Long File Names Error- Windows XP - Unable to copy files b..

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.perform_maintain (More info?)

The problem is not SP2, nor is it a problem with any other platform per se.
It's a limitation of the file system. It can only handle file names of a
certain length. Technically the same is true on HD, USB drives etc.

--
Walter Clayton
Any technology distinguishable from magic is insufficiently advanced.


"Ray" <Ray@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:CDD8F097-4997-4632-AA0F-968CC5E729EA@microsoft.com...
>I have a Windows XP Home System with all the latest Service packs and
>patches
> installed; and it has a primary IDE Hard disk and a secondary SCSI HDD
> and an IDE CDWriter/DVD.
>
> When I tried to copy files between these drives, it results in the
> following
> error:
> " Cannot copy. .....filename..... The resulting file name is too long.
> Specify a different file name".
>
> However, I do not have any problem copying same files from/to these drives
> to an USB memory Stick and vice-a-versa.
>
> These long files are typically IE favorites or some other downloaded
> files.
>
> This problem started appearing only in the last one or two months, after
> upgrading to additional patches on Service Pack2. This problem was not
> there
> with SP2.
>
> Many of my friends with XP / Home editions have similar problems of
> copying
> long filename files, which we used to copy without any problem few months
> earlier. Perhaps it is time for Microsoft to look in to this error.
>
> Unable to get any help from any where on the internet or newsgroups for
> this
> one.
>

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.perform_maintain (More info?)

I am not saying that this is a problem with SP2. I did not have this problem
until recently, I was able to move the "SAME" files regularly between these
drives. The problem started only recently. No BIOS changes were made.

"Walter Clayton" wrote:

> The problem is not SP2, nor is it a problem with any other platform per se.
> It's a limitation of the file system. It can only handle file names of a
> certain length. Technically the same is true on HD, USB drives etc.
>
> --
> Walter Clayton
> Any technology distinguishable from magic is insufficiently advanced.
>
>
> "Ray" <Ray@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
> news:CDD8F097-4997-4632-AA0F-968CC5E729EA@microsoft.com...
> >I have a Windows XP Home System with all the latest Service packs and
> >patches
> > installed; and it has a primary IDE Hard disk and a secondary SCSI HDD
> > and an IDE CDWriter/DVD.
> >
> > When I tried to copy files between these drives, it results in the
> > following
> > error:
> > " Cannot copy. .....filename..... The resulting file name is too long.
> > Specify a different file name".
> >
> > However, I do not have any problem copying same files from/to these drives
> > to an USB memory Stick and vice-a-versa.
> >
> > These long files are typically IE favorites or some other downloaded
> > files.
> >
> > This problem started appearing only in the last one or two months, after
> > upgrading to additional patches on Service Pack2. This problem was not
> > there
> > with SP2.
> >
> > Many of my friends with XP / Home editions have similar problems of
> > copying
> > long filename files, which we used to copy without any problem few months
> > earlier. Perhaps it is time for Microsoft to look in to this error.
> >
> > Unable to get any help from any where on the internet or newsgroups for
> > this
> > one.
> >
>
>

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.perform_maintain (More info?)

The file name themselves have changed. Which, with favorites can happen as
you add.

There is not a problem.

--
Walter Clayton
Any technology distinguishable from magic is insufficiently advanced.


