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Questions tagged [lock]

A generic term for placing a restriction of some sort. It could refer to placing a password-based or biometric protection over a device, a system or a set of data. It could also refer to placing read-only protection on certain configuration or data (like files). Questions using this tag can also be regarding the opposite action of unlocking.

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34 votes
7 answers
61k views

Where does Windows store icon positions?

Where do Windows XP/Vista/7/... save the positions of the icons on the desktop? Is there a built-in way to save the positions? Can I lock the position of certain items?
bot47's user avatar
  • 1,862
31 votes
5 answers
16k views

How to lock a file in Windows without changing it or using third party tools?

Is there a way to lock a file with on-board tools so it can't be deleted or overwritten? For testing of copy scripts I need to lock files temporarily to check the error handling in the scripts. Till ...
marsh-wiggle's user avatar
  • 3,004
18 votes
5 answers
16k views

does a CMD window stop running while Windows 10 lock screen is enabled?

I'm not sure how the lock works in Windows 10, but I'd like to access the features of locking my screen after a CMD process has been executed. As the CMD window would already be running before the ...
Kalamalka Kid's user avatar
14 votes
2 answers
16k views

Audio from headphones is muted after screen is locked or sleep mode (Windows 8.1)

The adventure (how it all started) Exactly as in the title, whenever I lock the screen (by pressing Windows + L or Ctrl + Alt + Del -> Lock) audio stops working. Well, partially, since speakers still ...
Marco Chiappetta's user avatar
13 votes
8 answers
84k views

Why does my screen keep locking every two minutes or so?

I am running Windows 10 Pro, build 10586, on a Lenovo T-520. Fairly recently a behaviour has appeared, where the screen locks, and goes blank, after about 2 minutes of not using the PC. I have ...
ProfK's user avatar
  • 2,651
10 votes
9 answers
81k views

TeamViewer 8 - Log into locked session

I want to use TV8 between my home & work PCs (both running win7 pro). The problem is that my work pc is configured to lock after 5mins of inactivity and to relog back again you have to press Ctr+...
lephleg's user avatar
  • 221
9 votes
7 answers
79k views

Is there a way to shut down and lock a PC at a predetermined time? [closed]

I have a 14 year old boy who's obsessed with his gaming PC so much that he stays awake all night sometimes and sleeps all day. Normally that would cause havoc with his schooling but he's being home ...
Jim's user avatar
  • 91
8 votes
3 answers
16k views

How to lock Windows 10 screen without a keyboard?

I know I can lock windows (in particular I'm using windows 10) via the keyboard with Win+L. However, if I don't have a keyboard attached is there a way to lock the session with just the mouse? I know ...
User's user avatar
  • 3,747
8 votes
0 answers
2k views

How to disable MS Word from locking opened files

Microsoft Word has a annoying habit of whenever it opens a word file to prevent other runtimes from accessing it. As far as I can perceive, it's to prevent a lost update scenario with word files. So ...
Zarylo's user avatar
  • 83
6 votes
1 answer
2k views

Does Windows allow to rename a folder containing locked files?

Being aware that the family of Windows OSes uses mandatory file locking while POSIX family systems use advisory lock, I was wondering if Windows is capable to have a directory structure renamed, while ...
humanityANDpeace's user avatar
6 votes
4 answers
92k views

How to prevent windows from locking / sleeping (without admin privileges)

I know it is possible to disable auto log out from control panel. I want to know is there a way to prevent windows from locking/ sleeping without changing any security options.
Nikitesh Kolpe's user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
9k views

Unlock PC with Windows Task Scheduler

I need to set up a Scheduled Task to unlock Windows 7 PC at specific time. And second Task, to lock at other specific time. Is this possible by cmd.exe command, or I need to use some third party ...
BlueMark's user avatar
  • 277
5 votes
2 answers
4k views

Will cron.daily wait for jobs to finish before starting the next one?

This page http://wiki.ci.uchicago.edu/I2U2/WebalizerConfiguration suggests renaming /etc/cron.daily/logrotate so it comes after /etc/cron.daily/webalizer - webalizer should be done before logrotate ...
commonpike's user avatar
5 votes
2 answers
12k views

Run a batch file when I lock/unlock my computer

Is there a way I can run a batch file upon locking my computer, and then run another batch file when I unlock it? (Windows 8.1) Thank you!
intA's user avatar
  • 403
4 votes
1 answer
4k views

How disable file locks in Windows

How can I disable file locking in windows, so that locked files can be overwritten as in linux systems? I am developing a plugin, which is a dll. Before compiling it again, i always need to unload it ...
allo's user avatar
  • 1,158
4 votes
1 answer
7k views

Lock screen after auto login Debian/Ubuntu

My situation: Need auto login for my Wheezy. Sometimes I'm away from my PC when it rebootsso I need to lock the screen after auto login. When I type /usr/bin/gnome-screensaver-command -l it locks ...
Maris's user avatar
  • 63
4 votes
2 answers
19k views

Why does my account keeps getting locked? What does the log Event 4648 means?

