Windows-10 changed all my documents to "Read-Only"

Except for where it coincides with previous editions. It's so new and still so changing, that works one day, may not work the next. An example, after I got the full RTM upgrade build 10240, and it was activated, for no reason I could determine, it became unactivated. I had my copy as Preview Builder, so no former Win7sp1 or win8.1 to revert to. Instead I went back to build 10166 which was activated, then added the newest update again. I made sure to put a copy of the VDI (virtual box hard drive) that I had it installed into. That held a few days and then it did it again! I tried the same thing of going back to 10166 and then back up to the newest update. This time it didn't work. Same exact procedure which worked a week before failed to do so again. Predictable? I think not!

Instead I restored a copy of the VDI file, lost what I'd done in the meantime to the one that was there and was "activated" again. This is one reason why I prefer using Linux for my main system and consider "activation" as a Microsoft generated "virus".

For now, what may work one day in win10 may not work the next, so nobody's an "expert" on it, till it's settled down more.

This is the takeownership.zip link I found on Google.
http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/windows-vista/add-take-ownership-to-explorer-right-click-menu-in-vista/ There is yet another easier solution I found. Take a look of this picture -- https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5kpJSr-Fbdtd3BLa1lKbFFLQ28/view?usp=sharing from the "security" tap of a folder "properties". Do notice in the second dialog box, yours truly as the owner has no "file control" and "modify" permission. Click "edit" button and "owner" line again and check the two missing boxes. Then click "Apply", Windows 10 will complain like hell. But, no matter, just click either cancel or OK on those complains. WALLA, the highlighted owner now has the "file control" and "modify" capacity. It worked for me. Good luck and enjoy.

Sorry, but with this Windows-10 system, I don't even know how to get to the point where you say to: "Right click on Local Disk (C:)" Please help.

The documents are located in C:\users\user
There you will see an icon named Documents.
Right click it and unselect the Read Only option.
This will bring up an Admin Permission Required.
Continue and all files and subfolders will be changed.

I believe Microsoft did this to protect users from macro and malware attacks.
You can save a read only file to desktop and manually move and drop it into the Document file replacing the older document without issue.

Reassuring to find others have this problem! However having done the above, when I open folder properties again 'read-only' is still checked. I did the same with the main root folder c:/users/username, with the same result. Massively frustrating: I had a perfectly functional setup before the Win 10 upgrade, and now this carry-on. Any help from the forum appreciated!

Further to the post above, I've found a solution. In Word go to Options/Trust Center/Trust Center settings. Choose Trusted Locations, and 'Add New Location'. Browse to your main documents folder ('My Documents', or wherever is your default Word save location). Important: ensure that you tick 'subfolders also trusted'. That for me has done the trick.

Your info looks promising, but I need clarification:
When I click "Trusted Locations," the following is then stated near the bottom: "Description: Word 2007 default location: User Templates."
Also, when I click the "Browse" button, the following appears under the heading of "One Drive": "Documents."
Yet, this "Documents" is empty.
So should I use this empty "Documents" OR should I instead click on the "Documents" icon which contains ALL my documents?

What you are seeing at the bottom is the location in the main box that happens to be highlighted. Move to another location (if there is more than one) and that legend down there will change. Ignore.
What you want to do is to 'add a new location' by browsing to the place where your main Documents file is. There should be documents in it; if you aren't sure it is the right location, check using FileExplorer. (It doesn't matter, though, if you get the wrong location; as far as I can see you can add or delete locations here to your heart's content, you won't change your data or anything.) Once you've added the location as trusted then all your documents will open as normal (though, oddly, in the Properties for each folder 'read-only' will still be checked).
Setting up OneDrive is another matter. Win10 didn't recognise my previous OneDrive folder (which contains all my docs) and insisted I create a new one. It then ground away downloading all my stored stuff on OneDrive into that folder -- it worked OK, but a somewhat worrying business nonetheless. I suggest DO A BACKUP of your old OneDrive folder onto a flash drive or something for peace of mind before starting the process.
It would be nice if Win10 setup did all this for us, took me ages to sort it out and no work done. It is not a seamless transition.

