Extended Characters in Short Filenames (Windows NT/2000/XP)

Registry Guide for Windows
Part of the WinGuides Network

Registry tweaks, tricks & hacks to optimize, enhance and secure Microsoft Windows.

Extended Characters in Short Filenames (Windows NT/2000/XP)
Category: Home > Windows > File System > Files and Shortcuts

This tweak can be easily applied using WinGuides Tweak Manager.
Download a free trial now!

This setting allows extended characters to be used in 8.3 filenames. Short file names with extended characters may not be viewable on computers that do not have the same character code page.

Open your registry and find the key below.

Create a new DWORD value, or modify the existing value called 'NtfsAllowExtendedCharacterIn8dot3Name' using the settings below.

Exit your registry, you may need to restart or log out of Windows for the change to take effect.


(Default)	REG_SZ	(value not set)
NtfsAllowExtendedCharacterIn8dot3Name	REG_DWORD	0x00000001 (1)


	HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\FileSystem

Settings:

System Key: [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\FileSystem]
Name: NtfsAllowExtendedCharacterIn8dot3Name
Type: REG_DWORD (DWORD Value)
Value: (0 = disabled, 1 = enabled)

Related Tweaks

Short Filenames on NTFS Partitions (Windows NT/2000/XP)

Disclaimer: Modifying the registry can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. We cannot guarantee that problems resulting from modifications to the registry can be solved. Use the information provided at your own risk.

Last Modified: July 24, 2002

Return to Index