Files and folders with invalid names create a lot of problems for Windows Explorer but Microsoft does not provide a built-in function to deal with them so DelinvFile fills that void. The shareware program’s trial version will let you do three delete and/or rename functions, after which a full license must be purchased.
Installation & Requirements
To install the application, you will need to extract the files and run “divfinst.exe”. The setup itself is very quick, also allowing for the creation of desktop shortcuts for the current or all users. The supported operating systems are Windows XP, Vista, 7 and 8.
Interface
At first glance, the program’s interface is a bit intimidating for the casual user. Not much care has been put into making the interface pretty or elegant but that does not mean it is not easy to get through. All of the application’s functions are presented as buttons in the top and bottom of the main window. The middle space of the window is reserved for a file explorer, allowing you to quickly navigate between all the files and folders of your computer. Clicking on the “List Errors only” option will also allow you to view detected errors within folders and subfolders at once.
A very good thing about the application is that it allows for flexibility. If you want the program to scan for invalid file and folder names itself, you can easily do that. If you know where those files are, you can find them through the file explorer and choose one of the available options yourself. The file scanning is very quick and can scan an entire drive in a matter of minutes. Once you find the invalid names you can copy them to the clipboard and deal with them through the main interface. You can set additional filters for specific file formats you do not want to delete, allowing you to delete entire directories while keeping files that are important to you as well.
Warnings are aplenty in the program but that is completely reasonable. Files that you delete through this application will be very hard if not impossible to retrieve. Despite all of the warning messages, the functions are very easy to perform. Pick a directory or a single file, click on the action you want to take, confirm the pop up window and that is pretty much it. Changes are made immediately, apart from the function that deletes or renames files at your next boot. This is very useful for locked files that would otherwise require an additional application in order to be deleted.
Pros
-Powerful deleting and renaming functions
-Most aspects are very simple to use
-Fast scanning process
Cons
-Outdated interface
-Awkward to navigate
Conclusion
DelinvFile’s powerful utilities should be able to help anyone find and deal with all those invalid files and folders. Despite the basic and outdated interface, the program’s main functions are definitely noteworthy.
