author avatar
18 January 2024  Ashley S. Miller  Specialist of Customer Service Dept.
 

Summary
Encountering the "Windows cannot access the specified device, path, or file" error? With the right solution, regaining access to the device or file is simple.



Table of contents

table iconI. What causes Windows cannot access the specified device, path, or file error?
table iconII. Use Renee Undeleter to retrieve lost files
table iconIII. How to solve Windows cannot access the specified device, path or file error?
table iconIV. Summary
windows cannot access the specified device path or file

I. What causes Windows cannot access the specified device, path, or file error?

“The specified device, path, or file cannot be accessed by Windows. You may not have the necessary permissions to open this item.” This error can occur while installing, running, or updating programs, as well as when attempting to open Office or PDF documents. It acts as a barrier, preventing the program or file from being accessed.
Perhaps you will try to restart the computer to resolve the error. But the method of restarting the computer is invalid for this error. What exactly is causing this error? Is there any way to solve this problem? Don’t be afraid, this article explains it all for you.
Windows cannot access the specified device
There are numerous factors that can prevent Windows from accessing a specified device, path, or file. Below are some of the most common reasons for this issue.
- A computer virus has infiltrated, resulting in damaged or deleted programs and files.

- The program or file is locked and cannot be opened.

- The user account lacks administrator privileges, which are required for certain programs or files.

- The program or file has been moved to a different folder or there is an error in the file path, preventing access.

- Poor connection with an external device can also hinder access to programs or files stored on the device.

II. Use Renee Undeleter to retrieve lost files

When encountering “Windows cannot access the specified device, path, or file. You may not have appropriate permissions to access this item.” error, the program or file in the computer or disk may have been deleted or damaged. In order to avoid the loss of important data, it is recommended that you use a professional data recovery software – Renee Undeleter to scan the computer disk and recover valuable data before fixing the error.
Renee Undeleter is a software specially used to restore various data files. When you accidentally delete important files, empty the recycle bin, or format the disk/storage, you can use this tool to retrieve the lost data. This software covers four functional modules, including file recovery, format recovery, partition recovery and image creation, which can help you solve all data loss problems in an all-round way.
Hot Topic - ADsRenee Undeleter – Simple & Powerful Software for Data Recovery

Easy to use Recover data by 3 steps;

Multiple scan modes Fast partition scan, whole partition scan and whole disk scan;

Supported file types Image, video, audio, text, email and so on;

Image creation Create a partition image to read and back up data;

Supported devices SD card, SDHC, SDXC, USB flash drive, hard disk and computer.

Easy to use Recover data by 3 steps;

Multiple scan modes Fast partition/whole partition/whole disk scan;

Supported devices SD card/USB/hard disk.

Free TrialFree TrialFree Trial 800 people have downloaded!
① After downloading and installing Renee Undeleter, run the software. For external devices, you can use a data cable to connect it to the computer.
② Select the desired recovery mode (Fast Partition Scan, Whole Partition Scan, Whole Disk Scan) according to your needs. Here we take (Whole Partition Scan) as an example.
Data recovery function introduction:
Fast Partition Scan – Quickly retrieve files lost due to accidental deletion or emptying the recycle bin.
Whole Partition Scan – Quickly recover files lost due to inaccessible or formatted partitions.
Whole Disk Scan – Analyze and get partition information and perform a full scan of the entire partition.
Image Creation – You can create a mirror image for a partition to back up the current partition state.
select whole partition scan in renee undeleter to recover deleted video from sd card
③ Please select the partition of the target device (that is, the disk that needs to restore data), and then click (Next).
select the target drive to scan in renee undeleter
④ After the scanning process is complete, click the file twice to preview it. Next, choose the file you wish to recover and click the (Recover) button. It is recommended to save the recovered files on a different disk to avoid overwriting any data on the original storage location.
preview and select the files to recover in renee undeleter
After the data on the disk is successfully recovered, you can start to fix the problem that Windows cannot access the specified device, path or file.

