How do I make a USB Thumbdrive accept a large MP4 file?

Rong1 · 04 Apr 2023

I have a brand new USB Thumbdrive. File System: FAT32, Used Space 65,536 bytes (64.0 KB) Free Space: 31,441,797,120 bytes (29.2 GB).

My file is titled: 01CARAD2023Perth.mp4
Item type: MP4 Video File (VLC)
Size 7.17 GB
Length 02:16:15

When I attempt to transfer the MP4 file to the 32 GB thumbdrive, I get a warning "The file is too large for the destination file system."

What do I need to do to overcome this problem please?

joeandmarg0 · 04 Apr 2023

Change to either NTFS or exFAT.
FAT 32 has a file size limitation.

Bree · 04 Apr 2023

Rong1 said:

When I attempt to transfer the MP4 file to the 32 GB thumbdrive, I get a warning "The file is too large for the destination file system."
What do I need to do to overcome this problem please?

Welcome to Ten Forums.

There is a 4GB maximum file size limit for Fat32. If you format the drive as exFAT or NTFS then you will be able to put larger files on it.

NavyLCDR · 04 Apr 2023

Reformat the drive as NTFS or exFAT. FAT32 has a file size limit of 4 GB. Just in case you never heard of that before....

pepanee · 05 Apr 2023

Hmmm... what's the company's name that created the Thumbdrive?
Just a few questions if you can answer please:
1) What's the company name that created it?
2) Where did you get it from? Online? Do you have the exact link of where you got it from?

NavyLCDR · 05 Apr 2023

pepanee said:

Hmmm... what's the company's name that created the Thumbdrive?
Just a few questions if you can answer please:
1) What's the company name that created it?
2) Where did you get it from? Online? Do you have the exact link of where you got it from?

I'm curious as to why that would really matter in this situation? It is very common, in fact I would say "the standard" for 32GB and less USB flash drives to come off the shelf partitioned as MBR and formatted with FAT32.

RickC · 05 Apr 2023

NavyLCDR said:

I'm curious as to why that would really matter in this situation? It is very common, in fact I would say "the standard" for 32GB and less USB flash drives to come off the shelf partitioned as MBR and formatted with FAT32.

Because some manufacturer's USB flash drive models have proved more susceptible to counterfeiting than others.

For example, if I bought a 32GB Samsung flash drive direct from Samsung then I probably wouldn't test it for being a counterfeit; if I bought the 'exact' same flash drive via eBay (or, in the UK, Groupon) then I would test for it being a counterfeit every single time...

Hope this helps...

NavyLCDR · 05 Apr 2023

RickC said:

Because some manufacturer's USB flash drive models have proved more susceptible to counterfeiting than others.

For example, if I bought a 32GB Samsung flash drive direct from Samsung then I probably wouldn't test it for being a counterfeit; if I bought the 'exact' same flash drive via eBay (or, in the UK, Groupon) then I would test for it being a counterfeit every single time...

Hope this helps...

But there is no indication this is a counterfeit drive. @Rong1 cannot copy a 7.17 GB file to the flash drive because it is formatted as FAT32 which has a 4 GB file size limit. Thus the error, "The file is too large for the destination file system."

Once the drive is formatted as NTFS or exFAT and the file won't copy, then there is evidence the drive may be counterfeit. I don't think we should confuse @Rong1 with other possibilities since the very first glaring, solid reason for the error is the FAT32 formatted partition.

pepanee · 05 Apr 2023

NavyLCDR said:

I'm curious as to why that would really matter in this situation? It is very common, in fact I would say "the standard" for 32GB and less USB flash drives to come off the shelf partitioned as MBR and formatted with FAT32.

RickC's response (number 7) is exactly why.
I've spoken with other people in the past who had issues with their thumb drives... trying to figure out solutions... until I ask them where they got it from / can they take a picture of it / etc.
Once I got that info, and the link to where it was purchased from, it was rather apparent to how counterfeit their USB drives were... with those previous examples, it was very obvious that theirs were counterfeit, to how big the storage size was compared to how much it cost.

I just want to check real quick. Since the storage size of this one is rather small, it's most likely real.. but still could possibly be fake. I just want to get that off the table real quick.

And this is exactly why I reached that conclusion:
• Free Space: 31,441,797,120 bytes (29.2 GB).
• file Size 7.17 GB
• "The file is too large for the destination file system."
...assuming it was fake, in a way that it's, let's say, realistically only 128 MB big... then that makes perfect sense to get that message...
*I've come across counterfeit USB drives that state that they are very big in size, in Windows Explorer, where their storage size is physically very small.

NavyLCDR · 05 Apr 2023

pepanee said:

RickC's response (number 7) is exactly why.

However, there is ZERO indication that the flash drive is counterfeit. So why go down that road? I believe in the K.I.S.S. principle. It avoids confusing people who are asking for help.