Delete hiberfil.sys?

[Bill Sharpe]

Hi,

Check the BIOS settings.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers aka "Nutcase" MS-MVP - Windows
Windows isn't rocket science! That's my other hobby!

Associate Expert - WinXP - Expert Zone



There are no hibernate choices in my BIOS. My computer doesn't support
hibernation. MS Help and Support states that there's no hibernation tab
in Power Options if the computer doesn't support the feature.

Any other suggestions?

Bill

 

[Bill Sharpe]

My HP Pavilion doesn't support hibernation. There is no hibernate tab in
the XP Power Options. Yet I have a 267 mb hiberfil.sys file that I would
like to delete from my c: drive. Apparently this is an active file, as
it has today's date and time when I booted the computer. I get an access
denied error message when I try to delete this file or change its
attributes. I've tried safe mode with the same result.

Is there any way that I can delete the file?

Thanks!

Bill

 

[peter]

control panel/power option
uncheck hibernate
the file will disappear on reboot
peter

 

[Bill Sharpe]

Thanks for trying, but I said there's no hibernation choice in my Power
Options. My computer doesn't support the feature.

Bill

control panel/power option
uncheck hibernate
the file will disappear on reboot
peter

 

[NRC]

I own an HP desktop & a Sony Vaio laptop with hibernation enabled on both.
Neither system has the hiberfil.sys file so not sure what it would have to
do with the hibernation feature

 

[Rick \Nutcase\ Rogers]

Hi,

Check the BIOS settings.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers aka "Nutcase" MS-MVP - Windows
Windows isn't rocket science! That's my other hobby!

Associate Expert - WinXP - Expert Zone

 

[Rick \Nutcase\ Rogers]

Hi Bill,

In rereading your initial response, I do believe what you actually have is a
permissions issue. You need to take ownership of the file. Right-click the
file, select properties. Go to the security tab and click advanced. You can
take control of the file on the owner tab. For the security tab to appear in
a WinXP Pro system, you must disable simple file sharing in the control
panel/folder options/view tab. For a WinXP Home system, you must restart in
safe mode and logon as administrator. More details here:

HOW TO: Take Ownership of a File or Folder in Windows XP [Q308421]
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=308421

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers aka "Nutcase" MS-MVP - Windows
Windows isn't rocket science! That's my other hobby!

Associate Expert - WinXP - Expert Zone

 

[Bill Sharpe]

Hi Bill,

In rereading your initial response, I do believe what you actually have
is a
permissions issue. You need to take ownership of the file. Right-click
the
file, select properties. Go to the security tab and click advanced. You
can
take control of the file on the owner tab. For the security tab to
appear in
a WinXP Pro system, you must disable simple file sharing in the control
panel/folder options/view tab. For a WinXP Home system, you must restart
in
safe mode and logon as administrator. More details here:

HOW TO: Take Ownership of a File or Folder in Windows XP [Q308421]
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=308421

I have changed the file system on Drive C to NTFS. I disabled simple
file sharing as you and the KB articles describe, since there was no
security tab on Drive C properties. I have taken ownership of the C
folder, but when I right-click on hiberfil.sys there's no security tab
on the Properties window. When I try to delete the file or move it to
the recycle bin, I get a message that the file is currently being used
and cannot be deleted or moved. Oh, and in safe mode I cannot even see
hiberfil.sys to do anything to it. I am using XP Pro with SP-1.

This is an interesting exercise and I appreciate your help thus far.

Bill

 

[Rick \Nutcase\ Rogers]

Hi Bill,

Interesting indeed. The "in use" message indicates that some process has
hold of it. And, you're right, there are no security options on the file
itself. However, *something* must be creating it, expecially if it doesn't
exist in Safe mode.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers aka "Nutcase" MS-MVP - Windows
Windows isn't rocket science! That's my other hobby!

Associate Expert - WinXP - Expert Zone

 

[*Vanguard*]

"NRC" said in news:[email protected]:

I own an HP desktop & a Sony Vaio laptop with hibernation enabled on
both. Neither system has the hiberfil.sys file so not sure what it
would have to do with the hibernation feature

Well, if you don't configure Explorer to show system files then
obviously you won't see them. hiberfil.sys is a system file that
contains the memory image used when unhibernating to restore the
contents of memory.

 

[*Vanguard*]

"Bill Sharpe" said in news:[email protected]:

Oh, and in safe mode I cannot even see
hiberfil.sys to do anything to it. I am using XP Pro with SP-1.

