I'm a little late responding to this. I haven't seen these particular things
discussed yet, and I think they need to be.
Regarding directories, there is the "width" (the number of files/subdirectories
in a {sub}directory) and the "height" (the number of levels of subdirectories
underneath the root). The root directory does have a width limit which is
defined when the drive is formatted (usually 128, 256, or 512). The root
directory is the only one with a width limit -- there is no limit to the number
of files/subdirectories in a subdirectory (other than the fact that all of the
entries must be uniquely named). Also, as a side note, early versions of FAT
did not even allow subdirectories.
While technically there is no limit to the depth, the entire name of a file,
including the drive letter, colon, backslashes, and dots, cannot be longer than
64 characters total when using short (8.3) names. DOS uses 64-byte buffers to
transfer names back and forth internally as it is manipulating the files and
directories, and that is a hard limit.
So, if your directory names are only one or two characters each, you can go
several levels deep. If they're all 8 letters (or even longer if you use 8.3
directory names), you can only go a few levels deep. Also not that the
64-character limit applies AFTER the file names are expanded (e.g., if you
normally use "." and "..", or leave out the drive letter, use SUBST drives, use
environment variables, etc.).
When using Long File Names, there is also a limit, but it is much longer -- 260
characters.
---
Regarding your particular problem, I suspect it is related to the relationship
between short and long file names, and the naming inconsistencies that occur
between different systems as directories and files are manipulated. I will
give a specific example.
Many years ago (when Windows 95 was still en vogue), the IT department at a
company I worked for sent out a batch file that everybody was supposed to run
on their computer to fix some kind of problem (I don't remember exactly what it
was supposed to fix, and it is irrelevant to the point, anyway). In Windows
there is a "Program Files" directory, which is normally PROGRA~1 when using
short file names. In the batch file the IT department sent out, it referenced
the directory as PROGRA~1 wither bothering to check if PROGRA~1 even existed.
On my computer, it didn't -- I had manipulated my directory structure enough
that my short name for "Program Files" was PROGRA~2 instead of PROGRA~1. I
called the IT department and told them what I found, and they basically told me
it was my fault and they weren't going to change their batch file.
It's possible that your particular problems are related to something like that
-- the short file names of one computer conflict with or somehow "confuse" the
other computer. I don't think you said which DOS LFN program you were using
(there are several of them and they all have their own quirks). It's possible
that one of the programs (PKZIP/PKUNZIP, the LFN program, the DOS kernel) is
buggy, or that some combination of the programs is acting weird, particularly
if the short file names are not consistent on the different computers. When
you're mixing long and short file names together you need to be very careful --
things don't always work quite like you would expect.
Long File Names are nice, but the way MS actually implemented them in FAT was,
in my opinion, a horrible design.
____________________________________________________________
Fivebreak.com
40 Years of the Same Photo Together, But The Last One is Incredible
http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL3141/5772286c618f6286c1e97st02vuc
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Attend Shape: An AT&T Tech Expo July 15-16. Meet us at AT&T Park in San
Francisco, CA to explore cutting-edge tech and listen to tech luminaries
present their vision of the future. This family event has something for
everyone, including kids. Get more information and register today.
http://sdm.link/attshape
_______________________________________________
Freedos-user mailing list
Freedos-user@lists.sourceforge.net
https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/freedos-user
