Odd behaviour for random files

[Peter Bourgon]

> It's not easy to make a "hg update" to an earlier version with 13.000-ish
> files on a file server during a weekday, because files get locked on the
> network share - blame our windows workstations.

Do you have this gigantic network share over a remote link, rather
than a proper local clone + push/pull, by fiat or by choice?

If by fiat, I am sorry for your pains :( I hope your managers someday
become amenable to reason. But if by choice, it seems to indicate your
team has a fundamental misunderstanding of DVCS, and I'd encourage you
to re-assess your setup.