I have this problem I just cant seem to find the source. My AD account keeps getting locked. Using lockout status and looking at the netlogon log i figured out which PC it is. I know which process is ...
Benoit Bourgault's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
8k views

Unusual and sudden slow login and lock screen in Windows 7

I have Windows 7 Professional on my laptop (since 2011, not updated). It was working fine, but suddenly the login screen has an unusually long please wait time, and lock screen takes about a minute or ...
user166289's user avatar
4 votes
0 answers
190 views

Why does Windows 7 only lock the computer upon stopping the screensaver? [closed]

On Windows 7, when I leave my station unattended, the screensaver starts. After a certain time -- although not exactly with starting the screensaver -- as soon as I leave the screensaver, the station ...
zuiqo's user avatar
  • 696
4 votes
0 answers
84 views

Can I *actually* lock my computer, so that the only thing I can do is type my password? [duplicate]

I make frequent use of Win+L, which will lock my computer and prompt me to enter my password to unlock it. This is to prevent other (mischevious) people from doing anything while I am away. However, ...
Doorknob's user avatar
  • 777
4 votes
2 answers
2k views

"Console lock display off time-out" not working

I followed the advice of numerous tutorials to enable the "Console lock display off time-out" setting in advanced power options, and I have changed my currently active plan to time out after 1 minute ...
Jez's user avatar
  • 2,968
3 votes
4 answers
2k views

How to lock a folder forever even if OS has been changed?

I need to use a folder lock software to protect my private folders. But there is a main problem with most of them. Imagine I installed one of them on my sysem that runs Windows 7. Everything is ok up ...
Mohammad Bagher Saberi's user avatar
3 votes
4 answers
14k views

Excel - Lock cells based on color?

I have this excel sheet where i want to protect some cells from formating and editing. All these cells are colored with a specific color. The sheet is very big and therefor i am looking for a way to ...
Behedwin's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
3k views

How to lock my computer after a certain amount of time from login?

I have an 8-year-old son, who likes to spend too much time playing computer games and browsing the internet. I have allowed him an hour of computer time in the morning and an hour in the evening. ...
Adam's user avatar
  • 31
3 votes
1 answer
417 views

Remember sudo password until screen lock possible?

I usually use Linux as my standard working system and I learned a lot from actually using it. For this particular question I found no answer yet. The sudo command usually remembers me typing in my ...
Alex's user avatar
  • 33
3 votes
2 answers
2k views

Warning about locking Windows 7 after inactivity

I'm working with sensitive data and I forget to lock my Windows frequently when I leave computer. Is there a way how can I lock Windows automatically after certain idle time and get a warning before? ...
det det's user avatar
  • 31
3 votes
1 answer
645 views

From the terminal, how do I determine the date/time for the last time Windows was locked or unlocked?

I press WinKey + L every time I physically leave my computer, for basic security. When I come back, I enter the short Windows password and press Enter to go back into my desktop. (This is not "...
Theodoro's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
14k views

Cannot Unlock ATA Security Locked Hard Drive Locked During Secure Erase

As stated in the title, I’ve got an ATA security-locked hard drive that I cannot seem to unlock. The locking happened after I started an ATA security-enhanced erase from Ubuntu’s Disks utility. The ...
Kevin Li's user avatar
  • 141
3 votes
5 answers
14k views

Screen (not Lock Screen) Timeout Stuck at 1 Minute

I recently got a new laptop (Lenovo T440p with Windows 8.1 Pro) and was having the following issue: the screen would lock (screen would go black and require a password to get back in) after 1 minute. ...
TheRotag's user avatar
  • 179
3 votes
2 answers
6k views

When System PID 4 is locking a file or folder, How can I determine what program/process/service is locking it without guesswork?

(This question is not a duplicate of Find out which process is locking a file or folder in Windows I am asking specifically about when PID-4 is locking it (besides the fact that i'm saying without ...
barlop's user avatar
  • 24.2k
3 votes
0 answers
485 views

lock screen & session suspension in Debian Jessie

I just read of an issue that seemed similar to mine, and as I cannot comment yet and my problem is different I will ask my question outright. the similar issue can be found here: Suspend does not ...
Tim Danielson's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
8k views

How to lock Windows 10 screen without turn off?

Is it possible to lock screen without screen turn off? For example, here is my settings: I wanna automatically lock screen after 5 minutes, but display should not off (only after 30 minutes). I ...
Adam Shakhabov's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
387 views

Excel Lock File - Why can i copy it, but not open it?

If i have an Excel file SomeFile.xlsx open, a file is created ~SomeFile.xlsx that contains the name of the user who has opened/locked the Excel file. I can't directly open the file in Notepad, but I ...
3-14159265358979323846264's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
9k views

Is processes terminated when a user locks their account on Windows 10?

