Windows 10 - persistent file I cannot delete even with icacls help

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timmmay

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#242290 19-Oct-2018 20:48

I have a file that I can't delete. When I try to delete, view, or view properties it hangs Windows explorer. The problem it's causing is my backup software complains about it. This drive is a storage spaces mirror volume sitting on top of to ReFS formatted disks. You can't check ReFS disk integrity in disk -> properties -> tools.

I've tried rebooting into recover mode command prompt. I cd'd to the folder then used "del filename" and got the message "The filename, directory name, or volume label syntax is incorrect". I tried "icacls * /T /Q /C /RESET" in its folder, it said "cannot find the file specified".

I tried safe mode. I can view the file properties, but the security tab won't show anything. I can't delete it.

Not sure what else I can try. Any suggestions?

I going to tag @Regs who was very helpful last time I had a similar problem, and @nathan who knows something about Windows.

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#2111246 19-Oct-2018 22:37

have you got some type of boot disk / usb stick ??

http://www.ultimatebootcd.com/ is good

use one of those to boot the pc and delete the file

ObidiahSlope

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#2111252 19-Oct-2018 23:48

Do the following PowerShell commands run from an administrative window help;

Get-FileIntegrity

Set-FileIntegrity

Repair-FileIntegrity

Obsequious hypocrite

timmmay

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#2111271 20-Oct-2018 06:04

biggal:

have you got some type of boot disk / usb stick ??

http://www.ultimatebootcd.com/ is good

use one of those to boot the pc and delete the file

The disk is a storage spaces mirror based on the ReFS file system. Do you have any particular tool that fully supports ReFS and ideally Storage Spaces that could do this? I guess with ReFS support but no storage spaces support I could do each physical disk independently.

timmmay

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#2111274 20-Oct-2018 06:07

ObidiahSlope:

Do the following PowerShell commands run from an administrative window help;

Get-FileIntegrity

Set-FileIntegrity

Repair-FileIntegrity

Thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately while I can get-item none of the integrity commands work. Do they apply when ReFS is in a storage space mirror?

Note that I've changed the quite long path to c:\path, so any inconsistencies are with my replace rather than with my commands... probably.

Other File / Folder

To show that another part of the volume is ok here's what happens when I run the same commands on files that are working ok. Again, paths changed, but content is accurate.

FileName Enabled Enforced
-------- ------- --------
c:\files\file1.jpg True True
c:\files\file2.jpg True True

First Command on problem files
c:\path\x> Get-Item -Path 'c:\path\x\*'

Directory:

Mode LastWriteTime Length Name
---- ------------- ------ ----
aux.jpg

Second Command
Get-Item -Path 'c:\path\x\*' | Get-FileIntegrity

Get-FileIntegrity : The specified extrinsic Method does not exist.
At line:1 char:69
+ ... c:\path\x\*' | Get-FileIntegrity
+ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
+ CategoryInfo : MetadataError: (MSFT_FileIntegrity:ROOT/Microsoft/...T_FileIntegrity) [Get-FileIntegrity
], CimException
+ FullyQualifiedErrorId : MI RESULT 17,Get-FileIntegrity

Third Command
c:\path> Get-FileIntegrity -FileName 'c:\path
IM\x\aux.jpg'
Get-FileIntegrity : The specified extrinsic Method does not exist.
At line:1 char:1
+ Get-FileIntegrity -FileName 'c:\path ...
+ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
+ CategoryInfo : MetadataError: (MSFT_FileIntegrity:ROOT/Microsoft/...T_FileIntegrity) [Get-FileIntegrity
], CimException
+ FullyQualifiedErrorId : MI RESULT 17,Get-FileIntegrity

Fourth Command
Get-Item -Path 'c:\path\x\*' | Repair-FileIntegrity

Repair-FileIntegrity : The specified extrinsic Method does not exist.
At line:1 char:69
+ ... photos\Collections\PhoneCameraImages\DCIM\x\*' | Repair-FileIntegrity
+ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
+ CategoryInfo : MetadataError: (MSFT_FileIntegrity:ROOT/Microsoft/...T_FileIntegrity) [Repair-FileIntegr
ity], CimException
+ FullyQualifiedErrorId : MI RESULT 17,Repair-FileIntegrity

fearandloathing

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#2111306 20-Oct-2018 10:05

Have you read this https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/storage/refs/integrity-streams you need to set the integrity first. Understand the commands on a known good file before you work with the bad file.

timmmay

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#2111346 20-Oct-2018 10:32

fearandloathing: Have you read this https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/storage/refs/integrity-streams you need to set the integrity first. Understand the commands on a known good file before you work with the bad file.

