Can’t Remove Files With Changes Pending in Google Photos

/ Cloud, Removing Duplicate Photos, Solutions / By

One of the annoying issues faced by Google Photos users is not being able to remove files because some changes are pending. In this article, we will discuss the possible reasons behind it and how you can fix the issue without affecting any of your photos.

 

Sign Out of Google & Relaunch the Browser

Simply Sign out of your Google account and then Sign in again. This should help fix the issue. If it doesn’t, close the browser and then reopen it.

 

Restart Your Computer

If signing out and relaunching the browser doesn’t help, you might want to reboot your computer. This might help fix any temporary technical glitches that might be causing this issue.

 

Change Your Browser

Some users report that this problem occurred due to inherent compatibility issues with their browser. Switch to another browser and see if that helps.

 

Get Rid of Duplicate Photos

Another issue that contributes to this problem when you can’t remove files with changes pending in Google Photos is the duplication of photos. Having too many identical versions of the same files might cause issues. In any case, duplication of photos means that extra data is being synced without any benefit, and so you will ultimately have to wait longer for the sync to be over.

Now that Google Photos and Google Drive no longer sync with each other since 10th July 2019, we have to figure out a way to somehow move all the Google Photos content to Google Drive.

  1. Head to the Data & personalization section of your Google account.
  2. Now scroll down until you spot Download your data. Click it.
  3. On the next page, you will have to select the specific items associated with your Google account you want to download data for. Click the Deselect all link to simplify the task.
  4. Now scroll down and select the checkbox for Google Photos.
  5. Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click Next step.
  6. On the next page, you will have to select the options related to the delivery mode, date, and filetype of the archive you’re requesting. Select Add to Drive (to add the archive to your Google Drive) in the Delivery method dropdown menu.
  7. Select the relevant choices for the remaining options and then click Create archive in the end.
  8. Enter your Google account password and now wait for an email to arrive which shall inform you of the archive being successfully saved to a folder named Takeout in your Google Drive.
  9. Download the folder to your computer and extract its contents to a folder. We will name it Folder A for ease.

 

Now that you have the entire data for Google Photos on your computer/ Mac, it is time to scan it for duplication.

  1. Visit the official Clone Files Checker website. CFC is available for both Windows and Mac. Download the appropriate edition for your system.
  2. Install CFC and launch it.
  3. Click the Add button and add the Folder A location.
  4. Click on Start Search to launch the scan.
  5. Once you get the scan results message, click the Fix Wizard button underneath.
  6. Choose a version of your photos that you want to retain (Newest or Oldest).
  7. Now click on Permanent Delete | Continue.
  8. Download the Google Photos app to your computer and install it.
  9. Delete all the data from it.
  10. Now you can conveniently upload all the remaining files from Folder A to Google Photos.

This might have seemed a little too lengthy, but this whole process works wonders and recovers a big amount of storage space in your Google Drive that had been previously occupied by duplicates.

 

Use Incognito Mode

Incognito is a private browsing session that doesn’t permanently store your browsing history, form fill-up data and passwords. Once you exit incognito mode, it clears up any cookies, temporary data that might have been temporarily stored during that browsing session.

 

Google Chrome

  1. Click on the Menu bar.
  2. Select New incognito window.

Firefox Quantum

  1. Click on the Menu icon.
  2. Select the New Private Window option.

Safari

  1. Click the File menu.
  2. Select the New Private Window option.

Opera

  1. Click the Opera button on the left.
  2. Now simply select New private window.

Microsoft Edge

  1. Click on the Menu icon.
  2. Select New InPrivate window.

Internet Explorer

  1. Click the Gear icon on the upper right corner and point to Safety.
  2. Select InPrivate Browsing.

 

Delete Browsing History & Cache

A severely corrupt browsing cache may cause trouble removing files in Google Photos. We have outlined the steps for different browsers in both Mac and Windows operating systems.

 

Google Chrome

  1. Click the Menu icon on the top-right.
  2. Select More tools | Clear browsing data.
  3. Now select the Advanced tab.
  4. Select All time in the Time range drop-down menu.
  5. Select the following items:
    • Browsing history
    • Download history
    • Cookies and other site data
    • Cached images and files
  6. Click on Clear data.

Firefox Quantum

  1. Press the Ctrl + Shift + Delete shortcut keys to open up the Clear All History window.
  2. Select Everything in the Time range to clear drop-down menu.
  3. Select all the checkboxes underneath and then click on Clear Now.

Safari

  1. Click the History menu and select Clear History.
  2. Choose All history in the Clear drop-down menu.
  3. Hit Clear History to launch the process.

Opera

  1. Click the Opera button on the left and select Settings.
  2. Scroll down to the bottom and click on Advanced.
  3. Scroll down and click on Clear browsing data.
  4. Now open the Advanced tab.
  5. Select All time in the drop-down menu.
  6. Select all the checkboxes and then click Clear data.

Microsoft Edge

  1. Click the Menu icon and then select the History option.
  2. Click on Clear history.
  3. Select the following items:
    • Browsing history
    • Cookies and saved website data
    • Cached data and files
  4. Click on Clear.

Internet Explorer

  1. Press the Ctrl + Shift + Delete keys simultaneously to launch the Delete Browsing History window.
  2. Select all the options.
  3. Click on Delete.

 

Temporarily Turn Off Firewall

Windows Firewall is a security mechanism that protects your computer against unauthorized access to and from private networks.

Sometimes, your firewall protection software causes conflicts with even trusted websites. Temporarily disable your firewall system and check whether the problem still persists.

 

Disable Ad-Blocker

Although not common, Ad-Blocker plugins are known to cause conflicts with the functioning of your browser. Disable your Ad-Blocker plug-in and see if that helped.

Raza Ali Kazmi
Website | + posts

Raza Ali Kazmi works as an editor and technology content writer at Sorcim Technologies (Pvt) Ltd. He loves to pen down articles on a wide array of technology related topics and has also been diligently testing software solutions on Windows & Mac platforms. If you have any question about the content, you can message me or the company's support team.