In Safe mode, did you try using the attrib command to remove the system
file attribute (so it can then be listed)? Another trick that might
work is the same one when trying to get rid of the pagefile: you copy a
file, like autoexec.bat or any file, to pagefile.sys and then you can
delete it (i.e., you overwrite it with a file which is also accessible
to normal commands).

How to Delete the Pagefile.sys File in Recovery Console
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=255205

Same technique may work for hiberfil.sys.

 

[Bill Sharpe]

"Bill Sharpe" said in news:[email protected]:

Oh, and in safe mode I cannot even see
hiberfil.sys to do anything to it. I am using XP Pro with SP-1.

In Safe mode, did you try using the attrib command to remove the system
file attribute (so it can then be listed)? Another trick that might
work is the same one when trying to get rid of the pagefile: you copy a
file, like autoexec.bat or any file, to pagefile.sys and then you can
delete it (i.e., you overwrite it with a file which is also accessible
to normal commands).

How to Delete the Pagefile.sys File in Recovery Console
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=255205

Good news and bad news.
I was able to delete hiberfil.sys in Recovery Console using the
overwrite trick you mentioned.

When I restarted Windows, hiberfil.sys reappeared. It apparently gets
created anew when I boot Windows as the file date and time correspond to
when I turn the machine on.

I guess I will live with the large file size...

Thanks for your suggestion!

Bill

 

[Will Denny]

|
| | "Bill Sharpe" said in | > Oh, and in safe mode I cannot even see
| > hiberfil.sys to do anything to it. I am using XP Pro with SP-1.
| >
|
| In Safe mode, did you try using the attrib command to remove the system
| file attribute (so it can then be listed)? Another trick that might
| work is the same one when trying to get rid of the pagefile: you copy a
| file, like autoexec.bat or any file, to pagefile.sys and then you can
| delete it (i.e., you overwrite it with a file which is also accessible
| to normal commands).
|
| How to Delete the Pagefile.sys File in Recovery Console
| http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=255205
|
| Good news and bad news.
| I was able to delete hiberfil.sys in Recovery Console using the
| overwrite trick you mentioned.
|
| When I restarted Windows, hiberfil.sys reappeared. It apparently gets
| created anew when I boot Windows as the file date and time correspond to
| when I turn the machine on.
|
| I guess I will live with the large file size...
|
| Thanks for your suggestion!
|
| Bill

Hi Bill

I'm also interested in the "in use" message you are getting - as Rick posted. You have gone through all the normal channels to delete this file. Was this file in place when you 1st purchased the computer? Have you checked back with the manufacturer's of your computer?

 

[Bill Sharpe]

I'm also interested in the "in use" message you are getting - as Rick
posted. You have gone through all the normal channels to delete this
file. Was this file in place when you 1st purchased the computer? Have
you checked back with the manufacturer's of your computer?

----------------------

I purchased my HP Pavilion 3 1/2 years ago with Windows ME installed. I
don't know if hiberfil.sys was on it then. I upgraded to XP Pro. After
posting my previous message I contacted HP about the problem. Their
first response was the one I got here initially about disabling the
hibernate feature from Power Options. Of course I can't do that as
there's no hibernate tab in my Power Options. XP's help system states
that no such tab appears if the computer doesn't support the hibernate
feature. Obviously -- well, maybe not obviously --something in the boot
up process is causing the file to be recreated when I reboot. Perhaps
there is a registry entry that does this. I searched the registry for
"hiberfil.sys" and "hibernate" without success.

This isn't a critical problem. I'm not running out of hard disk space,
although hiberfil.sys takes up 261 mb. But my curiosity is piqued!

Bill

 

[Will Denny]

Hi

Delete that file to the Recycle Bin. Leave it there for 4/5 days - if your system doesn't suffer any ill effects, delete permanently.

--

Will Denny
MS-MVP Windows - Shell/User


|
| |
|
| I'm also interested in the "in use" message you are getting - as Rick
| posted. You have gone through all the normal channels to delete this
| file. Was this file in place when you 1st purchased the computer? Have
| you checked back with the manufacturer's of your computer?
|
| ----------------------
|
| I purchased my HP Pavilion 3 1/2 years ago with Windows ME installed. I
| don't know if hiberfil.sys was on it then. I upgraded to XP Pro. After
| posting my previous message I contacted HP about the problem. Their
| first response was the one I got here initially about disabling the
| hibernate feature from Power Options. Of course I can't do that as
| there's no hibernate tab in my Power Options. XP's help system states
| that no such tab appears if the computer doesn't support the hibernate
| feature. Obviously -- well, maybe not obviously --something in the boot
| up process is causing the file to be recreated when I reboot. Perhaps
| there is a registry entry that does this. I searched the registry for
| "hiberfil.sys" and "hibernate" without success.
|
| This isn't a critical problem. I'm not running out of hard disk space,
| although hiberfil.sys takes up 261 mb. But my curiosity is piqued!
|
| Bill
|
|

 

[Bill Sharpe]

Hi

Delete that file to the Recycle Bin. Leave it there for 4/5 days - if
your system doesn't suffer any ill effects, delete permanently.

