MOVEit Automation tasks may intermittently fail during file uploads or downloads when a source or destination file is locked by another process. Common symptoms include transfer failures, inability to write files to a destination share, or errors indicating that the file is currently in use.

In the reported case, MOVEit Automation successfully downloaded the file but failed when writing it to the destination share because Windows reported that the file was being used by another process.

MOVEit Automation requires access to source and destination files during transfer operations. If another process maintains an exclusive lock on a file, Windows may prevent MOVEit Automation from reading or writing that file, resulting in upload or download failures.

Common file-locking processes include:

• Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS)
• Backup applications
• Antivirus or endpoint protection software
• ETL and data processing jobs
• Microsoft Excel or other file editing applications
• Custom scripts or applications accessing the same files

In the reported case, the customer confirmed that VSS was responsible for locking the files.

Identify and remediate the process responsible for maintaining the file lock.

The following tools can be used to identify the locking process:

• Resource Monitor (Associated Handles)
• Microsoft Sysinternals Process Explorer
• Computer Management → Shared Folders → Open Files
• PowerShell Get-SmbOpenFile

Once the locking process has been identified, modify its configuration, schedule, or behavior to prevent it from accessing the file while MOVEit Automation transfer operations are running. The customer was able to resolve the issue after determining that VSS was locking the files.

When troubleshooting file lock issues, Process Explorer is often the quickest method to identify the process holding an open file handle. Additional tools such as Resource Monitor, Open Files, and Get-SmbOpenFile can also assist in identifying the locking process.

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