question about Safely Remove Hardware

[ALev]

Hello,

When I try to safely remove my printer using the "Safely Remove Hardware"
icon in the lower right corner of the screen, I get the message

"the device 'OfficeJet Something' cannot be stopped because a program is
still accessing it"

How can I determine which program is accessing it?

 

[Don Phillipson]

When I try to safely remove my printer using the "Safely Remove Hardware"
icon in the lower right corner of the screen, I get the message

"the device 'OfficeJet Something' cannot be stopped because a program is
still accessing it"

How can I determine which program is accessing it?

The USB disconnect procedure need never delay you
switching off a printer so long as you are sure its print
function has terminated. The printer may be polling the
PC in case another page is yet to come. But you need
not identify what module does this (although it is listed in
Program Manager lists this along with scores of other
modules so you may be unable to identify the particular item.

 

[ALev]

So, you're saying that it is safe to just yank the USB cord out when the
printer is not printing? Also, can you explain in more detail how I could
find which program is using the hardware? I also have the Windows Process
Explorer. Is it easier to find out with that?

Andrew

 

[Alister]

So, you're saying that it is safe to just yank the USB cord out when the
printer is not printing? Also, can you explain in more detail how I could
find which program is using the hardware? I also have the Windows Process
Explorer. Is it easier to find out with that?

Andrew

You will probably find it is the print spooler, or even just the printer
driver, that is "using" the device. On most modern USB printers the
driver doesn't just talk to the printer when it's printing, it is
constantly checking your ink levels and paper availability and stuff
like that. I wouldn't get hung up about this, the short answer is yes,
you /can/ just "yank out" the USB cord on a printer. (although I suggest
you only give a gentle pull)

I also suggest you power off the printer first.

Alister

 

[ALev]

OK. Thanks. I will do that in the future. However, I just had the same
problem with my external disk drive. I tried to safely remove and it said

"the device 'name of my disk drive' cannot be stopped because a program is
still accessing it"

I killed all of the processes that I thought my be accessing, but I still
got the error message. In this case, it might be more serious if I just pull
out the USB, e.g. if a program has written half of a file to the disk drive.
So, how can I find the program that is using my disk drive?

Andrew

 

[Alister]

OK. Thanks. I will do that in the future. However, I just had the same
problem with my external disk drive. I tried to safely remove and it said

"the device 'name of my disk drive' cannot be stopped because a program is
still accessing it"

I killed all of the processes that I thought my be accessing, but I still
got the error message. In this case, it might be more serious if I just pull
out the USB, e.g. if a program has written half of a file to the disk drive.
So, how can I find the program that is using my disk drive?

Andrew

With a USB hard drive or USB stick you have to be more careful - as you
have tried to be - because when you write files to the drive, the
operating system may not actually write the files straight away - it
holds them until it is not busy and then writes them. (it's called
delayed write, surprisingly). For this reason it is a good idea to close
any explorer windows that might be open on that drive, and give the
system some time to gather itself. The other thing is if you have an
antivirus scanner with real-time protection running - this may still be
checking the files on the USB drive even though you have finished with it.

I don't think it's a real good practice to just kill off processes from
task manager, you might break something!

The most obvious culprit is on-access scanning by your antivirus
software, so try stopping that temporarily from within the antivirus
control panel and see if that allows you to remove the drive.

Alister

 

[John McGaw]

OK. Thanks. I will do that in the future. However, I just had the same
problem with my external disk drive. I tried to safely remove and it said

"the device 'name of my disk drive' cannot be stopped because a program is
still accessing it"

I killed all of the processes that I thought my be accessing, but I still
got the error message. In this case, it might be more serious if I just pull
out the USB, e.g. if a program has written half of a file to the disk drive.
So, how can I find the program that is using my disk drive?

Andrew

"Alister" wrote:

snip...

I find that almost every time I get the "cannot be stopped" error that
Explorer is the culprit. Sometimes it is something dumb that I've done,
like leaving a directory listing open. But often it is just some sort of
ghostly attachment that Explorer maintains. Fortunately there is a way to
take care of the problem: download and install Unlocker. It isn't the
prettiest program in the world but it does tell you what process is causing
your problem and will allow you to remove the hold that it has. The program
can be used for other things, some of which could get you into trouble if
you don't pay attention.

http://download.cnet.com/Unlocker/3000-2248_4-10493998.html