PRB: Lock_Mode = lockfile Causes "Timeout Locking File" Error

ID: Q132421

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Visual SourceSafe, 32-bit, for Windows versions 5.0, 6.0
Microsoft Visual SourceSafe, 16-bit and 32-bit, for Windows, version 4.0
Microsoft SourceSafe for Windows, versions 3.04, 3.1
Microsoft SourceSafe for Windows NT, versions 3.04, 3.1
Microsoft SourceSafe for Macintosh, versions 3.04, 3.1
Microsoft SourceSafe for MS-DOS, versions 3.04, 3.1

SYMPTOMS

A "Timeout Locking File" error occurs if the SRCSAFE.INI file contains Lock_Mode = lockfile.

CAUSE

This error indicates a lock file (.LCK extension) exists in the DATA\LOCKS directory. This situation occurs under either of the following circumstances:

A user has a file locked. For example, a file is locked while it is updated.

A SourceSafe lock file has not been deleted from the DATA\LOCKS directory.

NOTE: To ensure the lock file is not in use, verify all users are out of SourceSafe before using the second workaround described below.

WORKAROUND

Use either of the following workarounds to resolve this error:

Increase the Lock_Timeout setting. This method works best in situations where users are updating large files, or the network is slower than normal. Increasing this setting allows SourceSafe additional time before issuing the "Timeout Locking File" error.

Check the DATA\LOCKS directory for any undeleted files. If the error seems to persist, even when no one is running SourceSafe, a lock file may not have been successfully deleted from the DATA\LOCKS directory. You can check this directory for old undeleted lock files (.LCK extension).

NOTE: This error also occurs if the DATA\LOCKS directory has not been created properly. For additional information, please see the following article(s) in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q131445 FIX: "Timeout Locking File: UM" Error Occurs at Startup

Additional query words: lockmode

Keywords : kberrmsg kbSSafe400 kbSSafe500 kbSSafe600 kbSSafe310 kbSSafe304
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Platform :
Issue type : kbprb