--

I get a cannot delete file when I try to move hiberfil.sys to the
recycle
bin. The only way I can delete the file is using the System Console
feature,
but the file is recreated the next time I start Windows.

HP suggested I uninstall the APCI button feature in Device Manager. Upon
reboot Windows reinstalls the feature automatically, but alas there is
still
no hibernate tab in Power Options.

Bill

PS I hit "Reply" instead of "Reply Group" in responding to this
message. Sorry, I meant to keep the information on the forum.

 

[Hemlock]

I am getting into this a little late, sorry

The file is used with hiberantion.
I had a file like it on my laptop.
I turned off hibernation and the file either went away
or I deleted it after a reboot.

Do you have hibernation turned on?


Regards,

Hemlock

I apologize if I am rehashing the problem,
I only got the last post.

 

[Will Denny]

Hi Hemlock

You'll have to read the whole thread.

--

Will Denny
MS-MVP Windows - Shell/User


| I am getting into this a little late, sorry
|
| The file is used with hiberantion.
| I had a file like it on my laptop.
| I turned off hibernation and the file either went away
| or I deleted it after a reboot.
|
| Do you have hibernation turned on?
|
|
| Regards,
|
| Hemlock
|
| I apologize if I am rehashing the problem,
| I only got the last post.
|
|
| On Sun, 25 Apr 2004 17:04:09 -0700, "Bill Sharpe"
|
| >
| >| >Hi
| >
| >Delete that file to the Recycle Bin. Leave it there for 4/5 days - if
| >your system doesn't suffer any ill effects, delete permanently.
|

 

[Carrie Garth]

|| "Bill Sharpe" <http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/spam/fightspam.mspx>
|| wrote in message > || Sent: Saturday, April 24, 2004 11:01 AM
|| My HP Pavilion doesn't support hibernation. There is no
|| hibernate tab in the XP Power Options. Yet I have a 267
|| mb hiberfil.sys file that I would like to delete from my c:
|| drive. Apparently this is an active file, as it has today's date
|| and time when I booted the computer. I get an access
|| denied error message when I try to delete this file or change
|| its attributes. I've tried safe mode with the same result. Is
|| there any way that I can delete the file?

| "Ramon" <[email protected]>
| wrote in message | Hi Bill, unfortunately I have the same probs with my
| Siemens-Fujitsu E7010. I updated the BIOS for ACPI and
| APM support. Now it should support hibernation, but the
| Hibernate tab on the Power Option control is still missing.
|
| I deleted c:\hiberfil.sys but it reappaered after reboot!
|
| After the initial XP installation hibernation worked well. But it
| suddenly disappeared. I have no idea why and when and
| what I have done. Hopefully someone can help ;-) Thanks

The Hibernate tab not appearing in the Power Options tool
in Control Panel is a documented problem. The behavior
can occur when you have a third-party OEM device driver
or service installed on your computer that does not support
Plug and Play. If a driver does not support Plug and Play, its
devices behave as non-Plug and Play devices which can result
in the loss of some operating system functionality such as
support for Hibernation.

For more information see the following Microsoft
Knowledge Base article and Documentation:

KB328129 - HOW TO: Troubleshoot Problems When You
Are in a Standby or Hibernate State and When You Shut
Down Your Computer in Windows Server 2003
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?Product=winxp&scid=kb;en-us;KB328129

Windows XP Professional Resource Kit Documentation
Part II Desktop Management | Managing Devices
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/Windows/XP/all/reskit/en-us/prdh_dmt_zehg.asp

The first step to troubleshooting this problem is to "start the
computer in safe mode" and see if the Hibernate tab appears.
For more information search the Help and Support Center
for the words in double-quotes.

If the Hibernate tab does not appear in Safe Mode you may
still have a problem with a third-party driver since many
Function or Filter drivers installed by third-party software
continue to load in Safe mode.

Identifying the third-party driver may be difficult and often
takes many steps. One way that might work is to run the
System Information tool, navigate to the Software
Environment | Signed Drivers Node, look in the column named
INF Name for oem01.inf (oem02.inf, etc.), and look in the next
column named Driver Name to see if the drivers name is
available.

