When I right-click and hit "properties" the folder says its total contents is 2.70 GB in size with 1,927 Files. However, if I open the folder, highlight all the folders contained in it, and then hit "properties," the total size comes to 32.3 GB with 2,255 files. The second "properties" information is the correct statistics.
Any ideas what is going on here? I do have some large backup files in this folder, but nothing is zipped.
That's common behavior for File Explorer. I experienced something like that just an hour or two ago.
I've read the explanation on this forum. It's complex and as I recall it relates to junctions?
Yeah, the second number you got is likely more reliable and what you should anticipate if you were to try to copy all of those folders to some other drive.
You just can't put a lot of faith in Explorer folder right click info. It's not always weird like that, but I see it regularly.
You seem to be experiencing a similar issue to me - see here:
Which build version of Windows are you using (last 3 digits)?
Strange anomaly with Properties on Windows folder? - Windows 10 Forums
WHICH
Have a read of this:
Hardlinks - Save harddisk space with TreeSizeFor the exact calculation of the occupied space it is vital to count hardlinked files only once - a task at which the Windows Explorer and most other tools fail.
Computing the size of a directory is more than just adding file sizes The Old New Thing
Bottom line: You can't use Explorer to accurately read space taken up by folders/ files.
TreeSize Free is a handy utility for checking the size of all folders in a folder tree
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