Another "I can't empty my trash!" problem...!

Hi All,
Sorry, but this is another "I can't empty my trash" problem.
Have scoured the internet trying all the remedies but can't seem to delete these stupid folders.
I've tried the option key, secure emptying, going into Terminal, Cocktail doesn't want anything to do with these files.
There are 5 left over folders from my external hard-drive. They don't appear to be locked anymore (Get Info panel says so) but Leopard keeps shouting "Insufficient Privileges" at me every time I try to delete them.
"/Volumes/EXHD/.Trashes/501/MUSIC", that's the direct path to the main folder that's being stubborn.
Please help me, all I want is a clear Trash Can!

tenorhorn wrote:
Hi All,
Sorry, but this is another "I can't empty my trash" problem.
Have scoured the internet trying all the remedies but can't seem to delete these stupid folders.
I've tried the option key, secure emptying, going into Terminal, Cocktail doesn't want anything to do with these files.
There are 5 left over folders from my external hard-drive. They don't appear to be locked anymore (Get Info panel says so) but Leopard keeps shouting "Insufficient Privileges" at me every time I try to delete them.
"/Volumes/EXHD/.Trashes/501/MUSIC", that's the direct path to the main folder that's being stubborn.
Please help me, all I want is a clear Trash Can!
Welcome to Apple Discussions:
Remember how the trash works. The trashed files are not necessarily on your Mac.
When you trash a file, it goes into the local (maybe hidden) trash folder on the harddrive. The desktop trash only contains a link to the actual file in the trashbin on the external drive.
The proper way to delete that trash would be to reconnect the external drive and then empty the trash, assuming that the external drive has not been modified.
You say you used the terminal - exactly what did you do?
In a terminal, enter the following commands
cd .Trash
ls -al
you should see a listing of the files in the trashbin.
On my machine here are the results for a trashed folder and file:
-rw-r--r--@ 1 nero nero 4 Oct 20 20:27 testfile.txt
drwxr-xr-x 2 nero nero 68 Oct 20 20:19 untitled folder
Notice that I own both files/folders and most importantly, I have write (w) permission on them.
Post back your results and perhaps we can diagnose the problem better.

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I can't delete any files, can't empty the trash bin, can't open my iTunes. Safari isn't working properly either. I keep getting the error message -50 when i try to delete anything...HELP!

Hello, not too helpful, but...
enum {
paramErr = -50, /*error in user parameter list*/
Usually means a bvad or unacceptable Charachter in a File or Folder name...
http://support.apple.com/kb/TA20831
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http://thexlab.com/faqs/trash.html
Open Console in Utilities & see if there are any clues or repeating messages when trying to open Safari or iTunes.

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Do you have anything in the trash you can see? Sometimes if there is an application in the trash it can contain hundreds of files that you can't normally see and those may be presenting you with errors.
*Trash Problems*
Try booting to Safe Mode, sometimes just doing that works.
Reading
[You can't empty the Trash or move a file to the Trash in Mac OS X|http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106272]
[Solving Trash Problems|http://www.thexlab.com/faqs/trash.html]
[How To Fix Stubborn Trash and Why it Won't Delete|http://www.osxfaq.com/Tutorials/LearningCenter/HowTo/Trash/index.ws]
*Utilities for emptying trash*
[Trash It! v3.6.1|http://www.nonamescriptware.com/?page_id=5]
[DropNuke|http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/12664]
[Super Empty Trash 2.3|http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/16727] - Simple AppleScript applet that will empty the Trash with administrator privileges

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Hello eytangilboa,
And welcome to Apple Discussions!
There are several reasons as to why you cannot empty your trash. Maybe take a look at either of these sites that provide excellent explanations for these reasons as well as potentials solutions on how to resolve the issue. Hope it helps.
[You can't empty the Trash or move a file to the Trash|http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1526]
[Solving Trash Problems|http://www.thexlab.com/faqs/trash.html]
B-rock

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You can't empty the Trash or move a file to the Trash

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Hi Welcome to the Discussions.
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Hi Linc
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Hello,
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http://thexlab.com/faqs/trash.html

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You must purchase a new QT key for each computer.
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Can't empty trash:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1526?viewlocale=en_US
How to Force Empty the Trash:
http://www.thexlab.com/faqs/trash.html#Anchor-Force-11481

Another "I can't empty my trash!" problem...!

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