Hi there

Found this forum by doing a search for hurl.exe and founda thread explaining how to delete it. Sadly it was too complex for me to understand si I tried to post another question and was told to post a new one coz the thread was too old.

So, I have this "hurl" icon on my desktop and I can't seem to delete it.. I don't remember downloading anything so I'm not enirely shure where it has come from. The OP said that they had got it from downloading music from Amazon.. I may have tried to listen to a track but that's all.

So.. how do I delete it, can't just click delete coz I get the usual "it's in use or write protected" message....

What is it?
Is it harming my computer?
If it is, is there a numpty's way of deleting it?

Thanks heaps

0. Create a new folder on your desktop.

1. Drag & Drop "hurl.exe" into that new folder.

2. Right-Click & delete the SOB file.

3. Go into your registry (regedit), search for hurl.exe & nuke any returned entry for the file as well.

4. Empty the Recycle Bin & don't download or use the player again.

Good Luck!

How To Ask Questions The Smart Way

Hi evurr, Sabertooth, hi everyone

A recap from the likely found thread, can't delete hurl, and adding one or two extra steps.
(http://www.computing.net/windows95/wwwboard/forum/165981.html)

Reboot the computer and start tapping the [F8]key until you get the Windows Boot Menu, choose option 5 (DOS...). You should see the DOS prompt, C:\>_

At the DOS prompt type in, and take notice of the space between the command and parameters or switches:
dir hurl*.exe /s[Enter]key
Take notice of the path where the file is found, for example: C:\Windows\Desktop

Now at the DOS prompt type, again take notice of the space between the command and parameters or switches:
del C:\Windows\Desktop\hurl.exe[Enter]key
Where it reads "C:\Windows\Desktop" replace that with the path found above.
If more than one hurl.exe file was found, repeat the last command with the path for the next file until all are deleted.

Re-run the first command to verify you have successfully deleted the hurl.exe file(s).
Type win[Enter]key or reboot and load Windows as usual.

Proceed with Sabertooth's step 3.

Best Regards and Wishes,
The Count, Co-webmaster of mesich.com

I would have hoped the advice already given will sort things out for you.

As another string to your bow for pesky RealPlayer files (and others), what I have sometimes done is produced a file from NotePad with just the word "dummy" inside it, given it the name of the offending .exe file then replaced the original in DOS (always saving the original one somewhere first - just in case).

This often works and means you don't need to involve the registry. You might get a "corrupted" file report when running SFC but if it has done the trick you just tell SFC to "Update it in the verification table".

I've not tried it with this particular file though.

DerekW

If none of the above works you can also reboot into Safe Mode and then delete (option F8 rapidly at startup and then number 3). Usually this will take care of the "in use" problem. I could be totally off but just a guess. This has worked on my 98SE laptop.

Stephen Fox
WINDOWS NT 4.00.1381 SP6a
PENTIUM II 450MHz; 384MB RAM
GATEWAY 2000 P6-450 DESKTOP 3GB

... which reminds me, my #3 was particularly intended for situations where the file comes back again after deletion.
I gather this is a RealPlayer file and they often have a knack of doing this.

When files don't delete it is usually because they are deemed in use by Windows. There are therefore many ways to get shot of a file outside normal Windows, including DOS and sometimes Safe Mode (see #4).

As already stated by others, it is best to remove the unecessary registry entries too (except in my #3 where the registry entries still apply but to a dummy file instead).

At the end of the day the "trick" is to find the approach that does not impair the program in the process - so saving a security copy of the file followed by a bit of trial and error can often unearth the most appropriate solution.

DerekW