III. How to solve Windows cannot access the specified device, path or file error?

1. Modify the settings of the security center

If you encounter this error during the installation process, you can enter (Windows Defender Security Center) to modify the settings.
Step 1: Click the Start button in the lower left corner, then click (Settings) > (Update & security) > (Windows Security Center) in the left column > (Open Windows Defender Security Center) in the right column.
windows defender security center
Step 2: Select (App & browser controls) and click (Reputation-based protection settings) on the right.
App and browser controls
Step 3: In (Block Potentially Unwanted Apps), click the switch button to turn off the function, that is, uncheck (Block Apps) and (Block Downloads).
Step 4: In the pop-up (Windows application) interface, click (OK).
Step 5: Restart the computer and check if the problem is resolved.

2. Modify the control permissions of programs or files

If the execution file or work document of the application is locked, it may not be possible to run or open it due to restricted permissions. In such a situation, modifying the file permissions allows us to reopen the file.
Step 1: Right-click on the target file and select (Properties).
Step 2: In the pop-up window, select the (Security) tab.
Step 3: In the (Group or user names) list, select the target user name. Then click the (Edit) button.
group or user name
Step 4: In the permissions list, check the Allow (Full Control) option. You can also check other permissions that need to be enabled.
Step 5: Click (OK) to save the modified operation. Then you can open, modify or delete the file.

3. Check the program or file path

If the path of the program or file is incorrect, it will also result in the inability to run the program or open the file. You can check the path of the file. Specific steps are as follows.
To view the location of the target file, right-click on the file and select (Properties) > (General).
file location
Kind tipsIf a shortcut is unable to access a file, it could mean that the file’s path has been changed. In such a scenario, you can fix the issue by navigating to the program or file’s location and re-creating the shortcut.

4. Disable antivirus software

If you have anti-virus software installed on your computer, you can try to temporarily disable the anti-virus software. In some cases, antivirus software blocks access to files. You can try the following steps to disable antivirus software.
Step 1: Press the Windows and R keys on the keyboard at the same time. In the (Run) window that opens, type (msconfig) and click (OK) or press Enter.
enter msconfig in run
Step 2: In the opened (System Configuration) window, select the (Startup) tab. Then click (Open Task Manager).
open Task Manager
Step 3: In the pop-up window, select antivirus software. Next, right-click and select the (Disable) button. You can then try to run the program or open the file.

5. Enable hidden administrator accounts

This issue could also stem from the current Windows account lacking administrator privileges. To resolve this, you can attempt to enable a hidden administrator account to gain necessary permissions for running programs or accessing files. The process for enabling a hidden administrator account is outlined below.
Step 1: Enter Safe Mode. For different systems (Windows 10/8.1/8/7/Vista/XP), the method of entering safe mode will be different. click here learn how to enter Safe Mode.
Step 2: Search (CMD) and run the command prompt, then enter (net user administrator /active:yes), and press the Enter key (that is, the Enter key). The hidden administrator account will be enabled.
Step 3: Restart the computer and re-enter safe mode. Then use the hidden administrator account to log in to the system.
Step 4: Open the Control Panel and select (User Account).
Step 5: Click (Manage other accounts), select your account. Click (Change Your Account Type). Next, select (Administrator) and click the (Change Account Type) button.
change account type Windows
Step 6: Restart the computer and log in to the system with your user account. At this point, you can open files or run programs normally.

IV. Summary

The following are five common solutions for the “Windows cannot access the specified device, path, or file. You may not have appropriate permissions to access this item.” error. In most cases, these solutions will allow you to open files and run programs without any issues. However, it is recommended to use Renee Undeleter to recover any lost files before attempting to fix this error.
Click the button below to download Renee Undeleter!
Hot Topic - ADsRenee Undeleter – Simple & Powerful Software for Data Recovery

Easy to use Recover data by 3 steps;

Multiple scan modes Fast partition scan, whole partition scan and whole disk scan;

Supported file types Image, video, audio, text, email and so on;

Image creation Create a partition image to read and back up data;

Supported devices SD card, SDHC, SDXC, USB flash drive, hard disk and computer.

Easy to use Recover data by 3 steps;

Multiple scan modes Fast partition/whole partition/whole disk scan;

Supported devices SD card/USB/hard disk.

Free TrialFree TrialFree Trial 800 people have downloaded!