Ошибка access to the path is denied

TLDR : On my end, it had something to do with AVAST ! => Whitelist your application.


All of a sudden, I also got this UnauthorizedAccessException problem in the windows WPF program I’m writing. None of the solutions worked — except I couldn’t figure out how to elevate my application to full privileges (not using VS) while at the same time, being already on the administrator account, I didn’t feel the need to dig that deep in permission concerns.

The files are image files (jpg, psd, webp, etc.) I wasn’t trying to open/write a directory, it has always been a valid path to a file, and I needed to write to the file, FileAccess.ReadWrite was inevitable. The files (and any of their parent directory) were not readonly (I even checked by code prior calling new FileStream(path, mode, access, share) via FileInfo.IsReadOnly) — so what happenned all of a sudden ???

Thinking about : I had an had drive crash, so I unpacked a backup of my solution code from another drive. In the meantime, I added codes in my application to PInvoke APIs to directly read hard drive sectors physical bytes as well as USB plug/unplug monitoring.

I started to get the Exception when I added those, but even though I temporarly removed the related codes from the application, I still got the UnauthorizedAccessException.

Then I remembered one thing I’ve done long ago, a painstaking similar issue where I wanted my application to communicate sensible data via Wifi, which was to add the executable among AVAST exceptions, and the assembly directory aswell (My app was already among the authorized apps through firewall)

Just did it for my application in AVAST settings, AND THE EXCEPTION IS GONE !!! Two whole days I’m lurking StackOverflow and the web to get moving on, FINALLY !


Details : I can’t pinpoint exactly what AVAST didn’t like in my application as the only changes I made :

  1. Retrieved then launched the backup code — it worked like a charm, files (images) opens/write without problems (3 days ago)
  2. Added USB detection (3 days ago — Just tested the code, didn’t tried to open an image)
  3. Added PInvoke physical drive direct read (2 days ago — FileStream, and the logic to define where/how to scan the damaged drive — Just tested the code, didn’t tried to open an image)
  4. Added image format detection starting from Jpg/Jfif.. 2 days ago, got the exception upon testing the code.
  5. While searching for solutions, added an Image Gallery WPF UserControl to diplay pictures based on their signature and check which files gives the exception : almost all of them (some files opens/write okay — why ???)
  6. Tried everything I’ve found on SO (since the last 2 days) until I opened AVAST settings and whitelist my application.
  7. … now I can move on into adding a bunch of file signatures to retrieve as many datas as I could.

If this may help those who like me, aren’t failing on the «I’m passing a directory path instead that of a file«, yet, have no time to learn exactly why antiviruses think our own code is a malware.

TLDR : On my end, it had something to do with AVAST ! => Whitelist your application.


All of a sudden, I also got this UnauthorizedAccessException problem in the windows WPF program I’m writing. None of the solutions worked — except I couldn’t figure out how to elevate my application to full privileges (not using VS) while at the same time, being already on the administrator account, I didn’t feel the need to dig that deep in permission concerns.

The files are image files (jpg, psd, webp, etc.) I wasn’t trying to open/write a directory, it has always been a valid path to a file, and I needed to write to the file, FileAccess.ReadWrite was inevitable. The files (and any of their parent directory) were not readonly (I even checked by code prior calling new FileStream(path, mode, access, share) via FileInfo.IsReadOnly) — so what happenned all of a sudden ???

Thinking about : I had an had drive crash, so I unpacked a backup of my solution code from another drive. In the meantime, I added codes in my application to PInvoke APIs to directly read hard drive sectors physical bytes as well as USB plug/unplug monitoring.

I started to get the Exception when I added those, but even though I temporarly removed the related codes from the application, I still got the UnauthorizedAccessException.

Then I remembered one thing I’ve done long ago, a painstaking similar issue where I wanted my application to communicate sensible data via Wifi, which was to add the executable among AVAST exceptions, and the assembly directory aswell (My app was already among the authorized apps through firewall)

Just did it for my application in AVAST settings, AND THE EXCEPTION IS GONE !!! Two whole days I’m lurking StackOverflow and the web to get moving on, FINALLY !


Details : I can’t pinpoint exactly what AVAST didn’t like in my application as the only changes I made :

  1. Retrieved then launched the backup code — it worked like a charm, files (images) opens/write without problems (3 days ago)
  2. Added USB detection (3 days ago — Just tested the code, didn’t tried to open an image)
  3. Added PInvoke physical drive direct read (2 days ago — FileStream, and the logic to define where/how to scan the damaged drive — Just tested the code, didn’t tried to open an image)
  4. Added image format detection starting from Jpg/Jfif.. 2 days ago, got the exception upon testing the code.
  5. While searching for solutions, added an Image Gallery WPF UserControl to diplay pictures based on their signature and check which files gives the exception : almost all of them (some files opens/write okay — why ???)
  6. Tried everything I’ve found on SO (since the last 2 days) until I opened AVAST settings and whitelist my application.
  7. … now I can move on into adding a bunch of file signatures to retrieve as many datas as I could.

