A SharePoint file is held by someone for hours
The lock persists long after the colleague closed it. Nobody else can edit.
Try this first
- 1Ask the named colleague to close the file and quit their Office app fully; the lock often lingers on a background Word process.
- 2Work in the browser version. SharePoint > click the file > "Edit in browser". The lock does not apply there.
- 3Wait 30 minutes. A stale lock expires automatically after roughly half an hour.
- 4As a last resort: open file properties in SharePoint and click "Check in" on behalf of the other user (if you have the permission).
When to bring us in
If this keeps happening with the same colleague or folder, there is a sync or permission issue underneath; happy to take a look.
See also
- Outlook crashes or freezes on large attachmentsUsually the mailbox cache is the culprit, not Outlook itself. Shrinking or relocating usually helps within ten minutes.
- Teams: they cannot hear me, or I hear nothingIn our experience Teams usually picked the wrong audio device after a Windows update or a new headset.
- OneDrive has stopped syncingThe cloud icon is grey or has a warning. Locally changed files are not showing up for colleagues.
None of the above fits?
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