OpenFilesMonitor

OpenFilesMonitor is a lightweight Windows WPF admin tool that connects to one or more Windows file servers and shows currently open SMB files with full path and user context. It also allows you to close selected open file handles (optionally “force”) so you can release stuck locks on shared files.

If you’ve ever needed a simple “Get-SmbOpenFile GUI” or “Close-SmbOpenFile GUI” for helpdesk/sysadmin work, this is that.

What it does

• Lists SMB open files across multiple Windows file servers
• Shows:
  • Server
  • Client user name
  • Client computer name
  • Full path / share path (when available)
  • FileId
• Filters results quickly (user, client, filename, path, share path)
• Exports results to CSV
• Closes selected open files using server-side SMB handle close (best effort)

How it works

Under the hood, it queries open SMB handles via the Windows SMB provider (MSFT_SmbOpenFile) over CIM/WinRM (WSMan) with DCOM fallback.

For closing handles, it uses the supported SMB cmdlet approach (Close-SmbOpenFile) via an external powershell.exe invocation (avoids embedded runspace issues).

Requirements

On the admin workstation (where you run the app)

• Windows 10/11 or Windows Server with desktop UI
• Network access to the file servers
• Credentials that have rights to enumerate and close open SMB handles

On the file servers

• SMB server role (normal file server)
• Remote management access:
  • WinRM/CIM (WSMan), or DCOM (depending on environment)
• Permissions:
  • Typically requires local admin or equivalent rights to close handles

Note: Closing an SMB handle drops the server-side file lock. Client apps (like Excel) may keep the window open, but saving usually errors or forces a “Save As”.

Download

Go to the Releases page for the latest build:

• Download: see the repository’s Releases section (recommended)

If you download the framework-dependent build, you’ll need the .NET 8 Desktop Runtime installed on Windows.

Build from source

```powershell dotnet restore dotnet build dotnet run –project .\OpenFilesMonitor\OpenFilesMonitor.csproj

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