apache/maven · warning

Could not delete {} file.

Error message

Could not delete {} file. 

What it means

DefaultBuildResumptionDataRepository.removeResumptionData deletes the resume state file (target/resume.properties in the root project's build directory) after a resumed build. If Files.deleteIfExists raises IOException - typically a file lock on Windows or a read-only target directory - Maven logs this warning and continues; the stale file is simply rewritten on the next failed build.

Source

Thrown at impl/maven-core/src/main/java/org/apache/maven/execution/DefaultBuildResumptionDataRepository.java:88

        properties.setProperty(REMAINING_PROJECTS, value);

        return properties;
    }

    @Override
    public void applyResumptionData(MavenExecutionRequest request, MavenProject rootProject) {
        Properties properties =
                loadResumptionFile(Paths.get(rootProject.getBuild().getDirectory()));
        applyResumptionProperties(request, properties);
    }

    @Override
    public void removeResumptionData(MavenProject rootProject) {
        Path resumeProperties = Paths.get(rootProject.getBuild().getDirectory(), RESUME_PROPERTIES_FILENAME);
        try {
            Files.deleteIfExists(resumeProperties);
        } catch (IOException e) {
            LOGGER.warn("Could not delete {} file. ", RESUME_PROPERTIES_FILENAME, e);
        }
    }

    private Properties loadResumptionFile(Path rootBuildDirectory) {
        Properties properties = new Properties();
        Path path = rootBuildDirectory.resolve(RESUME_PROPERTIES_FILENAME);
        if (!Files.exists(path)) {
            LOGGER.warn("The {} file does not exist. The --resume / -r feature will not work.", path);
            return properties;
        }

        try (Reader reader = Files.newBufferedReader(path)) {
            properties.load(reader);
        } catch (IOException e) {
            LOGGER.warn("Unable to read {}. The --resume / -r feature will not work.", path);
        }

        return properties;

View on GitHub (pinned to e4093d4e12)

Solutions

1. Delete target/resume.properties manually once no other process holds it, then re-run
2. Fix directory permissions so the build user owns the root module's target/
3. Stop running concurrent Maven builds against the same checkout/workspace
4. Ignore it: harmless in itself; the next failed build overwrites the file

// before triggering a resumed build programmatically, ensure the file is deletable
Path target = Paths.get(rootProject.getBuild().getDirectory());
Path resume = target.resolve("resume.properties");
if (Files.exists(resume) && !Files.isWritable(target)) {
    throw new IllegalStateException("target/ not writable; resume file cannot be removed later");
}

When it happens

Trigger: A resumed build finishes and Maven tries to delete root-module target/resume.properties while another process (IDE file indexer, antivirus, a second concurrent Maven run on the same checkout) holds the file open, or the target directory does not grant delete permission to the build user.

Common situations: Windows workstations with antivirus/indexing scanning target/; two CI jobs sharing one workspace; container builds where target/ was created by root and the build runs as another user.

Related errors

• Error reading config file: ${atFile}
• Error reading config file: ${configFile}
• Error while deploying metadata: {}
• Could not create local repository at {}
• Could not create resume.properties file.

AI-assisted analysis of apache/maven@e4093d4e12 (2026-08-21). Data as JSON: /api/errors/93eabe03408f8640. Report an issue: GitHub.