What are the .# files in $GNUPGHOME?

GnuPG Help
1

Hello! I use gpg on linux and I noticed that there are some hidden files in my $GNUPGHOME directory. Their name follows the following pattern:
.#lk0x...

I noticed them because I version control the directory my $GNUPGHOME with git (obviously, I don’t push it anywhere, but I can say it can saved me from being an encryption idiot and losing keys).

What are these files? What do they do? Are they important? Should I back them up? Thank you!

2

These are lock files which the gnupg processes use internally to signal between themself who owns a resource. They should be automatically removed in theory, but sometimes things do not work as they should and they are left over.
You can safely delete them.

3

Thank you for your help!