Invalid Long Filename Thingie...HELP!

[sheath]

Okay, here's what happened...

My computer locked up. So I had to reboot. Then it runs a Microsoft Scandisk...okay. Cool little blue screen. THEN it pops up with a message that says something like this:

"Scandisk has detected an invalid long filename entry on this drive but was unable to fix it."

Then it tells me to run Scandisk for Windows.

So, I'm pretty computer illiterate. And I don't know what the hell this means, or what a Scandisk for Windows is, where I find it, and how I do it.

Ummm.

Help? Pretty please?



S.

 

[Weird Harold]

So, I'm pretty computer illiterate. And I don't know what the hell this means, or what a Scandisk for Windows is, where I find it, and how I do it.

Scandisk is a utility to check your hard-drive for errors. It comes in two versions -- the basic MS-DOS version that runs automatically befor Windows loads if your system was improperly shut-down -- rebooted or suffered a power failure.

The MS-DOS version can't repair long-filenames because MS-DOS doesn't support them, but the full windows version of ScanDisk can repair them because it has access to the required information (that only is there when Wndows is actually running.)

To run the Windows version of ScanDisk (or to defragment your drive) go to "My Computer," right click on the hard-drive, and select the Tools tab.

Scandisk is the top utility listed -- labeled "Error Checking Status" -- and all you need to do is click the"Check Now" button to start Scandisk. You don't need the "Thorough" check to fix a long-filename; that check is to check the surface of the disk for reliability and takes forever on a big disk. You should only run a thorough check when you have questions about the reliability of the drive.

 

[sheath]

Thank you, Weird Harold.

S.