I’m running Windows 10 and noticed a file in the same folder where I save a Calc file, .~lock.nameoffile.xls#.
What is the purpose of this file and why do I even need it?
It is needed for two purposes:
- For some filesystems, there is no (reliable) locking of a file when an application opens it. This can lead to the file being opened for editing by two (or more) applications (e.g., over a network), which then will write to the file independently, with disastrous results. Creating the lock file in this case tells the other LibreOffice/OpenOffice (the two applications that know to look for the file) that the file is already in use.
- Also, the lock file has the information who and where has opened the file, which helps when a user wants to edit a file already opened by another user, and seeing the information, may call that other user to ask closing it.