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31 Mar 07 - 11:06 AM (#2012611) Subject: Tech: Changed DVD, access denied to files From: Stilly River Sage I think there are two problems here. I have decided it's time to pitch out the Norton again, the annual renewal is coming up, so I did some research and decided that I'd like to try to free one from Comodo. Before doing anything to my Norton files, I downloaded Comodo files, and while I was setting up to download their related suite, I did an on-the-fly setup of a new folder to place them in. When I tried a few minutes later to open folder, access was denied. There isn't anything in it, but I can't remove it or open it. "Windows cannot access the specified device, path, or file. You may not have the appropriate permissions to access them." This morning I swapped out my old CD drive for a new DVD burner (now I have two DVDs on this computer). When I tried to open and install a small program to use with this DVD (not one from the manufacturer, something else) I can't open it. Access is denied. I've opend various other folders and files, but there are a few, that seem to be related to the DVD, that don't work. The Specs I have an HP a820n PC, and the layout when I purchased it was a DVD-LightScribe burner and a CD player. It's just over 2 years old. I replaced the original DVD-burner last year when it died, and I put in an HP 840 LightScribe (it had orignally a 640). I've been meaning to update to 2 DVD players, and I found a great sale this week, so picked up a Pioneer DVD burner. It is in place, and has been tested and works fine. It purposely doesn't have LightScribe. Okay. When I put in the HP DVD last year, I neglected to move the little jumper from slave to master. So all of this time it has been in place, it wasn't dominant. Opening a program that looks at those drives would default to the CD player and I had to select the DVD. I realize this may have had some small affect on how it worked, but I can't think it was much. I put the HP in the lower position and the new Pioneer in the upper, and the Pioneer is now the master and the HP is still the slave. They're both burners. When I downloaded software to use with the DVD (trying to remove the zones so I can play European DVDs for films that will never make it ti DVD in the states) I wonder if it was immediately associated with the system in such a way that now I can't open them? I just did a test and re-downloaded one of the programs to my desktop, set it up, and it opens fine. So how do I get rid of the block that has inserted it self between me and these few files that won't open? I use the computer as administrator, so that isn't an issue. I do think that sitting down to do several things at once has probably commingled some stuff, or at least, commingled the things that must be considered in this permissions problem. I haven't deleted Norton yet. I wonder about simply using the system restore will work? I'm going to save this and then launch it, and see what happens. But I suspect I'll be back. SRS |
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31 Mar 07 - 11:21 AM (#2012621) Subject: RE: Tech: Changed DVD, access denied to files From: Stilly River Sage Part II So, I suppose it is no surprise that there is some little Windows message as the computer shuts down that tells me that something failed to initialize. It's gone so quickly I can't read it. And the System Restore fails. I tried going back 2 days, a week, and a month. I'd really like to dump Norton. I'll miss their ad blocking, but I'm convinced it is messing up other things and Big Brother is making my computer run slower. Email hangs while it inspects the outgoing mail, etc. Bleh. When it rains it pours. SRS |
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31 Mar 07 - 10:01 PM (#2012995) Subject: RE: Tech: Changed DVD, access denied to files From: The Fooles Troupe "move the little jumper from slave to master" Since John hasn't got here yet I'll have a bash... You may or may not 'need' the jumper. (Depending on the weather - sorry! - it's April 1 here...) BTW, I know nothing specifically about XP - or Vista. Hardware: Drives on the IDE bus can be selected in either of 2 ways - CS (Cable Select) or Hard Assigned - for this second way, you need to have one jumpered to Master and the other jumpered to Slave For the CS method to work - you need both drives jumpered to CS - and then the wiring can handle it automatically. With the (now officially not Politically Correct!***) Master/Slave method - one MUST be set Master, the other MUST be set Slave - if they are both set to the same or one is set to CS - at least one drive, or probably both will not work - I don't know if any permanent damage can be done to either the drives or interface, - but you just mustn't do that! :-) "message as the computer shuts down that tells me that something failed to initialize." Wouldn't be surprised if that is something to do with the drives. It may be something to do with that drive SW (patch). WHen the system is running, have a look at the Control Panel setting stuff that tells you whether your hardware is all being correctly recognised, that may help. *** I'm NOT making this up you know! |
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31 Mar 07 - 10:27 PM (#2013021) Subject: RE: Tech: Changed DVD, access denied to files From: Stilly River Sage I got the drives to work, and I finished that task. I've found a number of files that I downloaded that I can't open now; those I generate seem to be okay (from what I've looked at so far). I think I did something that messed up the permissions when I was downloading the parts of the Comodo program. I think the DVD drives are a red herring (for me, at least). But isn't this the way of it--you have a few tasks to do, and you lump them into an afternoon, then you have to untangle everything to find out which move was the fatal flaw. SRS |
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31 Mar 07 - 11:25 PM (#2013078) Subject: RE: Tech: Changed DVD, access denied to files From: The Fooles Troupe "I've found a number of files that I downloaded that I can't open now;" I can only suggest that maybe the file permissions may be wrong - or that they are somehow set up with a 'file type' that is no longer installed somehow - that could be a registry hassle dues to not having the prog or util installed - or they could be somehow 'encrypted' and that would also need some special app to access them. |
