# Filebeat locking files

**URL:** <https://discuss.elastic.co/t/filebeat-locking-files/70501>\
**Category:** Beats\
**Tags:** filebeat\
**Created:** [January 4, 2017, 1:52am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/filebeat-locking-files/70501 "2017-01-04T01:52:13Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Showing post:** 2

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**Author:** ![andrewkroh](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/andrewkroh/32/3784_2.png) [@andrewkroh](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/andrewkroh)\
**Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 3:03am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/filebeat-locking-files/70501/2 "2017-01-04T03:03:15Z")

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Filebeat does not lock files. It [opens](https://github.com/elastic/beats/blob/11499e6c825618601adb801b9623fbfe0962d7fe/filebeat/input/file/file_windows.go#L93-L95) the file for reading only. And it specifies that the file can be read, written, and deleted by other applications while it has it open.

It sounds like the thing that is trying to access the file is requesting exclusive access which it cannot get. It needs to allow other applications to read the file (FILE\_SHARE\_READ) when it opens the file.

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_[View the full topic](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/filebeat-locking-files/70501)._