How do I figure out what program is using a file?

EricVT · Mar 28, 2008

I have some files in the trash that I'm trying to empty, but OSX keeps telling me they are in use. They are video files that I made in Quicktime, and I've quit any program that is running that I would associate with video files.

How can I tell where these files are being used so I can get rid of them?

atluten · Mar 28, 2008

I've encountered this problem a few times and have found these two methods useful. You can try either or. A few times I've had luck in identifying some processes that may have some links to the video file by using activity monitor and killing that process, but I have to admit it's more trial-and-error. Best of luck.

1. Log out and log back in, then try deleting the files.
2. Use the "Secure Empty Trash" option in the Finder menu.

mstens · Mar 29, 2008

in terminal you can also do the following:

$ lsof | grep <filename>

It'll show you plenty of information about it. The first word will be the process name that is using it.

For example:

Code:

mike-macbook-pro:~ mike$ lsof | grep -i 'iTunes Library'
iTunes    6945 mike   14u     REG       14,2  15958222    2056175 /Users/mike/Music/iTunes/iTunes Library

You can also do lsof /path/to/file
like this:

Code:

mike-macbook-pro:~ mike$ lsof '/Users/mike/Music/iTunes/iTunes Library'
COMMAND  PID USER   FD   TYPE DEVICE SIZE/OFF    NODE NAME
iTunes  6945 mike   14u   REG   14,2 15958222 2056175 /Users/mike/Music/iTunes/iTunes Library

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How do I figure out what program is using a file?

EricVT

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atluten

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mstens

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