Rename of .mdb file -- lock

[MRAB]

Scott David Daniels wrote:
> noydb wrote:
>> I have the code below, which unzips a zipfile containing only one
>> file.  Once it is unzipped, I want to rename the file based on a user
>> provided name.  But I get this (WindowsError: [Error 32] The process
>> cannot access the file because it is being used by another process)
>> error, which does not make sense to me as no other apps are open.
>> Any suggestions?
> 
> Others have told you the reason you are currently having problems.
> You should also be aware that Windows can at "random" times be opening
> the new file in order to either index it or virus scan it, and it may
> fail to rename during that period.  So, a failure should retry in a
> second a couple of times before giving up.  This is my understanding,
> but someone deeply familiar with Windows internals might reveal that
> I am operating on older information.
> 
It's always a good idea pause and then retry a few times, just in case. 
Retrying is also a good idea when deleting a file, although in that case 
you might also want to check whether the file is read-only; if it is, 
then there's no point in retrying.