The VideoLAN Forums

I frequently get a bunch of small clips that I need to scan and sort.
So I just drag them into the VLC window for a quick preview.
Then I decide if I want to keep them (eventually by moving them to a "good" folder) or I delete them.
Alas, VLC puts all files I drag into it automatically on a playlist.
So when I try to move or delete a clip I always get a message that the file is locked.
This makes scanning and sorting rather awkward, you could even call it impossible.
I searched in the options and tried a few things but could not find an option to disable the auto-add feature.

The VLC playlist does not lock any files on disk if it's not playing. I just tested this myself and it works as described; I can delete files in the playlist if *they are not playing*. I only get the locking error if you are playing the file and attempt to delete it.

VLC does not lock its input file at all, actually.

Of course, with some operating systems and/or with some types of file systems, there may be design restrictions regarding currently open files. Obviously, it is not possible to delete a file that is currently open; the deletion will either be rejected or deferred until the file is closed. That is in no way specific to VLC, and is unavoidable.

Even if VLC doesn't lock the files, I would still like to know how you disable this feature. Is it possible?

I thought I was clear. VLC does not lock the file and that is all there is to it. If the file is locked, then it is an operating system issue.

You cannot disable this "feature". It is an intrinsic limitation of the Windows platform...