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You receive a FileName is locked for editing by 'another user' message when you try to modify a document in Windows SharePoint Services even though you are the user who previously opened the document

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Microsoft Knowledge Base Article

This article contents is Microsoft Copyrighted material.
©2005-©2007 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Terms of Use | Trademarks
Article ID: 899709 - Last Review: August 25, 2011 - Revision: 3.0

You receive a "<FileName> is locked for editing by 'another user'" message when you try to modify a document in Windows SharePoint Services even though you are the user who previously opened the document

View products that this article applies to.

SYMPTOMS

Consider the following scenario. In Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services, you connect to a document library. Then, you click Edit in ProgramName to open and modify a document in the document library. The document opens in the program as expected. However, an issue occurs and the program unexpectedly quits or crashes. After the program quits, you connect to the document library again. Then, you click Edit in ProgramName to open and modify the same document.

In this scenario, the document does not open as expected. Instead, you receive the following message in a File in Use dialog box:
FileName is locked for editing by 'another user'.

Do you want to:

Open a Read Only copy
Create a local copy and merge your changes later
Receive notification when the original copy is available
You receive this message even though you are the user who previously opened the document.
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CAUSE

When a document is opened by a client program, Windows SharePoint Services puts a write lock on the document on the server. The write lock times out after 10 minutes. Users cannot modify the document during the time when the document is locked.

In a scenario where the program that opens the document unexpectedly quits or crashes and you try to open the document again before the write lock times out, the message that you receive says that the document is locked by another user. This behavior occurs even though you are user who previously opened the document.
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WORKAROUND

To work around this behavior, wait 10 minutes before you click Edit in ProgramName to open the document again.
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MORE INFORMATION

For more information about Windows SharePoint Services, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/sharepoint-help/ (http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/sharepoint-help/)
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APPLIES TO
  • Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services 3.0
  • Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services 2.0
  • Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007
  • Microsoft Office SharePoint Portal Server 2003
  • Microsoft SharePoint Online
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Keywords: 
kbconfig kbprb kbtshoot KB899709
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JM Reported as Irrelevant  
Written: 9/14/2006 9:24 AM
In our case, the lock is not being released even after 3 days, and the lock owner cannot open it for edit. What will force an unlock?

JiriU Report As Irrelevant  
Written: 12/10/2009 8:51 AM
Luckily it worked for me and after 10 minutes I was able to edit the file again. Thanks for the solution.



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