32 character file name length limitation in OSX on NS4100+?

[funcii]

Hi.

I'm thinking about getting a NS4100+ and am concerned about the apparent file length limitation of 32 characters when accessing the system via OSX. In the support page on the Thecus website it says:

Mac OS Limitations:
a) When using Mac OS X (post 10.2 with AppleTalk) without SMB, do not use Japanese characters in folder or file names to prevent errors accessing the data over a network.
b) Mac OS 9 and Mac OS X can not see files on the network with names made up of over 32 characters.

Can someone who understands this better than me possibly clarify?

Does the limitation depend on what protocol I use to attach to the NAS, or will it always be there? It seems to be saying that if you use SMB you can use Japanese characters, but I don't think that refers to the 32 characters paragraph as well.

I'm also slightly concerned at the paragraph that reads:

File names and folder names should not contain more than 250 characters in their entire directory path to prevent errors occur in the file copy operations.

but this appears to apply to everything, not just OSX.

It's not easy to get a handle on how usable this thing is with a Mac without actually getting my hands on one, so thanks in advance for any guidance offered.

Cheers,
funcii

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[funcii]

Sorry to comment to my own message but I thought I would share what I have discovered so far.

I can connect to the 4100+ via SMB (I think it is) from the Mac, and copy files of vast length, and containing question marks (which you are not supposed to be able to do), and there are no problems at all.

I don't know what the supposed 32-character restrictions are all about. Bizarre.

There does seem to be an issue with very long paths but it is higher than 250 characters.

I've not yet tested the Japanese characters thing but this is unlikely to be an issue for me.

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[sietierney]

Hi Func

I am running osx with a 5200Pro,, I am not sure about the 4100 but I use AFP to connect. (Apple File Protocol) but I dont know if the 4100 supports AFP.

I did start using SMB to connect but this did cause me problems with invisable files appearing etc, do a search for my previous posts.

I hope this is of some use to you.

[ncollingridge]

This could refer to a particular version of AFP being used - version 3 upwards supports long file names, but versions before that only support filenames with up to 31 characters. As is sadly so often the case, the information that is provided is so sketchy that it's impossible to tell! The 250 character file specifier limitation is, I believe, a limit in NTFS and/or SMB that does not apply to AFP 3.0 and greater. This is a very complex area as every file system has different limitations.