So let's say a user is downloading large files where he's going to leave the computer downloading in his office. Will the processes be terminated or paused (not just download but any possible running ...
Andrew.Wolphoe's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
4k views

How to find out which file or folder is being locked by process in Windows OS? [duplicate]

Once in a while, I run the task manager and see several processes with the same name (e.g. comskip) running at the same time in the background while looping or using most of computation power (because ...
Bayilo Kanto's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
3k views

gpgv: can't allocate lock for '~/.gnupg/trustedkeys.gpg' after importing keys

I'm currently trying to set up a small (partial) ubuntu mirror. Doing this, I stumbled across gpgv. And as I need gpgv for verifying the signatures of the mirror files, I tried importing the ubuntu ...
jjt's user avatar
  • 21
2 votes
3 answers
2k views

Locking applications z-order on Windows 10

Is there a way to lock the ordering of multiple windows even if one is focused? I have six windows in which I only need to interact with the right edge and would like the layering to be preserved ...
Funky's user avatar
  • 31
2 votes
1 answer
3k views

Windows 10 - Ask for a password when the display is off

I want the computer to require to enter a password after, say, 5 minutes but I don't want to put it to sleep. I was able to do it in Windows 7 but I couldn't figure out in Windows 10. Is it possible?
user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
666 views

How do I lock out all PC activity depending on time?

I'd like to enforce a curfew, say 11 PM, and stop a kid from using the PC after that, locking the user out of all activity unless a password is given until morning. Is there some way to do this in ...
Frusty's user avatar
  • 21
2 votes
1 answer
6k views

Computer freezing when accessing network files [closed]

Whenever any application on my computer tries to reach out to files that are on my companies network drive [i.e. not on my computer], it locks up and crashes. This can be as simple as opening up a ...
VivaLebowski's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
1k views

How do I open a pdf file with PDF X-Change Viewer so that I can still modify the pdf source?

Whenever I open a pdf file with PDF X-Change Viewer it locks up the source pdf file to edits. Is there a way to open the pdf (with PDF X-Change Viewer) so that it doesn't lock-up the source file --- ...
ltcomdata's user avatar
  • 187
2 votes
1 answer
3k views

How to automatically lock Dropbox files to prevent multiple users from working simultaneously?

We use Dropbox to sync files we're working on between multiple computers. Is there a way to automatically lock a synced file on other computers when one user opens it for editing, so it's impossible ...
bill's user avatar
  • 21
2 votes
0 answers
489 views

How do I lock a window from closing?

I’m great with computers, but I can’t seem to find a way to keep a window from being closed. I want to be able to open chrome, and keep it open, so that when someone tries to close out of it, it won’t ...
Furman Matheson's user avatar
2 votes
0 answers
2k views

Caps and Num Lock Notifications in Windows 10

A few months ago I bought a Microsoft Sculpt Ergonomic keyboard. It installed some Microsoft proprietary software for itself that automatically set a notification to appear in the bottom right-hand ...
Needs More Documentation's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
4k views

How to turn off display but not lock the screen in Windows 2012 R2

For various reasons I want my server to: Automatically turn off the display after 10 minutes of inactivity. Never go into sleep mode. Never lock the screen automatically. So, if I were to leave my ...
user3222595's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
12k views

Disable Acer's Auto-Rotate Lock Toggle In Windows 8

I have an Acer Aspire R7, and I'm happy enough with it except for the way Acer handles the Auto-Rotate Lock. Auto-Rotate in Windows 8 Normally in Windows 8 if you rotate the physical screen, a sensor ...
Chris Moschini's user avatar
2 votes
0 answers
2k views

One CPU core stuck at 100% doing kernel stuff

A few days ago I started experiencing a weird issue - one core was stuck at 100% doing some kernel stuff. This problem is NOT OS specific: it occurs in Windows 7 (including Safe Mode), Ubuntu 12.04 ...
MK_Dev's user avatar
  • 211
1 vote
1 answer
53k views

How can i download a file from virustotal for free? [closed]

I want to download a file from virustotal.com https://www.virustotal.com/en/file/655bde7f3c270b7b06e6c3dbba5c041727aec5389339f71b3ca73f80316212f9/analysis/ http://processchecker.com/file/LidLock.exe....
Sunil's user avatar
  • 31
1 vote
2 answers
4k views

How to lock Windows 7 computer automatically instead of sleeping? [duplicate]

After a set time period I'd like to have my computer lock. I do not want the computer to go into any kind of power saving mode, I'd just like it to lock the screen. Which setting must I configure?
Mars's user avatar
  • 275
1 vote
2 answers
2k views

Auto Lock Windows 10 on Hibernate

Does anyone know if it is possible to auto lock your computer when you put the machine into Hibernate. I know I can lock the computer first then hibernate it but I am wondering if it is possible to do ...
Mr.Mitten's user avatar