Check your backups if using Smatware

After several years using smartware and WD HD backing up my important data music and picture files, one day I decided to check the file properties from my internal drive (D-drive where my files are, not-C-) notice that more than 7 thousand files missing in my external WD drive, after contacting WD support they ask me to just copy and paste all files from D to external drive, it took some time but I saw and error: “ the path name is too long”, then I realize that Samrtware creates some directories like this:

M:\WD SmartWare.swstor\PC-Name\Volume.73725681.e043.4b43.8465.98765490e6e3

Now this is just the path to the external drive files this name dos not include the folder name and the file name, if we add the folder name and file name will be like this:

M:\WD SmartWare.swstor\PC-Name\Volume.73725681.e043.4b43.8465.98765490e6e3

\My- Files\Documents\My_Music

Now this doesn’t include the album name and song title of my music, now I do like classical music so I have hundreds of classical music in my library, so the path name will be like this:

M:\WD SmartWare.swstor\PC-Name\Volume.73725681.e043.4b43.8465.98765490e6e3\My- Files\Documents\My_Music\Clasic Music\Mitsuko Uchida Jeffrey Tate English Chamber Orchestra\Great Composers - Mozart [Disc 2]\ 02_Mozart Piano Concerto #21 In C K 467 - 1. Allegro Maestoso_Mitsuko Uchida Jeffrey Tate English Chamber Orchestra

That will be the entire path name that SmarWarw creates, since is a very long name smartware DO NOT COPY THESE FILES.

After explain this to WD Support they ask me to just rename the files to shorter name, that is not a solution since each song name is unique and I do not like the idea to rename them. And WD Support told me that there is no solution for this and to post this here maybe if there are enough people with the same problem they can do something about it.

So, people please check your backup files if using Samrtware maybe some of your important files are missing…

Cheers Everybody

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Hi, welcome to the WD Community.

Thanks for sharing this with the community. If you get further information about this case, please come back and post that on this thread in case that any other user is experiencing this.

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Yes, I have run into this issue also. I have subsequently discontinued using SmartWare for this and other issues with that software. I am now using a competitor backup solution. I am sure I’m not alone.

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The name size is a Windows limitation, but the fact that Smartware just silently skips the file is inexcusable.

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Thank you for your replay, the thing is if i copy and paste all my music files directly into the root directory of any external drive, all files will be copied including the ones with a long name, the problem here is that Smartware add first a directoty name that is too long, and there is nothning that we can do to make it short:

M:\WD SmartWare.swstor\PC-Name\Volume.73725681.e043.4b43.8465.98765490e6e3

 

What I dont understant is why Smartwware creates this long path name directory.

Cheers.

 

It’s so it can identify both the computer that the back-up came from, and also which drive within it (the volume part at the end of the string). It’s a long string, and that combined with the overall length of using the smartware.swstor folder name and the PC’s name will severely limit what length the software can accept (I think Windows Backup also does something similar and can have the same issue).

The real problem is that there is no notification that it is dropping files from the back-up. Even the MS Backup program used to let you know when filenames were getting too long in a backup.

In my case I did create a batch file using xcopy to backup my files to another external drive: xcopy all files from D drive to M Drive including empty folders and creating new directories, it works just fine it copy all files even the music files with long names, no problems. i like SmartWare WD since I can do a continuous back up with it but it doesn’t copy files with long names.

Hi guys.
After loosing many files. I stopped using WD softwares except WD security.
Smartware is so stupid. It was designed as backup software but doesn’t have option menu for user to customize, lacking of sync function. And most crazy error is creating so long file path.

May be you guys should use other sync software. I use " Always sync", it allows me to choose sync or mirror data from internal HDD to passport more easily.