Administrator User Could Not Copy Files Due to Destination Folder Access Denied Error

Question

Hi everyone,

My client has an issue within their Windows Server 2016 where the user could not copy their files to another destination.

When they try to copy a DLL file from a server to another server, as well within the server directories to another directory/folder location, they will greet with the Destination Folder Access Denied error.

As I'm checking the folder permissions (mainly on the disk drives), I noticed that the user they used (Administrator) had the Full Control permissions to the directories as in the image below (other users are crossed to highlight the user having the issue)

Which begs me the question, why a user that has a full control of the directory could not possibly copy a file? What could cause this issue besides a folder permission?

If I try to restart the Windows Explorer application, would it solve the problem? Or is there any possible solution that I can try to mitigate this issue?

Thanks for any help given.

Regards,

Ahmad Dhamiri

Answer 1

Hello,

Here are some possible causes and solutions:

1. If the file is currently in use by another application or process, it cannot be copied. You can try closing all applications that may be using the file and then attempt to copy it again.
2. Changing the file ownership to that user as follows:

1. Open "Program Files" folder and select "Properties", navigate to the "Security" tab.
2. Click the "Advanced" button . In the "Advanced Security Settings" dialog box, switch to the "Owner" tab.
3. Click the "Edit" button, type or browse to select the Windows Server 2016 user account that you wish to assign ownership to. This could be a local administrator account or a specific domain user account. If the user is not in the list, click the "Advanced" button within the "Select User or Group" window to search and choose the desired user or group.
4. Check the box labeled "Replace owner on subcontainers and objects" to ensure that the ownership change applies to all subfolders and files within the folder as well.
5. Click "OK" to apply the new owner settings. The system will notify you that it's changing ownership and may take some time to process all folders and files.
6. Once the ownership change has completed, close all open property windows.

3. Try to Restart Windows Explorer and then attempt to copy the file again.

Best regards

Zunhui

Answer 2

Hi Zunhui,

Thanks for the steps for fixing this issue.

When I tried to restart Windows Explorer, I can copy a text file from a drive (D:) to another drive (C:) but the issue for DLL files still persists. I do think I need to change the owner of the folder and its permissions.

Also, before I try to change the folder permissions, can rebooting the server resolves the issue?

[UPDATE]

After I reboot the server, the system was able to copy some DLL files from Drive D:\ to Drive C:. Wasn't sure what would be the cause of the error since the antivirus in the server isn't the cause. I know this because I've talked to the security engineer about this and mentioned that if the antivirus is the cause, the antivirus would popup the error and not the normal Windows Explorer popup.

Also, I didn't adjust any of the permissions since they are already what was configured before.