It would be much depressed when you can’t copy files from external hard drive to computer. This post shows you how to deal with the Windows can’t copy or move files problem efficiently.

Windows 10 Can't Copy Or Move Files
Windows has rules whether it copies or moves the files when dragging and dropping them with the mouse. With the little button trick you can change your decision during the process. According to users’ feedback, the file access denied error appears now and then on their device to prevent them from copying or moving files successfully. Some people reported Windows 10 not copying all files while others said that they can't move files between folders or Windows 10 cannot copy multiple folders.

There are many people complained Windows 10 won't let me move files; they said the system doesn’t allow them to copy, move or delete a file/folder.

The Windows 10 can’t copy or move files cases can be divided into the following 6 types; please read them with care to find out the best solutions for fixing file or folder access denied.

Can’t Copy or Move Files/Folder Windows 10
Please try the methods mentioned below when you can’t copy files to external hard drive Windows 10 or to the local drive.

#1. Check account permissions.

Press Windows + S to open the Windows search bar.
Type control panel into it and hit Enter.
Select User Accounts. (Click User Accounts again if you view by Category.)
Click Manage another account link under Make changes to your user account section.
Take a look at the accounts in the list and check whether there’s an “Administrator” word under the target account name.

How to change your account to Administrators if it's not:

Press Windows + X simultaneously.
Choose Computer Management from the WinX menu.
Expand Local Users and Groups under System Tools.
Select Users in the left sidebar and then look at the right panel.
Double click on the target account to open the Properties window.
Shift to the Member Of tab at the top.
Click on the Add… button at the bottom left.
Look for the Enter the object names to select section in Select Groups window.
Type Administrators into the text box and click Check Names.
Click on the OK button.
Select Administrators. Then, click Apply and OK to confirm changes.
Restart your computer.

#2.

Run SFC scan.

Open Windows search bar and type cmd.
Right click on Command Prompt from the search result.
Choose Run as administrator from the menu. (Click Yes if you see a User Account Control window.)
Type (or copy & paste) the command: sfc/scannow.
Press Enter and wait for the scan to finish.


If the SFC scan failed, you should try the DISM tool.

Repeat step 1 to step 3.
Copy & paste this command and press Enter: DISM /online /Cleanup-Image / ScanHealth.
Wait for the command to finish.
Copy & paste this command and press Enter: DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth.
Wait for the command to end and reboot your PC.

#3. Restart Windows Explorer.

Another way to fix when you cannot move files in Windows Explorer is restarting it by following steps:

Right click on the blank space in the task bar.
Choose Task Manager from the pop-up menu. (You also press Ctrl + Alt + Delete to choose Task Manager.)
Make sure the Processes tab is chosen.
Look for Windows Explorer and select it.
Click on the Restart button in the lower right corner. (You can also choose Restart from the context menu of Windows Explorer.)


#4. Scan for virus and malware.

Close all the programs, applications, and pages you're working on.
Press Windows + I to open the Settings app.
Choose Update & Security.
Select Windows Security from the left sidebar and click Virus & threat protection from the right pane.
Choose Scan options under Current threats if your Windows 10 is up to date; select Run a new advanced scan under Threat history if you’re running a previous version.
Follow the instructions to finish the scan and remove viruses found on the device.
Restart your computer.
Can’t Copy or Move File/Folder Open in Another Program
Sometimes when you’re trying to copy or move a file/folder, you’ll get this error message: The action cannot be completed because the file (or folder) is open in another program. How to fix this on Windows 10?

#1. Close applications.

You should check the programs and apps currently running on your PC. Then, close the applications that may use the file or folder you want to copy/move.

#2. Empty Recycle Bin.

Look for the Recycle Bin icon on your desktop.
Right click on it and choose Empty Recycle Bin.
You can also empty the Recycle Bin manually: open Recycle Bin -> press Ctrl + A to select all items here -> press Shift + Delete to clear them.
#3. Modify local group policy.

Press Windows + R to open Run dialog.
Type msc into the textbox and hit Enter.
Expand User Configuration, Administrative Templates, and Windows Components one by one.
Select File Explorer in the left panel. Double click on Turn off caching of thumbnails in hidden thumbs.db files in the right panel.
Check Enabled instead of Not Configured or Disabled.
Click Apply and OK to save the changes.
Can't Move or Delete File Windows 10
Sometimes, you can’t delete a file or folder even by pressing Shift + Delete. This part focuses on how to delete files that cannot be deleted. First of all, you should make sure all the applications that are using the file you try to delete (or containing it) are closed. If the problem persists, please try the following methods.

#1. Use Command Prompt.

Click Start and scroll down to find Windows System.
Expand it and right click on Command Prompt.
Choose More and then Run as administrator.
Type del and the location of the file/folder you want to delete. For instance, E:\Test\text.txt.
Press Enter on the keyboard.
#2. Delete in Safe Mode.

Open Settings by pressing Windows + I.
Choose Update & Security and navigate to Recovery in the left window.
Look for Advanced startup in the right window and click Restart now under it.
Choose Troubleshoot, Advanced options, and Startup Settings in order.
Press F4 to enable Safe Mode.
Open Windows Explorer to locate the target file or folder.
Delete the file/folder and restart your PC.
Another way to delete items forcibly is using third-party tool.

Recover Files & Folders Windows
How to Recover Mistakenly Deleted Data
Step 1: get MiniTool Power Data Recovery and install it properly (please don’t save it to the drive containing deleted files).

Step 2: launch the software and select This PC from the left sidebar.

Step 3: specify the drive containing deleted data and double click on it.

Step 4: wait for the scan and choose the files you want to recover from the scan result.

Step 5: click Save and choose a storage destination. Click OK and wait for the recovery to end.

How to Recover Files from External Storage
Install MiniTool Power Data Recovery and run it at the end of installation.
Select Removable Disk Drive from the left sidebar.
Choose the target drive and click Scan.
Wait for the scan and choose the file/folder you want to recover.
Click Save and choose a storage path.
Click OK and wait for the recovery to complete.

In this post, I have introduced the common types of file access denied error and gave the corresponding solutions to fix it.

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