If the System Information tool shows the name as Not Available
click Start, click Run, type the following command and click OK:

%SYSTEMROOT%\INF

Then find your OEM#.inf files, open each one, and do a Find
(CTRL+F) for sys. Make a note of the complete name of the
driver(s).

For more information about how to "display system data" search
the Windows XP Professional Help and Support Center for the
words in double-quotes (with the quotes) and read the Full-text
Search Match by that title.

Another way that might work is to search for the word unsigned
in your %SYSTEMROOT%\setupapi.log. This log records all the
activities of the Windows Setup and Device Installer services
including unsigned driver installation. Once again, make a note
of the complete name of the driver.

For more information see the following Microsoft documentation:

Troubleshooting Device Installation with the SetupAPI Log File
http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/driver/install/setupapilog.mspx

Once you identify the third-party driver you can try completely
removing the software component to see if the problem is
resolved.

Alternatively, you may be able to resolve the problem by
stopping any relevant services (services.msc) and disabling
any corresponding filter drivers. For more information see
the following Microsoft Knowledge Base article:

KB816071 - How to Temporarily Deactivate the Kernel Mode
Filter Driver
http://support.microsoft.com/?scid=816071

 

[Guest]

| "Ramon" <[email protected]>
| wrote in message | Hi Bill, unfortunately I have the same probs with my
| Siemens-Fujitsu E7010. I updated the BIOS for ACPI and
| APM support. Now it should support hibernation, but the
| Hibernate tab on the Power Option control is still missing.
|
| I deleted c:\hiberfil.sys but it reappaered after reboot!
|
| After the initial XP installation hibernation worked well. But it
| suddenly disappeared. I have no idea why and when and
| what I have done. Hopefully someone can help ;-) Thanks

The Hibernate tab not appearing in the Power Options tool
in Control Panel is a documented problem. The behavior
can occur when you have a third-party OEM device driver
or service installed on your computer that does not support
Plug and Play. If a driver does not support Plug and Play, its
devices behave as non-Plug and Play devices which can result
in the loss of some operating system functionality such as
support for Hibernation.

For more information see the following Microsoft
Knowledge Base article and Documentation:

KB328129 - HOW TO: Troubleshoot Problems When You
Are in a Standby or Hibernate State and When You Shut
Down Your Computer in Windows Server 2003
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?Product=winxp&scid=kb;en-us;KB328129

Windows XP Professional Resource Kit Documentation
Part II Desktop Management | Managing Devices
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/Windows/XP/all/reskit/en-us/prdh_dmt_zehg.asp

The first step to troubleshooting this problem is to "start the
computer in safe mode" and see if the Hibernate tab appears.
For more information search the Help and Support Center
for the words in double-quotes.

If the Hibernate tab does not appear in Safe Mode you may
still have a problem with a third-party driver since many
Function or Filter drivers installed by third-party software
continue to load in Safe mode.

Identifying the third-party driver may be difficult and often
takes many steps. One way that might work is to run the
System Information tool, navigate to the Software
Environment | Signed Drivers Node, look in the column named
INF Name for oem01.inf (oem02.inf, etc.), and look in the next
column named Driver Name to see if the drivers name is
available.

If the System Information tool shows the name as Not Available
click Start, click Run, type the following command and click OK:

%SYSTEMROOT%\INF

Then find your OEM#.inf files, open each one, and do a Find
(CTRL+F) for sys. Make a note of the complete name of the
driver(s).

For more information about how to "display system data" search
the Windows XP Professional Help and Support Center for the
words in double-quotes (with the quotes) and read the Full-text
Search Match by that title.

Another way that might work is to search for the word unsigned
in your %SYSTEMROOT%\setupapi.log. This log records all the
activities of the Windows Setup and Device Installer services
including unsigned driver installation. Once again, make a note
of the complete name of the driver.

For more information see the following Microsoft documentation:

Troubleshooting Device Installation with the SetupAPI Log File
http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/driver/install/setupapilog.mspx

Once you identify the third-party driver you can try completely
removing the software component to see if the problem is
resolved.

Alternatively, you may be able to resolve the problem by
stopping any relevant services (services.msc) and disabling
any corresponding filter drivers. For more information see
the following Microsoft Knowledge Base article:

KB816071 - How to Temporarily Deactivate the Kernel Mode
Filter Driver
http://support.microsoft.com/?scid=816071

I am impressed!!! I really didn't expect an answer like yours. Thank a lot. I will start working on it write now. I let you know about my progress. Again thanks for this outstanding answer.

cheers
Ramon