Thank goodness somebody knows what they are talking about. Problem solved

Hi, I tried that and it doesn't work because the folders are still read only. I've tried everything in this thread and nothing works. Each time I go to my folder properties they are read only. Why would Microsoft do sucha stupid thing? This didn't happen when I upgraded from win8.1.

I tried everything and my files return as read only. I am getting real frustrated. I used to enjoy using the computer but now it is a big headache with Windows 10. Who gave you the authority to change my documents to read only????????

I can't see what you replied to. And we know this blows up on folk that changed or use that email login. Yes the homegroup can help but if you don't have it auto join the homegroup or your security software blocks it, it falls apart again.

Around here it's not been a big headache. But for you it's something new.

I'd top post and tell all you can. Or why do that at all. Go back to what worked.

This is not the solution. Tried it many times. Never works.

That worked for me.

The RO box in the Documents properties is empty. How can you then disable RO there?

Your solution should work alright.

BUT it won't. In fact, even the 'full control' solution works only a while and then it is right back to RO in the Documents folder. Ditto the DOS window approach in administrator's mode gives, at best a temporary fix.

I have tried all the solutions listed here and on the MS site. Alas none worked. The next day the files were RO again.

Actually it's worse. Because even when you clear the RO box in the Properties menu and in the DOS fix. You still get problem messages when trying to open a file.

Is it doing this ONLY to pre-existing files you had before the update, or also to files you created since then?


http://glenburniemd.net/CNET/Win10-DocumentsNOTreadonly.png

....(snicker) could you try something, since I can't duplicate your problem? Copy some of the files onto a flashdrive that is FAT32. Change each file name by adding a dash or underscore at the end before the dot extension. Copy it back into the Documents folder from the flashdrive. Are those files also "read only" now? If not, then you successfully stripped off what ever was making them that way, which indicates metadata rather than a standard ATTRIB method, or maybe backed up by an NTFS metadata.

I noticed that quite a few people talking about that they couldn't uncheck the Read-Only box of the folder/file properties. It is OK. Same is for me. It seems a bug in Windows 10. If you can check the "full control" and "modify" boxes of the security tap in properties, you can write to the folder or write the file. (See my other postings.)

Yes, I was a little disturbed after my solution. As posted earlier, I in the security tabs, I made sure to give every group full permissions. That didn't work. Then, I added "EVERYONE" as a group and gave that full permissions. That worked. I cleared the read only attribute just to be sure. But then I looked after all the files were cleared and it still said read only.

But although it SAID read only in the property attributes, it wasn't. Unlike the first few times I tried to fix this before changing ownership permissions, nothing stopped from reading or writing to the directory any more. So that "everyone" worked.

I've read all of the solutions to this problem although they work while in a particular spreadsheet, once you close the S/S and/or possibly reboot, the problem is still there having reverted to the previous setting (read only}!

I've wasted hours resetting time and time again with no permanent result,

Microsoft really have to update their program urgently in order to get around this problem which must be affecting thousands of people worldwide.

For the experienced internet user, they can probably work their way around this, but I'm just an eighty year old trying to use excel and other programs without all these hassels!

I've copied most of my files back to another computer that is running Windows8 and all works fine!

I look forward to a post that confirms the problem has been permantly fixed!

Did it. But nothing changed. Still can't open files in the Documents folder.

After trying for an hour to reset read-only permission on the folder level (which seemed to work, but immediately reverted back to read only) I used this approach on the disk level - it worked.

THANK YOU Tituzin

If the OS is outstripping everyman and everywoman's capabilities. Adding permissions to folders and ownership is asking a lot of today's users. This thread proves that much.

That said, I wish there was an easy answer other than donning the computer science robes.

The "Problem" is not the users inability to handle permissions on files and folders.

The BUG is the fact that they are unable to change those permissions.

Perhaps a little more research on the BUG and less smug arrogance, would be better suited for this forum.

Go back to 'Found a solution' several posts back for how to change the permissions.