Moving from Windows to Mac - Compare fails with error

[roadcone]

FFS Version 13.7 ARM64 06/23/2024
Mac Version is Sequoia

I am moving from Windows to Mac. I need to convert my backups from NTFS to Mac (not entirely convinced about exFAT). As part of this process I have a new Mac-formatted backup disk (Target) but am having problems reading the USB attached original NTFS backup (Source). Finder can find it OK and navigate through the disk structure. FFS also finds the folders but fails at Compare with errors:

1. Cannot set lock - this is expected because Mac cannot write to NTFS (Source), so I click Ignore.

2. Cannot read directory “/Volumes/Seagate … etc” (= NTFS Source)
EINVAL: Invalid argument [readdir]
If I click Ignore it goes to the next one with the same error. If I click Ignore All it ends with no sync having taken place.

This happens with all three of my NTFS Source USB drives, but not the exFAT drive.

Can anyone offer any advice please?

Regards

Clive

[xCSxXenon]

MacOS can't read NTFS data natively, you need 3rd party software to do that. exFat is fine and can be trusted as much as other options, AKA not at all and you should still have multiple backups LOL
I know, I know, "Finder can find it OK and navigate through the disk structure"
You'll need to use a Windows machine to copy to an exFAT device first, purchase software to access NTFS on Mac, or look for some other ways online that supposedly allow this without software. These are usually done via Terminal, so these are at your own risk. Paragon makes good software for cross-platform file-system support, and their NTFS on Mac software is $30.

[roadcone]

Mmm - well, Finder can read the USB NTFS drive and if I open two finder windows I can drag files from NTFS to an Apple drive. And Commander One and Double Commander will allow me to copy between USB source NTFS and USB target Apple, open in different panels.

I do have multiple backups with categories (photos, movies, music etc) on their own, smaller disks (so if one goes down I don't lose the lot) - then all backed up to one big NTFS disk. I will maintain the smaller disks (all exFAT) but want to bulk-copy the big NTFS to the new Apple-formatted disk. I can copy using one of the File Explorers - which works - but a sync package allows error failures to occur and resume following a new compare, which the other method does not really enable. And I've used FFS for some years; it works on Windows and it works on MacOS and I felt that it should be able to read Win and write Mac.

Everything I read tells me that the modern Apple disk formats offer better security and integrity than the, now quite old, exFAT and given this disk is the backup-of-last-resort, I'd like all the security I can get.

I don't want to buy a Paragon-like app just for one task.

[Zenju]

2. Cannot read directory “/Volumes/Seagate … etc” (= NTFS Source)
EINVAL: Invalid argument [readdir]

My guess is that Samba cannot handle the "…" character. Remove it and see if it works then.

[roadcone]

2. Cannot read directory “/Volumes/Seagate … etc” (= NTFS Source)
EINVAL: Invalid argument [readdir]

My guess is that Samba cannot handle the "…" character. Remove it and see if it works then.

The ellipsis character was my way of indicating that the full path/file name was truncated - it was not actually in the name. The names were regular folder names - for example:

/Volumes/Seagate/Backup/Images/Camera-name/Image-folder-name

with the Image-folder-name containing a load of files.

I failed to resolve the FFS issue and resorted to manually copying folders in Double Commander (because it has a dual pane and Finder does not). Then I used the DC Folder Sync feature to check if anything was missing.

So - FFS problem unresolved but avoided by using an alternative.

Clive