Size limit for folders?

Gig-O-Ram · June 14th, 2008

I don't know why I was thinking about this, but I was wondering if there is a total data size limit for Windows folders/directories.

I know there are some Windows system folders that just seem to have endless sub-directories with X number of files, but on my own, I have folders that are quite large, like my mp3 folder, which is over 8GB in size with almost 3K files in over 200 folders and sub-directories. I have a folder for pictures taken with our digi-cam, that has dozens of sub-folders, each with who knows how many files. Not to mention my games...

Is there a point where a folder gets to be too large for the system to handle?

Zambini · June 14th, 2008

I don't think there is a limit to how much a folder can hold. I've had folders that were over 100gb, and they were perfectly fine.

And if u think about it, C:/ is just a folder. So maybe 1TB so far is the max size? unless there's some sort of RAID array >.>

**MantaBase** · June 14th, 2008

Not sure there are limits on the amount of memory a folder can take, but there are real and practical limits on the number of "objects" that can be in a folder. It would depend on the file system and the OS. I suspect, it's in the tens of thousands in modern OS/file systems though.

Even DOS with FAT16 could take 1000 in a single folder.

PS: there are limits on the size of a drive/partition an OS/file system can address.

Gig-O-Ram · June 14th, 2008

Well, I know that some of the larger folders I have - say, stuff in "My Documents" - seem to take a tad longer to load into memory sometimes, because they are larger. I've wondered if it's taking longer for the HDD to access all the data. Like how backup discs can take longer to load because of the relatively slower read speeds.

screwballl · June 14th, 2008

The size limit is only as much as the hard drive in question can hold. I have seen folders with millions of small text files and I have seen folders with 500GB of movie files... no problems either way.
Granted anything with images as thumbnails will take longer to load, everything else should be no problem.

June 14th, 2008	#1
Gig-O-Ram As stated in the avatar: Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Out here in the New Mexico desert. Posts: 844	Size limit for folders? I don't know why I was thinking about this, but I was wondering if there is a total data size limit for Windows folders/directories. I know there are some Windows system folders that just seem to have endless sub-directories with X number of files, but on my own, I have folders that are quite large, like my mp3 folder, which is over 8GB in size with almost 3K files in over 200 folders and sub-directories. I have a folder for pictures taken with our digi-cam, that has dozens of sub-folders, each with who knows how many files. Not to mention my games... Is there a point where a folder gets to be too large for the system to handle? If it's not fixed, then don't broke it!

June 14th, 2008	#2
Zambini Level 2 College Student Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: St. Mere du SantaCruz Posts: 2,118 Blog Entries: 1	Re: Size limit for folders? I don't think there is a limit to how much a folder can hold. I've had folders that were over 100gb, and they were perfectly fine. And if u think about it, C:/ is just a folder. So maybe 1TB so far is the max size? unless there's some sort of RAID array >.>

June 14th, 2008	#3
MantaBase Super Moderator Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 345 Blog Entries: 2	Re: Size limit for folders? Not sure there are limits on the amount of memory a folder can take, but there are real and practical limits on the number of "objects" that can be in a folder. It would depend on the file system and the OS. I suspect, it's in the tens of thousands in modern OS/file systems though. Even DOS with FAT16 could take 1000 in a single folder. PS: there are limits on the size of a drive/partition an OS/file system can address.

June 14th, 2008	#4
Gig-O-Ram As stated in the avatar: Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Out here in the New Mexico desert. Posts: 844	Re: Size limit for folders? Well, I know that some of the larger folders I have - say, stuff in "My Documents" - seem to take a tad longer to load into memory sometimes, because they are larger. I've wondered if it's taking longer for the HDD to access all the data. Like how backup discs can take longer to load because of the relatively slower read speeds. If it's not fixed, then don't broke it!

June 14th, 2008	#5
screwballl Colonel Calamity Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Sandy South Posts: 6,277 Blog Entries: 6	Re: Size limit for folders? The size limit is only as much as the hard drive in question can hold. I have seen folders with millions of small text files and I have seen folders with 500GB of movie files... no problems either way. Granted anything with images as thumbnails will take longer to load, everything else should be no problem. Thanks HL and Corsair! My opinions are my own and not representative of this site or its members.

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