[FIXED] Why does visual studio 2017 insist that files I don't have opened elsewhere have been modified outside the editor?

Issue

I'm using Microsoft Visual Studio 2017 Pro at work and recently, after upgrading to Windows 10, I've been pestered by seemingly random notifications telling me that my source file(s) have been modified outside the visual studio editor. I don't have the file open anywhere else, and the files are located in folders which are not being shared. I did have remote desktop on but turning it off did not immediately resolve the issue either. After hours and hours of coding, it stopped giving me this warning, but I have no idea what happened either. I ran the Symantec End-point protection software (antivirus) to make sure it's not malware, but a full scan did not reveal any culprits. I don't understand what is causing the problem and how to prevent it. I want a full solution - ensure that files are not modified without my explicit knowledge and consent, rather than simply muting the error. Any help would be appreciated!

Solution

Get a copy of sysinternals. It has procmon and filemon which can monitor interaction with your filesystem, telling you which processes have written to, read or even enumerated the file.

These tools are also exceedingly useful for debugging complex file interaction, because they generate pretty clean logs. For example I had a problem with an antivirus reopening files I just wrote causing my write close reopen to fail; procmon helped me figure out the culprit.

Answered By - Yakk - Adam Nevraumont

Answer Checked By - Senaida (PHPFixing Volunteer)