“Access Denied” errors are quite common on Windows XP, and indeed, the older versions of Microsoft’s operating system as well.

They can be quite diverse in their meaning, and equally confusing in terms of what is necessary to fix the problem. What does Access Denied mean? Well, besides the obvious of not being able to access said file, it typically implies that the source is locked, corrupt or unavailable at that present time.

Much depends on the context in which you’re receiving the error. Are you trying to access a webpage online? Some pages are locked on the Internet and a username and password are required, otherwise an Access Denied error will be returned. If you try to visit a secured page, or if you enter a wrong username and password combination, you will see an Access Denied message. Depending on the web browser that you’re using, this will usually be preceded by a login box. So you will know when you’re trying to access protected content.

Sometimes, however, the Access Denied error will spring up for no particular reason when you try to access files on your local hard disk. Once again, we must take the situation I to perspective of what you are trying to do.

Are you trying to rename or move a file that is already open? Are you trying to write to a file which is read-only? Both of these scenarios could potentially lead to an Access Denied message.

If a file is opened, it will be locked from many of the basic Windows commands. You can’t rename a file while it’s already in use. Close the file and try accessing it again. This should fix the problem. The same situation applies to system services which are required for other programs to operate.

If you open up Windows Task Manager and attempt to shut down a service which is critical to the way that the system functions, you will receive the error. And in cases like that, your access is usually denied for a reason.

You may have seen an error like the one below:

“Folder is not accessible. Access is denied.”

This is a problem which stems from re-installing the operating system and trying to access a folder which was created on a NTFS file system in a past installation. For example, if you re-installed your My Documents folder to a different volume, you will find an Access Denied error when you try to access it on the new system.

The solution is to turn off Simple File Sharing – an option which is set to on by default on Windows XP systems. To do this, you should go to My Computer, followed by the Tools tab. Under the View tab on Folder Options, you will have the chance to enable or disable the Simple File Sharing System. Set it to Off.

Once complete, you can right click on the problematic folder and alter the settings through the Properties tab.

Go to Security, then Advanced, and Owner. Now you simply need to ensure that your current user group has access to the folder. Save the changes where necessary and exit. The folder should now be accessible.

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