Why Am I Not Able To Delete Duplicate Photos On Windows 11/10

Duplicate photos on your Windows PC are a cluttered nightmare. They don’t just clog your valuable storage but trouble you when you are managing photos. And, in the worst-case scenario, a slight mistake and you might even delete some important (right) images instead of those imposter pictures. As a prudent and smart user, you can use these methods to delete duplicate photos on your computer.

But, what if you are unable to delete duplicate photos on your Windows PC? This is not a made-up situation. You might run into a scenario where you are just unable to delete duplicate photos no matter how hard you try. This post covers some of the most common reasons that may stop you from deleting duplicates. And, trust us you’ll be amazed at some of these.

Reasons Why You May Not Be Able To Delete Duplicate Photos on Windows PC –

Reason No. 1 – Picking Out Duplicate Photos From Hundreds of Others Is Difficult

Duplicate Photos often appear on Windows PC when we transfer the photos that we click from our smartphone or cameras onto our computer. Since most of us don’t have the time to organize photos then and there, duplicates pile up and reach a point where it is next to impossible to single out the right duplicate photos. Things become even more difficult when there are similar-looking duplicate photos that have minor differences. Here, a tool like Duplicate Photos Fixer can be a great tool to have by your side.

What Is Duplicate Photos Fixer and How Can It Be Helpful?

It is a powerful utility that is capable of deleting both exact as well as similar-looking duplicates. Knowing the fact that similar-looking duplicates surface more difficulties, Duplicate Photos Fixer offers various Comparison Methods you can use to zero down on the right duplicate photos and delete them from your computer.

Here are some reasons why you should certainly install Duplicate Photos Fixer if you regularly have to juggle duplicate images –

• Scan various locations on your computer.

• Use various Comparison Methods to filter out exact and similar-looking duplicates based on factors like matching level, bitmap size, time interval, GPS, or if, photos are flipped or rotated.

• Automark duplicate photos where duplicates are automatically marked in each group.

• Lock images so that they are not deleted.

• Export duplicate list in .csv format.
• Preview images, and their metadata before taking any action on them.
• You can also scan Google Drive, Dropbox, Picassa, Lightroom Classic Library, and Photos Organizer for duplicate photos.
• Exclude/ include photos from scanning.

Reason No. 2 – You Don’t Have File Permissions

If you are not able to delete duplicate photos from your Windows PC, it could be that you don’t have the necessary permissions to either delete or modify the files in the folder that has the duplicate photos. To know more about how you can train the necessary permissions to modify files and folders you can check out point number 3 of this post.

Reason No. 3 – You Might Not Be Able Duplicate Photos Due To System Errors

Corrupt system files are a culprit behind many system-related issues and they could be the reason why you are not able to get rid of duplicate photos on your Windows PC. A simple way to fix corrupt system files is to run the SFC command in your command prompt. To do that –

Step 1 – In the Windows search bar, type cmd and click on Run as administrator from the right-hand side.

Step 2 – When the Command Prompt opens, type SFC /Scannow and press Enter.

Step 3 – Once the scan is complete, try deleting duplicate photos.

Apart from SFC (System File Checker), here are some more ways to fix corrupt system files.

Reason No. 4 – Unhide Duplicate Photos

Another reason why you are unable to delete duplicate photos is that they are hidden and it is therefore becoming difficult to locate them. So, in case you are aware of the folder where they are duplicate photos, first unhide the files and folders, and then see if you now can delete duplicate photos.

Reason No. 5 – The Duplicate Photos Are Already In Use

If the duplicate photos that you intend to delete are in use by some other application, for example, Adobe Photoshop or any other application, you will not be able to delete them. In that case, it is first advisable to first close the application and then try deleting the photos.

Reason No. 6 – Because of Corrupted Photos

Sometimes when certain photos are corrupted, you can’t access them leave alone delete them. To check if the duplicate photos that you want to remove are corrupted and further, repair them in case you want to save some of them and delete the rest, here are some effective ways.

Reason No. 7 – Are The Duplicate Photos Locked?

There are chances that for some reason, some of your photos are locked by your Windows operating system (the chances of which are less) or, you may be using a file and folder lock software using which you have accidentally locked the duplicate photos that you want to delete. In such a scenario, you won’t be able to delete duplicate photos from your Windows PC. You can first unlock those files and folders and then try deleting duplicate photos.

Don’t Let Duplicate Photos Baffle You

When you are aware of why you are not able to delete duplicate photos on your Windows 11/10 PC, you can address those reasons and easily remove duplicate photos, thereby increasing your storage space and managing photos more effectively. If you have been able to relate, do let us know in the comments section below.

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