WTF is up with these undeletable/reappearing folders in XP?

[BrokenVisage]

Go ahead, try to remove any permissions you want, stop however many processes you can, hex edit Windows system files till your eyes turn red.. its IMPOSSIBLE to delete or remove the folders "xerox" and "microsoft frontpage" in Program Files. There is NOTHING in these files but one or two other empty folders so they obviously serve no OS purpose, yet still the error it displays when trying to delete is that its being used by another user or program.. what the HELL could be using these folders and for what reason!? Theres nothing even in these folders to use! I guess it wouldn't bother me as much if I could delete them or if I knew why in the hell Windows comes OOB with this anomoly, but it rasied some off-the-wall thoughts I had about Windows and Microsoft, none of which you'd be interested to hear or I'd be compelled to tell and get flamed over. so..

Discuss..?

 

[lobadobadingdong]

uninstall SP2 and then delete them. I don't know what they have to do with SP2, but that's what I found out.

 

[rahvin]

Originally posted by: lobadobadingdong
uninstall SP2 and then delete them. I don't know what they have to do with SP2, but that's what I found out.

xerox was there before SP2

 

[dev0lution]

Question: Why does it matter if they're empty? It's probably one of your other apps that's creating these folders for whatever reason whenever you run the offending application. When you delete it and run X program again it makes a new "Frontpage" or "xerox" folder. Doesn't sound like XP may be the culprit.

 

[BrokenVisage]

Originally posted by: dev0lution
Question: Why does it matter if they're empty? It's probably one of your other apps that's creating these folders for whatever reason whenever you run the offending application. When you delete it and run X program again it makes a new "Frontpage" or "xerox" folder. Doesn't sound like XP may be the culprit.

Oh its not just me, I can assure you everyone running XPSP2 has this, which is half the civilized world. I initially thought it was part of the SETI project, but I think that started way before XP.

 

[stash]

The files that would go in those folders are protected by Windows file protection, so the folders are indirectly protected as well. They are placeholders for apps that might be installed (IIS would use the frontpage folder, for instance). There is no way to delete these folders, because doing so could have unintended consequences if an application that uses them was installed.

 

[imported_Hi]

heh in defense of xerox folder thats where i store my pron