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31 Mar 07 - 11:42 PM (#2013089) Subject: RE: Tech: Changed DVD, access denied to files From: JohnInKansas I think I recall that you have WinXP on the machine in question? "Access is Denied" Error Message When You Try to Open a Folder (KB810811) may be some help with the folders that can't be accessed. The article describes a particular cause that doesn't look likely here; but gives a general procedure for "recovering ownership" of a file when your account privileges for one or more individual files are mangled. No guarantees here, but in theory it has a fair-to-good chance. In older systems, you'd likely just go to a DOS window, but the Command Window inside WinXP recognizes accounts, and a "DOS boot" sometimes can't read (all of) an NTFS partition which you probably have. WinXP Pro includes a "Recovery Console" that might help; but it's a hairy mess to get into (and out of) so I'd avoid it except as a last resort. It does sound like you may have a mixup with jumper settings, and if so that needs to be corrected to some consistent set of jumpers. Details vary somewhat with individual drive mfrs. Note that the connectors on the cable may be specific Master/Slave (for EIDE) and need to match the jumpers on the separate drives: Master connector to Drive with Master jumper, etc. A normal procedure with drives that don't get recognized is to go to Device Manager (Start|Settings|Control Panel, Double Click "System," Hardware Tab, Device Manager button). If the DVD drives both show, simply delete the drivers for both of them and then reboot. PnP will find new drivers and should sort out drive labels and priorities for them. Default drivers from the system CAB files may be used, but if an updated driver has been installed, it usually gets saved to the CAB folders when you unload it (isn't just deleted) so that the new one often comes back re-installed; but once you get the drives recognized you can go back and do a driver update if needed. (A 2-year old DVD drive may also have a Drive BIOS update available, so check later when the other stuff is fixed.) It probably would be a good idea to look in Control Panel Add/Remove Programs and see if any of the "specials" that you downloaded during this manipulation appear, indicating that an installation was attempted. Removal, and reinstallation after the hardware gets sorted out, would likely be a good idea just on principle, but you can use some degree of judgement on that. John |
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01 Apr 07 - 12:04 AM (#2013101) Subject: RE: Tech: Changed DVD, access denied to files From: The Fooles Troupe "Note that the connectors on the cable may be specific Master/Slave" Yeah, John they keep on changing 'the standards' all the time... with computers, but my favourite 'Local Rock Music Station' just seems to keep all the old Standards.... :-P |
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01 Apr 07 - 01:22 AM (#2013153) Subject: RE: Tech: Changed DVD, access denied to files From: Stilly River Sage I hadn't switched file types or computers or OSs, but this was the fix I needed. I've been this route before, to get the old hard drive to release access to files once the hard drive was moved and was in the slave position. I just couldn't remember the sequence. I'm sure there are a few other files that are bonkers. I'll check everything I was working on that day and see if somehow a glitch in a log (or something along those lines) did a global permission change on what I'd been working on. Thanks again, John! SRS |
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01 Apr 07 - 12:58 PM (#2013518) Subject: RE: Tech: Changed DVD, access denied to files From: Stilly River Sage Whew! Shedding that bloated monster Symantec Firewall has speeded up my computer tremendously! I'm running Comodo for a while, to see how that works. I'm carefully reading the "learning" messages, making sure I'm not letting malignant stuff through, but so far so good. Nothing like tinkering with a whole bunch of things at once, then you have a helluva time backtracking what is the thing that isn't working right. But this is the way it goes around here. Since I have the new firewall I'm busy turning on all sorts of programs and letting the firewall "learn" the permissions. So in addition to the new security software, I'm getting all sorts of other "its time to update" messages. Looks like the Netscape folks have been scrambling to keep up--I'll enjoy checking out the new features. I haven't used it much because it didn't seem to have changed much, but now it's trying to keep up with it's poor-step brother Firefox. The new software seems to have killed off my Google toolbar. I'll have to go hunt for it. SRS |
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01 Apr 07 - 01:15 PM (#2013536) Subject: RE: Tech: Changed DVD, access denied to files From: Q (Frank Staplin) I have had excellent service from Spyware Doctor. My broadband cable server gives excellent protection ('Shaw Secure'- sometimes over-protective) and I may drop Spyware Doctor when renewal comes up (or not, they do catch some stuff that my cable server doesn't). I had many problems with Norton, and with McAfee. Slowdowns, failure of upgrades, long talks with technicians in India that failed to solve the problems. Glad to be rid of them. It took a long time to get their tentacles out of all my programs. My daughter was a big help because she is computer-savvy. You may find a glitch here and there until these tentacles are removed. |
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01 Apr 07 - 03:38 PM (#2013693) Subject: RE: Tech: Changed DVD, access denied to files From: Stilly River Sage I left in Partition Magic and Ghost, so I am sure there will be some remnants around. I've had to uninstall and reinstall to figure out how to get Comodo to allow in my Google Toolbar, it isn't easy to find a place to reverse a permission if you accidentally blocked something. But it operates much quicker without the Norton baggage. SRS |
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29 Dec 08 - 06:42 PM (#2526973) Subject: RE: Tech: Changed DVD, access denied to files From: Stilly River Sage I'm revising my computer after troubleshooting and am pulling a couple of these old threads to the top. This one was useful for John in Kansas' link to the Microsoft support article he linked to. I've printed it out again and will see if I can reclaim some of my useful stuff. I'll still rebuild the computer with a larger hard drive, but I'll at least have the old stuff handy. SRS |
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29 Dec 08 - 10:03 PM (#2527084) Subject: RE: Tech: Changed DVD, access denied to files From: Stilly River Sage BTW: I got rid of Comodo some time back and am using AVG and Kerio, the last free download version of it. Comodo was slow and overly busy with downloads and updates that slowed down eveyrthing else and made other software difficult to use fully. SRS |