Microsoft Teams File is Locked for Shared use or Editing

In this post, we will show you how to fix Microsoft Teams file is locked error on Windows 11/10 PC. Teams is a popular collaborative platform where official documents and files are shared among team members regularly. When a user edits a shared file, Teams locks the file automatically to prevent simultaneous edits by other users who have access to the file. However, a few users have reported that the file gets locked even when no other team member uses it. In this post, we will show you how to fix the issue where the files are locked for editing in the Microsoft Teams desktop client.

Microsoft Teams File is Locked for Shared use or Editing

When a shared file gets locked for editing, real-time collaboration gets affected as users cannot open or comment on the file. One known reason for this error is dual rendering, which may happen when the file is open in the web app and the desktop client simultaneously. Check the file status on the Microsoft Teams web app. If it shows ‘open’, close the file and log out of the Teams web app. Then try accessing the locked file using the desktop client. If this doesn’t resolve the issue, we recommend using the following solutions to fix the issue where Microsoft Teams files are locked for shared use or editing:

Leave and rejoin a team
Update Microsoft Teams
Delete Office Cache from your computer
Delete Office Cache via Office Upload Center
Use SharePoint to access the file

Let us have a detailed look at the above solutions.

1] Leave and rejoin a team

Start by leaving and rejoining the team. A few users have been able to resolve the issue by doing so. Before you leave the team, please note that you should be able to rejoin the Teams team only by entering a code you get through invite. Here’s how you can leave and rejoin the team using the Teams desktop client:

Click on the ellipsis icon next to the team’s name.
Click on the Leave the team option.
Click again on the Leave the team option in the confirmation popup that appears.
Click on the Join or create a team option at the bottom of the teams list in the left panel.
Type the name of the team you just left in the search bar on top.
Click on the Join team button and use the team code to join the team.
Try accessing the locked file again and see if it works.

2] Update Microsoft Teams

A few users have also reported that they are able to fix the issue after updating Teams to version 1808. So update the Teams desktop client to the latest available version. Click on the Profile icon in the Teams app and then click on the Check for updates option. Allow Teams to check and install updates if available. Restart the Teams app and check if the problematic file gets unlocked.

3] Delete Office Cache from your computer

Teams is tightly integrated with Office 365. If something goes wrong with the Office cache, it will create trouble opening the Teams files.

When you work on Office 365 documents using your computer, it creates a cache of the Office files on the local drive. Clear this cache if you’re facing trouble accessing the Teams files.

The Office cache is located at the following path:

C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Office\16.0\OfficeFileCache

Navigate to the above location and delete all FSD and FSF files. Relaunch Teams and see if the issue is resolved.

4] Delete Office Cache via Office Upload Center

If clearing the Office cache on your system won’t help, try clearing it via the Office Upload Center. This is where all your documents are stored online (on Microsoft’s cloud storage).

Type ‘office upload center’ in the Windows Search bar.
Click on Office Upload Center in the search results.
In the Upload Center window, click on the Settings option.
Under Cache Settings, click on the Delete cached files button.
Log out of your Teams account.
Exit and relaunch Teams, then log in again.
Check if the problematic file is unlocked.

Read: Fix Microsoft Teams not downloading files.

5] Use SharePoint to access the file

If none of the above solutions work, use SharePoint to access the file. You can check out the file in SharePoint to make it uneditable by other team members. Once checked-out, you may edit the file online or offline, and then check in back to update the edited version of the file.

Select the file in the SharePoint documents library.
Click on the three-dots menu above the documents list.
Click on the Check out option.
Now open the file in Teams and make desired changes.
Check in the file in the SharePoint library.

I hope this helps.