Protecting Important Handles

Before you delete anything, let xfix protect the handles your system needs to work properly. Once they are protected, xfix will ignore any attempt to delete them.

Start by selecting Actions->Auto-protect on the menubar. This will protect every file that could be used by a program object, every folder that contains abstract (non-folder) objects such as shadows, and every file or folder that has an Object ID. Handles that are already marked as invalid will be ignored.

Next, scan the list for any file or folder that has a shadow on your Desktop (sorting by "Full name" can make this easier). If it isn't protected already, right-click on it, then select Protect from the &popmenu; (you can also use Ctrl+P). You will not be able to protect handles that are invalid.

Every protected handle will display in the Icon column. Every folder that is on the path to a protected object will display meaning that it is also safe from deletion.

If you want to unprotect a handle, either select Unprotect from the &popmenu; or press Ctrl+P. Note that you can only unprotect handles marked . Any handle marked will be unprotected automatically when there are no more protected handles that require it.

Deleting Handles

You can delete unprotected handles by selecting Delete on the &popmenu; or by pressing either the Delete key or Ctrl+D. The handle will be marked but will not be deleted immediately. It won't be removed from memory until you select Actions->Delete now..., and it won't be permanently deleted until you select xfix->Write back to OS2SYS.INI.

If deleting a folder's handle would cause other handles to become invalid, the affected handles are marked to indicate that they are "orphans" (that is, they don't have a parent). Unless you plan to delete them too, undelete the handle that caused the problem. You can use either Undelete on the &popmenu; or the Delete key to unmark the deleted handle.

When you are done marking handles for deletion (or you just want to get them out of the way), select Actions->Delete now.... This step is optional but advisable because it lets you see if you've created any errors. You will be asked to confirm the deletions and warned if this action would create any orphans. If it would, you should probably press No and fix the error.

If you answer Yes, the following will happen. None of these changes will become permanent until you save your work by selecting xfix->Write back to OS2SYS.INI.

• Each handle's entry in xfix's internal copy of the handles table will be removed, along with its entry in the listing.
• All abstract objects associated with this handle (marked with Abstract objects) will be scheduled for deletion when you save your work. This is necessary because otherwise they would reappear in some new folder when the WPS reused this folder's handle.
• Any folder positions associated with this handle (marked with Folder position) will be scheduled for deletion.
• If the handle had an Object ID assigned it, the ID will be deleted when you save your work.

Saving Your Work

Once you've deleted handles that are invalid or not needed, you can save your changes using xfix->Write back to OS2SYS.INI....

If you're not entirely sure that you haven't created new problems, try this: use Actions->Delete now... to remove handles that are marked for deletion, then select xfix->Re-parse buffer. If the updated display shows errors that didn't exist before do not save your work. Just exit xfix, restart, and try again. Otherwise, you're ready to proceed.

Before using "Write back...", make sure the following is true:

• You have a working WPS backup in case something goes wrong. In particular, have backup copies of OS2.INI and OS2SYS.INI.

• The WPS is not currently running. You are safe if you have changed RUNWORKPLACE in your &cfgsys; file or if you have started xfix from &xwp;'s "Panic" dialog during Desktop startup.

After you're changes have been saved, you can close xfix's main window to exit.