Windows Platforms use two different file systems -- the Protected-Mode File Allocation Table (FAT) file system and the New Technology File System (NTFS). These file systems have similar naming conventions, and differ mainly in which characters are illegal. The naming conventions listedÊ Ê Ê Ê Ê below apply to both FAT and NTFS unless specifically noted.
File and directory names may be up to 255 characters long on FAT file systems and 256 characters on NTFS. Full path names may be up to 260Ê Ê Ê Ê Ê Ê characters long.
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The backslash (\) is the path separator.
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File and directory names on the Protected-Mode FAT file system may consist of letters, digits, spaces, and these characters:
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Ê Ê Ê Ê $%'-_@~`!{}()#&+,;=[].
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Note that periods are allowed in file and directory names, as long as they are accompanied by other characters. For example, .text is perfectlyÊ Ê Ê Ê Ê Ê legal.
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On NTFS, file and directory names may consist of any character except the following characters:
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Ê Ê Ê Ê Ê Ê "/\*?<>|:
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Although file and directory names are not case-sensitive, their case is preserved.