dot_clean command to resolve Error 36

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an1980 Author

Level 1

30 points

dot_clean command to resolve Error 36

My external DVD drive keeps unmounting every time I try to copy home videos I made in the past with my PC to my Mac. Finder gives me error 36:

The Finder can’t complete the operation because some data in “FileName” can’t be read or written. (Error code -36)

After searching on the internet I found that the problem can be resolved by using command dot_clean.

I tried the following on the terminal (where Nov 27 2011 D is the name of the DVD I'm trying to copy) :

dot_clean /Volumes/Nov 27 2011 D

The result was a failure as below:

Failed trying to change dir to /Volumes/Nov

Bad Pathname: No such file or directory

Failed trying to change dir to 27

Bad Pathname: No such file or directory

Failed trying to change dir to 2011

Bad Pathname: No such file or directory

Failed trying to change dir to D

Bad Pathname: No such file or directory

What's wrong here? Any advice?

MacBook Pro with Retina display, OS X Mavericks (10.9.4)

Posted on Aug 2, 2015 6:57 PM

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Answer 1

Aug 2, 2015 6:59 PM in response to an1980

Check out this discussion > What is Finder error code -36?

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Answer 2

an1980 Author

Level 1

30 points

Aug 2, 2015 11:15 PM in response to Carolyn Samit

I initially thought that it has something to do with compatibility between PC and Mac, although I don't think a DVD will be any different if created by a PC or a Mac.

That discussion you referred to is talking about a bad sector or a hardware failure but in my case that seems less likely because:

too many of my home video DVDs are giving the error (around 10 out of 30),

and because the same DVD and the same drive worked perfectly on my PC without any issues,

and because the external hard I'm copying to never gave me any errors on other occasions. (errors only with those DVDs I created with my PC)

Because of the three reasons above it seemed tempting to think of it as being a compatibility problem and that is why I'm trying the dot_clean commands. Any one can tell why it's not working with me?

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Answer 3

John Galt

Level 10

140,820 points

Aug 2, 2015 11:44 PM in response to an1980

Standard disclaimer: if you are not absolutely certain what a certain Terminal command will do, don't do it. Have a backup plan in the event something unexpected occurs.

The reason that command is not working is that dot_clean is acting upon the argument "Nov". That file or directory does not exist. The remaining arguments (27, 2011, and D) are being passed individually, and as such make no sense to dot_clean. You are fortunate that using it did not result in corruption.

Having said that its applicability to your concern is questionable. Read the manpages to determine how to use it and verify whether it is really what you want to do.

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Answer 4

greg sahli

Level 7

25,508 points

Aug 3, 2015 5:41 AM in response to an1980

First - I agree with John Galt. You shouldn't run Terminal commands if you don't understand them.

I'll explain why it didn't work - a file or folder name with spaces can't be used like regular filenames. You must either use individual escape coding for each space (each space is entered as backslash space = "\ "), or, you can put quotes around the entire "path to file" to get Terminal to use as a folder/filename.

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Answer 5

Kurt Lang

Level 9

57,774 points

Aug 3, 2015 6:28 AM in response to an1980

In addition to John's and greg's comments (both correct), dot_clean can't work on a DVD (or a CD or Blu-ray disk) even if you entered the command correctly for the same reason you can't delete files from these types of disks in any other manner.

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Answer 6

an1980 Author

Level 1

30 points

Aug 4, 2015 5:35 AM in response to Kurt Lang

Many thx to all the replies above. They all were very helpful. Any comment on the reason I'm having the error 36 in my case? Any hope for a solution?

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Answer 7

greg sahli

Level 7

25,508 points

Aug 4, 2015 5:49 AM in response to an1980

It sounds like a problem with the DVD drive is the cause.

Tell us about the DVD drive. USB? Does it have its own power supply? Mac laptops often have trouble providing power to external devices. Try using a powered hub in between.

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