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Fix: Windows Cannot Access the Specified Device, Path or File
Your antivirus might be blocking the file you are trying to open
4 min. read
Updated onOctober 4, 2023
updated onOctober 4, 2023
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When you use, download, or install different devices orfiles, they can be opened right away, and sometimes you might getWindows cannot access the specified devicemessage.
Fixing this problem is simpler than you think, and in this article, we’re going to show you a couple of solutions that will surely fix this problem for you.
How can I fix the Windows cannot access the specified device error?
1. Recover deleted, corrupted, or removed file
Sometimes, you may have deleted or removed thefile, or yourfileis corrupted. As a consequence, this will activate theWindows cannot access the specified deviceerror.
Regardless if you have accidentally deleted thatfile, or maybe you have lost it after a computercrash, these situations can be solved easily with professional third-party software.
We recommend you Recuva, a smart solution that allows recovering your deletedfilesfast and easily.
Use it to recover your missingfilesfrom a Windows computer, digital camera card, recycle bin, or even an MP3 player! If you have lost music, pictures, documents, emails, videos, or any otherfiles, Recuva is the solution. It will help you to recover all of thesefiles.
It is a flexible solution that will help you recoverfilesfrom rewriteable media, such as USB sticks, memory cards, or external hard drives.
Recuva
2. Disable your antivirus
If you are trying to open your Battle.net file or other folders and keep getting theWindows cannot access the specified deviceerror, it might be due to your antivirus software.
The solution to this is to disable your antivirus temporarily.
3. Check file location
In some cases, explorer.exe Windows cannot access the specified device path, or file error on Windows 7 or other operating systems can be caused by missing file path.
If the path is missing before the Target option in Step 3 above, you will not be able to access the file.
4. Gain permissions for your file
If you don’t have permission to access a file, you will encounter the message thatWindows cannot access the specified device. In this case, you need to grant read and write access to the file.
5. Unblock the file
To protect your computer, sometimes, Windows will block certainfiles. Similar toantivirus, sometimes your operating system will offer you false notifications.
Then, it will block whicheverfileyou want to access or modify. Use the above-mentioned steps to unblock yourfile.
There you have it; everything you need to fix the Windows cannot the specified device error. You only need to follow the instructions carefully, and things should be back to normal.
If you are facing other issues, like thesystem cannot write to the specified deviceerror, check our detailed guide to fix it.
Feel free to let us know the solution that helped you fix this issue in the comments below.
The previous section contains tested solutions to this issue, so be sure to try them and leave us an answer in our comments section.
Milan Stanojevic
Windows Toubleshooting Expert
Milan has been enthusiastic about technology ever since his childhood days, and this led him to take interest in all PC-related technologies. He’s a PC enthusiast and he spends most of his time learning about computers and technology.
Before joining WindowsReport, he worked as a front-end web developer. Now, he’s one of the Troubleshooting experts in our worldwide team, specializing in Windows errors & software issues.
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Milan Stanojevic
Windows Toubleshooting Expert
Before joining WindowsReport, he worked as a front-end web developer. Now, he’s specialized in Windows errors & software issues.