If this may help those who like me, aren’t failing on the «I’m passing a directory path instead that of a file«, yet, have no time to learn exactly why antiviruses think our own code is a malware.

  1. an Overview of PowerShell
  2. Access to the Path Is Denied in PowerShell
  3. Reason for Access to the Path Is Denied
  4. Solution to Fix the Access to the Path Is Denied Error

Access to the Path Is Denied in PowerShell

This article shows how to comprehend the issue that we often experience, that access to the path is denied, and how to overcome it using the PowerShell program.

We will discuss the PowerShell security and file access issues and learn about a solution to this problem. But, first, let’s look at the error we receive.

an Overview of PowerShell

PowerShell combines a command-line shell, scripting language, and configuration management framework into a single, cross-platform tool for automating routine tasks. PowerShell is cross-platform, functioning on Windows, Linux, and macOS.

PowerShell is a modern command shell incorporating the most useful features in other well-known shells. For example, PowerShell can accept and return.NET objects compared to most shells that can only receive and return text.

Access to the Path Is Denied in PowerShell

When using PowerShell, if we try to execute a script from the console that contains the following code as an example:

$inpath = "C:\users\xxxxx\path\foo\bar"

We will get the error something below as a result:

Get-Content : Access to the path 'C:\users\xxxxx\path\foo\bar' is denied.

Reason for Access to the Path Is Denied

The error often occurs in Windows PowerShell and other applications.

  • This error warns you are not authorized to examine the specified file or folder. It is because the user account you are now logged into on your computer has not been allowed access to the system by your system administrator.
  • There is also the possibility that the access was blocked by a third-party program you use.
  • To clarify, you are attempting to access files, directories, and paths while logged in to an illegal account.

Solution to Fix the Access to the Path Is Denied Error

While doing certain activities, such as accessing, relocating, copying, or deleting files and directories, the Access denied appears. Below we’ll discuss a way to overcome this error.

Change Account Status to Administrator

Making your user account the administrator is the solution to most occurrences of this error. The following is the procedure for changing your account to admin status:

  • In the windows search bar, type Run.
  • Write control userpasswords2 in Run and click on OK.
  • In the new window that opens, choose your profile and then click on Properties.
  • Now choose the Group Membership tab, select Administrator, click on Apply, and then OK.

In addition, you have the option of disabling your additional antivirus software for the time being.

The «Access to the path denied» error occurs in C# when a program or process attempts to access a file or directory without the appropriate permissions. This error often occurs when the process is trying to write to a file or folder that it does not have write access to, or when the file or folder is being used by another process. In order to resolve this error, there are a number of different steps that can be taken, including adjusting permissions, freeing up the file or folder for use by the program, or modifying the code to use a different file or folder path.

Method 1: Adjust Permissions

If you encounter the «Access to the path is denied» error in C#, it means that your program does not have the necessary permissions to access the file or directory specified in your code. One way to fix this is to adjust the permissions of the file or directory.

Here are the steps to adjust permissions in C#:

  1. Get the Security object of the file or directory using the File.GetAccessControl() or Directory.GetAccessControl() method. This will return a FileSecurity or DirectorySecurity object, respectively.
string path = "C:\\example\\file.txt";
FileSecurity fileSecurity = File.GetAccessControl(path);
  1. Add or remove permissions to the Security object using the AddAccessRule() or RemoveAccessRule() method. You can use the FileSystemAccessRule class to specify the permissions to add or remove.
FileSystemAccessRule rule = new FileSystemAccessRule("Users", FileSystemRights.FullControl, AccessControlType.Allow);
fileSecurity.AddAccessRule(rule);
  1. Set the modified Security object back to the file or directory using the File.SetAccessControl() or Directory.SetAccessControl() method.
File.SetAccessControl(path, fileSecurity);

Here’s the complete code example:

string path = "C:\\example\\file.txt";
FileSecurity fileSecurity = File.GetAccessControl(path);

FileSystemAccessRule rule = new FileSystemAccessRule("Users", FileSystemRights.FullControl, AccessControlType.Allow);
fileSecurity.AddAccessRule(rule);

File.SetAccessControl(path, fileSecurity);

This code example adds FullControl permissions for the Users group to the «C:\example\file.txt» file. You can modify the code to suit your needs, such as changing the permissions or specifying a different file or directory.