"Ray" <Ray@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news D4E9C11-39C9-4B3E-8717-90A91327030A@microsoft.com...
>I am not saying that this is a problem with SP2. I did not have this
>problem
> until recently, I was able to move the "SAME" files regularly between
> these
> drives. The problem started only recently. No BIOS changes were made.
>
> "Walter Clayton" wrote:
>
>> The problem is not SP2, nor is it a problem with any other platform per
>> se.
>> It's a limitation of the file system. It can only handle file names of a
>> certain length. Technically the same is true on HD, USB drives etc.
>>
>> --
>> Walter Clayton
>> Any technology distinguishable from magic is insufficiently advanced.
>>
>>
>> "Ray" <Ray@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
>> news:CDD8F097-4997-4632-AA0F-968CC5E729EA@microsoft.com...
>> >I have a Windows XP Home System with all the latest Service packs and
>> >patches
>> > installed; and it has a primary IDE Hard disk and a secondary SCSI HDD
>> > and an IDE CDWriter/DVD.
>> >
>> > When I tried to copy files between these drives, it results in the
>> > following
>> > error:
>> > " Cannot copy. .....filename..... The resulting file name is too long.
>> > Specify a different file name".
>> >
>> > However, I do not have any problem copying same files from/to these
>> > drives
>> > to an USB memory Stick and vice-a-versa.
>> >
>> > These long files are typically IE favorites or some other downloaded
>> > files.
>> >
>> > This problem started appearing only in the last one or two months,
>> > after
>> > upgrading to additional patches on Service Pack2. This problem was not
>> > there
>> > with SP2.
>> >
>> > Many of my friends with XP / Home editions have similar problems of
>> > copying
>> > long filename files, which we used to copy without any problem few
>> > months
>> > earlier. Perhaps it is time for Microsoft to look in to this error.
>> >
>> > Unable to get any help from any where on the internet or newsgroups for
>> > this
>> > one.
>> >
>>
>>

I'm having the same issue. I have a back-up drive that I have copied files onto with no "long file name" issue before that indeed does have file names longer than 8 characters. I have copied updated versions of these files onto the drive from my computer before with no previous issues. Only recently, when copying over an updated version of the same file from my computer to that drive that exists on that drive already, I get the prompt telling me the volume doesn't support long file names, and to give it another, shortened name.

The volume always supported long file names before, and never had an issue with it before. It will do the same thing with files that don't already exist on the volume, as well, when I create new files on my computer and go to copy them over to back them up. I have even updated the very same file from my hard drive & copied it onto the back-up volume (which is a Network Attached Storage drive, by the way) with no previous issues before this started happening just recently, and now do have issues. And then, get this, once I copy the updated file over with the modified shortened name, it will let me delete the other, older, full-named file & let me give the new file the name the old one had, with no issues whatsoever. I can also rename a new file I create and copy over with a new, longer name. Neither of those things should be allowed if it were really a long file name issue where such a name wasn't supported by the volume, file system, OS, etc.

Not to sound smart-alecky, but just so you don't give me the same round of BS you gave the other guy, I have plenty of years of systems administration under my belt, and this one just doesn't make sense to me. I have all the latest updates, as well, and am unsure if that could be the issue or not (if the latest round of updates did something or not), as I believe I did recently update my system, before which this was not occurring.

-Tom

Note that a filename is all its path, not only the actual filename.
Example: Let's say we have file C:/Program Files/New Folder/text.txt

The File name, even though it's just 4 letters, is considered 35 characters.

So the reason you have got this error is because you are probably putting inside folders.
The filename length limit is 256 lettes (WITHOUT counting the drive letter)

P.S. Slashes (/) counted, and the drive letter "C:/" is counted as 2 letters (Well its probably counted as 1 char, and second for the '/'). Also, the file extension is counted in the filename length.

So I'd guess the drive letter length is counted as 2, which makes the filename a maximum length of 256 characters (2KB).

Summary, if you are getting a "filename too long" error, try renaming the folders it contains to smaller words.

Hope this Helps.  

Sorry for double post, But I don't seem to allowed to edit the my last reply.

But was I gonna say is that those values are for Windows XP SP2, using NTFS. Not sure if it's the same for different file systems/OS.

Go to regedit
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\FileSystem
check the information to match what comes below
ntfsdisable8dot3namecreation data 0x00000000(0)
win31filesystem data 0x00000000(0)
win95truncatedextensions data 0x00000001(1)
come back to this post after checking this data in reg

Hey!

One solution is to create a ZIP file on the HD you want to move your backupfiles to and then opening that up and putting all the files from the old HD in the zipfile. It's fast, and works really well. Then when you need to pull out your files, just rename the ones that are too long.

Cheers,
Mattias

This topic has been closed by Mousemonkey