Thanks for the link. Integrity streams were enabled for the entire volume when it was created. There's just something wrong with this file.

surfisup1000

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#2111415 20-Oct-2018 13:03

Try and delete using the 'dos' file name.

I've had difficult files in the past, once was the path was too long. I'm sure I had success another time by using the dos file name. Find it by...

DIR /x

Then delete using the dos name, have no idea if that works in REFS though.

Sharesies

Trade NZ and US shares and funds with Sharesies (affiliate link).

timmmay

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#2111416 20-Oct-2018 13:10

surfisup1000:

Try and delete using the 'dos' file name.

I've had difficult files in the past, once was the path was too long. I'm sure I had success another time by using the dos file name. Find it by...

DIR /x

Then delete using the dos name, have no idea if that works in REFS though.

Thanks for the idea. DOS filename is the name as the regular filename, it's "aux.jpg" with no spaces or punctuation.

ObidiahSlope

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#2111432 20-Oct-2018 15:27

Read this thread on technet. Doesn't give you much reassurance;

https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/windowsserver/en-US/cd28095d-e421-4538-9a9f-a15260e79a75/refs-test-with-corrupt-data-does-it-work?forum=winserverfiles

Obsequious hypocrite

ech3lon

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#2111434 20-Oct-2018 15:45

Boot using linux USB?

timmmay

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#2111460 20-Oct-2018 16:48

ObidiahSlope:

Read this thread on technet. Doesn't give you much reassurance;

https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/windowsserver/en-US/cd28095d-e421-4538-9a9f-a15260e79a75/refs-test-with-corrupt-data-does-it-work?forum=winserverfiles

Not a lot, but there's really only one or two people there and their methodology looks somewhat questionable.

ech3lon:

Boot using linux USB?

Does Linux do ReFS formatted disks in a Storage Space mirror?

gzt

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#2111506 20-Oct-2018 17:43

Windows system event log for ReFS events. Anything interesting there?

timmmay

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#2111616 20-Oct-2018 20:29

I went into the Event View, System log. I sent the filter to "ReFS (Microsoft-Windows-ReFS), ReFS (ReFS), ReFSv1, StorageSpaces-Driver, StorageSpaces-ManagementAgent, StorageSpaces-SpaceManager". Event level was left blank, and then I tried all the check boxes. There were no events at all. This is fairly typical, I check these logs every few months and never see anything.

My confidence in ReFS and storage spaces is fairly low at this point. I haven't had any obvious file corruption.

A while back I was looking at building a PC for a ZFS NAS, but decided to do ReFS and storage spaces on my instead. Much cheaper and easier, and so far no problems. I'm considering moving all my data from the ReFS storage space to a temporary disk, then using a single NTFS disk for data with some kind of nightly backup. I have regular backups to offsite disks, and cloud backups, so my data is safe, I think ReFS and storage spaces it immature and needs a few years more testing before it's really used in production.

I am seeing a few generic disk errors, all at least a week ago, such as

The IO operation at logical block address 0x5f for Disk 6 (PDO name: \Device\00000081) was retried.

An error was detected on device \Device\Harddisk6\DR16 during a paging operation.

I note that my swap file is on an NTFS SSD, which isn't the disk I'm having issues with.

gzt

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#2111638 20-Oct-2018 21:03

Task Scheduler > Microsoft\Windows\Data Integrity Scan.

I'd assume that would log a run at least but maybe not. Is there a command line exposed in that you can run manually and get some output?

gzt

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#2111649 20-Oct-2018 21:16

Btw just noticed Microsoft removed ReFS creation from Pro standard at Fall Creators:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4034825/features-that-are-removed-or-deprecated-in-windows-10-fall-creators-up

Creation is available in a new sku "Windows 10 Pro for Workstations" and up.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4034825/features-that-are-removed-or-deprecated-in-windows-10-fall-creators-up

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