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Strange Windows Explorer problem - anyone know how to fix this?

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nudone:
I hope you find a solution. I'm just chipping in to say I wouldn't bet on it. My system crashes when I save Office docs (that's any version of Office). It will also crash when saving a file using Dreamweaver. Happens about 50% of the time, can't find any pattern to it. Don't wish to reinstall the entire system just to see if something like that would fix it.

Don't let this hijack your thread. I'm just offering some negative support.

Carol Haynes:
Seem to have fixed it.

I have found this problem in all versions of Windows since 98.

Basically what had happened is that an application had saved some files in deep nested subfolders and the file names are too long.

This seems to bugger up the file system and cause odd/random effects.

Basically I removed the folder from the Documents library, copied everything I could to a new Documents folder (and left behind the files with bad names) and then made that the default docs folder.

All seems to work fine now - but I have 19 files in the old folder which cannot be moved.

The really stupid thing is I would have thought this is precisely the sort of error CHKDSK was designed to resolve!! (Not that it should be able to happen in the first place).

40hz:
Try booting with a live Linux CD and see if you can move the remaining files with that.

I had a similar problem, and using Nix (which is more comfortable with ridiculously deep directory nesting and crazy-long filenames) worked the trick. Also comes in handy in a mixed network when somebody transfers an Apple OSX originated file whose name contains an illegal character under Windows. You can put such files on Windows. But you can't open or delete them when that happens.

Luck! :)

Stoic Joker:
All seems to work fine now - but I have 19 files in the old folder which cannot be moved.
-Carol Haynes (July 20, 2012, 06:33 AM)
--- End quote ---

Can you rename the files and/or the folder?

Last time I ran into something like this, I ended up having to share a folder a few levels above the target and then mapping a drive letter to it to shorten the overall path the system was using to access the file.

If you don't need any of the files rmdir /q /s \\.\[drive][path] should rid you of the folder and its contents. I've had to use it a few times to remove hidden file caches on hacked FTP servers back when.

Carol Haynes:
Trouble is I am not sure what generated the files - I need to find out before changing the folder structure too much.

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