Windows – delete recursive directory created by robocopy when “The file name is too long”

robocopywindows 7

After running robocopy.exe to backup a C:\Users\ folder without using the /xj switch, I ended up with a recursive directory which was too long. For example, if you run dir /b /s you will receive the following error:

The directory name C:\Users\ … \AppData\Local\Application Data\Application Data\Application Data\Application Data\Application Data\Application Data\Application Data\Application Data\Application Data\Application Data\Application Data\Application Data\Application Data is too long.

I tried deleting it with rmdir "Application Data" /s but I received the error "The file name is too long"

I've looked at other solutions, but I thought I might be able to use the tool that caused the issue to solve it.

Best Answer

Create an empty directory with mkdir empty, then use robocopy empty\ "Application Data\" /mir" which will remove the whole directory tree. Then issue a rmdir empty and rmdir "Application Data to clean up and you're done.

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Windows cannot open directory with too long name created by Linux

Windows has maximum filename length limitations. If you can't rename by using the short filename, then you'll have to use the Unix/Linux shell on the server to accomplish the renaming.

At the DOS prompt in Windows, if you type "DIR /X" you can see the short filenames.

Windows – The compression cannot be performed because the path to the file or directory ‘Application Data’ is too long

The problem is that "C:\Users\Administrator\AppData\Local\Application Data" is a NTFS junction point that points to "C:\Users\Administrator\AppData\Local". This causes an infinite loop in programs that do not specifically check for junction points.

Wikipedia actually mentions this very issue: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NTFS_junction_point#General .

You should look for an archiver that understands junction points and has the option of not following them.

As a last resort, you can try temporarily deleting the junction point. But be careful, if you try to delete the folder as usual, you will end up deleting what it points to. And you may temporarily break stuff that relies on the junction point. The delection can be performed with (according to http://support.microsoft.com/kb/205524 ):

cd "C:\Users\Administrator\AppData\Local"
linkd "Application Data" /d

However, be aware that the junction point will then not be archived and will not be recreated when you extract the resulting archive.

Best Answer

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Windows cannot open directory with too long name created by Linux

Windows – The compression cannot be performed because the path to the file or directory ‘Application Data’ is too long

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