During a file transfer I receive the error "The path is too long." and the transfer aborts.

Cause

This error is generated when the total length of the path to a file involved in the transfer exceeds 254 characters. This is a limitation of the file system not being able to accommodate paths that are too long.

Solution

Re-organize your directory structure so the path to the file(s) is less than 254 characters in length.

Tip: The steps below should help you locate the source of this error. You should have a basic familiarity with navigating your file system in DOS before proceeding with these steps.

1. Click on the Start menu and select Run.
2. Open up a DOS command prompt by typing in COMMAND (if you have Windows NT/2K/XP) or CMD (if you have Windows 9x/ME).
3. Use the cd DOS command to switch to the directory that you are attempting to synch. For example if you are trying to synchronize C:\Documents and Settings\AlexS\My Documents, you would type in the command cd "C:\Documents and Settings\AlexS\My Documents" .
4. Type in the following command: dir *.* /b /s > dir.txt

After entering in the last command, you will see a flashing cursor as a list of all directories and subdirectories is compiled and outputted to the dir.txt file. Once the flashing cursor has disappeared, you will again be at a command prompt. Now type in the following command:

notepad dir.txt

This will open up the dir.txt file in Notepad. From here you can scan through the list to help you identify paths that exceed 254 characters in length.

Product: ShareDirect
KB: 1051  Last updated: Sep 5, 2008
Keywords: File Transfer: Drag & Drop  File Transfer: As backup  File Transfer: Xchange Agent  File Transfer: Clone Folder  File Transfer: Error messages  File Transfer: Clone 
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