Adjusting permissions can be a powerful tool, but it should be used with caution. Make sure to only grant permissions to the necessary users or groups and avoid granting excessive permissions that can compromise security.

Method 2: Free Up File or Folder

To fix «Access to the path denied» error in C# using «Free Up File or Folder», follow the below steps:

  1. Import the System.IO namespace to access the File and Directory classes.

  2. Check if the file or directory is read-only or hidden. If it is, remove the attributes using the File.SetAttributes() method.

string filePath = "C:\\example\\file.txt";
if ((File.GetAttributes(filePath) & FileAttributes.ReadOnly) == FileAttributes.ReadOnly)
{
    File.SetAttributes(filePath, FileAttributes.Normal);
}
  1. Check if the file or directory is in use by any other process. If it is, wait for the process to release the file or directory using the File.Open() method.
while (true)
{
    try
    {
        using (FileStream fs = File.Open(filePath, FileMode.Open, FileAccess.ReadWrite, FileShare.None))
        {
            break;
        }
    }
    catch (IOException)
    {
        Thread.Sleep(100);
    }
}
  1. If the file or directory is still inaccessible, try to take ownership of the file or directory using the DirectorySecurity and FileSecurity classes.
DirectorySecurity dSecurity = Directory.GetAccessControl(filePath);
dSecurity.SetOwner(new NTAccount(Environment.UserDomainName, Environment.UserName));
Directory.SetAccessControl(filePath, dSecurity);

FileSecurity fSecurity = File.GetAccessControl(filePath);
fSecurity.SetOwner(new NTAccount(Environment.UserDomainName, Environment.UserName));
File.SetAccessControl(filePath, fSecurity);
  1. Finally, try to delete or modify the file or directory.
File.Delete(filePath);
// or
Directory.Delete(directoryPath, true);

With these steps, you should be able to fix the «Access to the path denied» error in C# using «Free Up File or Folder».

Method 3: Modify Code to Use Different Path

To fix the «Access to the path denied» error in C# using the «Modify Code to Use Different Path» method, follow these steps:

  1. Declare a string variable to hold the new path:
string newPath = @"C:\Users\NewPath";
  1. Modify the code that uses the path to use the new path variable instead:
// Old code
string path = @"C:\Users\OldPath\file.txt";
FileStream fs = new FileStream(path, FileMode.Open);

// New code
string newPath = @"C:\Users\NewPath";
string newFilePath = Path.Combine(newPath, "file.txt");
FileStream fs = new FileStream(newFilePath, FileMode.Open);
  1. Use the Path.Combine() method to combine the new path and the file name to form the new file path.

  2. Use the new file path in the FileStream constructor to open the file.

Here’s the modified code with comments:

// Declare new path
string newPath = @"C:\Users\NewPath";

// Combine new path with file name
string newFilePath = Path.Combine(newPath, "file.txt");

// Open file using new file path
FileStream fs = new FileStream(newFilePath, FileMode.Open);

By modifying the code to use a different path, you can avoid the «Access to the path denied» error and access the file successfully.

In your development career, you will get this error very often and sometimes you may not be able to resolve it. So, in this post, I will tell you how to approach this error. 

Resolving «Access Path is Denied» error 

First of all, what do you need to check to see if the path has permissions or not? For this, let’s see below how you can do this.

  1. To grant ASP.NET access to a file, right-click the file in Explorer, choose «Properties», and select the Security tab. Click «Add» to add the appropriate user or group. Highlight the ASP.NET account and check the boxes for the desired access.

    You can either add «IISUSERS» or add «EVERYONE» (which is less secure) and give them full rights to remove this error. 

  2. Before opening Visual Studio, right-click on your Visual Studio icon and run it as an administrator. Try again to run your code. If your problem is not resolved, do the following.
    1. Right-click on your directory that you want to access and select «Properties».
    2. Select the «Security» tab.
    3. Click on the «Advanced» button.
    4. Select the «Owner» tab.
    5. Select the owner (MACHINENAME\Administrators), check the «Replace owner on subcontainers and objects» and click OK.

So by using these two approaches, you can resolve this access denied error.

Hope this will help you someday!!!

Понравилась статья? Поделить с друзьями:
  • Ошибка abs подшипник
  • Ошибка abs пежо 3008
  • Ошибка abs на панели приборов
  • Ошибка abs volkswagen
  • Ошибка abs митсубиси лансер 10