Transfer NFTP File over LAN to FAT32 Machine?

[JCW]

I've been using W2K machines for years with FAT32 file systems. Now I have
added an XPPro machine with an NTFS file system (which I don't yet fully
understand) to my LAN with two of the old W2K machines, which NetBEUI for
file sharing. (I installed a copy of W2K NetBEUI on the XP machine, as
recommended on the Web, and it seems to work properly.) Copying files from a
shared directory on the NTFS machine across the LAN to a FAT32 machine, I get
the following warning:

Confirm Stream Loss

The file '[filename]' contains more than one data stream, but the
destination volume does not support this feature. Some data will not be
preserved as a result.

Information that will not be preserved includes:
:Zone.Identifier:$DATA
<<


I suppose that I'm losing permissions and other NTFS properties in this
process. The question is, am I losing any of the file itself? In general,
are there any pitfalls to this process?

 

[Zaphod Beeblebrox]

I've been using W2K machines for years with FAT32 file systems. Now
I have
added an XPPro machine with an NTFS file system (which I don't yet
fully
understand) to my LAN with two of the old W2K machines, which
NetBEUI for
file sharing. (I installed a copy of W2K NetBEUI on the XP machine,
as
recommended on the Web, and it seems to work properly.) Copying
files from a
shared directory on the NTFS machine across the LAN to a FAT32
machine, I get
the following warning:

Confirm Stream Loss

The file '[filename]' contains more than one data stream, but the
destination volume does not support this feature. Some data will
not be
preserved as a result.

Information that will not be preserved includes:
:Zone.Identifier:$DATA
<<


I suppose that I'm losing permissions and other NTFS properties in
this
process. The question is, am I losing any of the file itself? In
general,
are there any pitfalls to this process?

No, you've pretty much nailed it. File contents will not be affected,
NTFS permissions go away, as well as the "Alternate Data Streams"
(Google that for a full explanation). The most you will lose is the
annoying prompt from Windows asking you if you want to run this file
and warning you that "While files from the internet can be useful,
this file type can potentially harm your computer". You know the
one... .

--
Zaphod

Arthur: All my life I've had this strange feeling that there's
something big and sinister going on in the world.
Slartibartfast: No, that's perfectly normal paranoia. Everyone in the
universe gets that.

 

[JCW]

Thanks, Zaphod. If I may be permitted a slightly off-topic follow-up
question: What about doing image backups with commercial software (say,
ShadowProtect, whose user guide doesn't seem to address the issue) from the
NTFS XP computer to a FAT32 external hard drive. (I'm already using it to
back up the FAT32 W2K machines.) Will that work, or do I need to create a
NTFS partition on the external drive first? -- Thanks again! -- JCW



:

 

[Zaphod Beeblebrox]

Thanks, Zaphod. If I may be permitted a slightly off-topic
follow-up
question: What about doing image backups with commercial software
(say,
ShadowProtect, whose user guide doesn't seem to address the issue)
from the
NTFS XP computer to a FAT32 external hard drive. (I'm already using
it to
back up the FAT32 W2K machines.) Will that work, or do I need to
create a
NTFS partition on the external drive first? -- Thanks again! -- JCW

I'm not specifically familiar with ShadowProtect, but if by image
backups you mean it takes a snapshot of the drive and saves it as a
single, large file (similar to Ghost), then that should work fine.
The backup software should have a built-in method of preserving the
NTFS permissions and such. Using Ghost, I've never had a problem
saving images of NTFS drives to FAT32 media.