Computer Hope
Microsoft => Microsoft Windows => Windows 10 and 11 => Topic started by: carbon_17 on May 02, 2020, 07:20:41 PM
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Forum members: I have been repeatedly trying to copy a large number of files from one directory to another on the same Windows 10 p.c. Over and over, just as the copying is about finished, I get the Windows message --file(s) cannot be copied, name(s) too long-- or at least that is the gist of the message. I have been to many websites that claim they can supply a solution. And, I have tried many of these. All no goes. Would any forum member be able to suggest something that is going to work? Thank you for your feedback.
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Try them in increments...
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Looks like the filepath has reached the Windows limit. 260 characters. You can try few ways around this:
i. https://mspoweruser.com/ntfs-260-character-windows-10/
ii. Creating "Shares" for the purpose of the copy which shortens the path virtually.
i.e. The path is
E:\Apple\MobileSync\Backup\0247a33ba73acbea48f7714650064ce1dfe45e43\0c\A\B\12312312d123123123123131s12e1e1e1e1231s1s1s12312312sd1d12d12\C
Using the steps attached at 0.png the path will become shared (and shortened in the process) to \\YOURCOMPUTERNAME\C
Copying would work now.
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Sorry, I do not understand creating "shares," however, I did try altering the registry. I am not sure if it took or not. Thank you.
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Why on earth edit the registry ? ?...Just simplify the path name by making a new folder and only using the file names...
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There is no usable solution. The solutions you can find online answer the question of *copying* the file, but they leave out that doing so makes it very difficult to use the copied files. Once copied vias the various workarounds, the files longer than the maximum path length will be quite difficult to access, requiring rather involved workarounds each time. realistically, it just cuts you off from those files that have longer paths.
The best alternative is to reduce the length of the names of directories to try to reduce the maximum length of the full file path of the most deeply nested files in that structure, as it seems the copy target location has a longer path than the source location which is enough of a difference to make the longer filenames/paths in the copied files be too long.