Finder won't copy a large number of files to a USB drive

Question

Finder won't copy a large number of files to a USB drive

In an attempt to copy 110 .mp3 files to a USB stick, I repeatedly find that two or three files are missed and are not copied to the USB stick. The USB stick is formatted FAT32. I have been selecting all 110 files in Finder and dragging them to the stick. Does anyone know what is going on here? I can repeat this with several different USB sticks. I'm very disappointed because I just switched over from Windows and did not expect a problem with such a simple operation.

27-inch iMac, Mac OS X (10.6.1), October 2009 release

Posted on Nov 11, 2009 5:39 PM

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Answer 1

K T

Level 7

23,889 points

Nov 11, 2009 5:51 PM in response to HappyToBeHere

I have been selecting all 110 files in Finder and dragging them to the stick.

I never take such big bites when moving items to a thumb drive...usually fails. Pretty much gotten away from USB drives as a matter of fact - too small & not worth the trouble. Pocket HDs for the win.

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Answer 2

Nov 11, 2009 6:01 PM in response to K T

Thank you very much again, K T. One more interesting note. I formatted the USB stick as "MAC OS X Extended (Journaled)" and, for the very first time, got all 110 files to transfer. I think SL has a problem with transfers to FAT32 or, perhaps all operating systems do. Have you had this problem with Windows?

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Answer 3

K T

Level 7

23,889 points

Nov 11, 2009 6:22 PM in response to HappyToBeHere

I doubt you'll find any usb thumb drive that remains happy formatted specifically for OS X. I usually format them in a digital camera or phone.

I recalled a trick I found to xfer quantities of files - Instead of viewing the USB device in a primary window, I found that if I drill down from the computer icon on the left first, then to the volumes that are online, then further into the USB device that I could drag as many files as I wished from another Finder window.

Don't ask why that worked - I've got no clues, sorry. This issue is particular to flash drives in my experience, and those always demand to be WIN format.

Like I said, I've moved on from small volumes...it it's in a camera, the camera is usually docked. If it's on a phone, I use BlueTooth or Wi-Fi.

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Answer 4

V1to

Level 1

0 points

Dec 31, 2009 4:21 AM in response to HappyToBeHere

Finder in Version 10.6.2 has problems with copying to FAT32. Look here.

Unfortunately, no solution yet, just a workaround.
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2231287

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