makes it look and work more like win7. I know there are a lot of differences, but I don't know what they are, like I said, I have avoided newer versions like they had the plague. I have enough electronic devices spying on me.

Everyone always thought I was nuts, ranting and raving about the government using our electronics to spy on us. Another tinfoil had conspiracy theorist on diet pills. Then Edward Snowden came out and leaked the nature of project "Prism", I KNEW IT! I KNEW IT! I KNEW IT! They ARE spying on us! They record every call, text, and email, and store it away at a massive data center out in the desert in Utah, somewhere! And they still are. So why, then, does everyone still think I'm nuts? I never wear the tinfoil hat in public......

[ClayStation]

I still haven't tried from a PE, yet, but I tried again to clarify the error message, and it keeps telling me I need permission. I have cleared and rebuilt the ACL's (and taken ownership, I know how they work), cleared all the attributes, and get the same error. This is just strange. I have another idea, though, if all else fails, I can convert the whole partition to fat32, but that will destroy all of my ACL's and other filestream data, so it's a last resort. I have a full running install of win7 x32 on my USB flash drive. I converted that to fat32, so that I could still use the drive for other things on other machines and os's. But that made my device manager not work for some reason. MMC just didn't like it. I tried one from xp, that one worked, but failed to recognize 20% of the devices installed, so I abandoned the idea of fat32. It's on my USB drive, and it's the ultimate toolbox. Since I run it on different machines, the device manager working is sort of a deal breaker, you know?

 

("HEY, ROCKY! Watch me pull an operating system out of my ass!")

 

"In my own experience, the secret to happiness is learning to sort the occasional good idea from an endless body of bad ones."

[ClayStation]

Okay, it's getting very twilight zone, here. I was able to delete one of the two temp folders from the PE. But it was a huge effort, as the partition in question resides on my PCIe SSD, which requires drivers. I tried using Win Toolkit to splice the drivers into the PE, but it didn't work until I installed the drivers using Dpinst32 from within the PE. Only then could I access the drive.