Many users have reported this annoying error ‘The directory name is invalid’ after installation or up-gradation of Windows 10. They face this error when they insert a CD/DVD drive or try to open an SD card/ external hard disk/ USB Device or try to create a directory.
Hey, If I am not wrong then I can guess you are also one of them. No worries folks, DeviceTricks have the right remedy for it. After so many humble requests of our passionate readers, we have come up with this tutorial. So guiding you to the easiest steps to fix your problem is our only mission.
What is “The directory name is invalid” Error
‘The directory name is invalid’ is a system error and it may occur on any PC or Laptop. This error prevents us from opening certain directories, folders or files. According to the problems faced by users we have characterized the solutions accordingly.
How to Fix “The Directory name is invalid” error for DVD Drive?
Oh, it seems you are facing trouble in playing your DVD. Don’t spoil your mood for the evening. You have every opportunity to fix such kind of error. There are two ways to recover the situation; either you can go for
- Repairing or Removing Windows Essentials or
- Disabling DVD drive
Repairing or Removing Windows Essentials
- Open the Start menu and click on the Settings.
- Then proceed to the Apps.
- Here you will get the list of applications. You need to select the Windows Essential and then choose to change or repair the setup.
- Once done with the selection procedure, a dialogue block will appear asking about Repair or Uninstall the App. Go for your choice of a button and follow the sets of instructions to finish the process.
Disabling DVD drive
- Press Windows + X and choose Device Manager from the drop-down list.
- Expand the Disc drives section by clicking on the small arrow symbol to proceed further.
- Now right-click on it and select Disable device.
- Click on Yes to confirm the Disable device process.
- Later choose your DVD drive and enable it again. Restart the PC and look for the error ‘The Directory name is invalid’ whether it’s gone or not.
How to Fix ‘The Directory name is invalid’ error for SD card/external hard drive/ USB?
Hey, what’s the matter are you in trouble using your SD card/external hard drive/USB. Is it every time you try to use your devices you are surprised by this error.
Not worry you can fix this problem by following a few steps. There are four ways in which you can troubleshoot this error ‘The Directory name is invalid’.
Check on another USB port
Many times the error ‘The directory name is invalid’ pop up because of a faulty or a dead USB port. That means if for example one o the USB port of any PC or a Laptop is dead and you have plugged an external device or a mass storage device in it, then it’s obvious that you will receive ‘The Directory name is invalid’ error.
- Simply unplug the device from the dead port and plug it into another port.
- Check if the error has been fixed or not. If the error persists then go for another method.
Check Disk Drive Errors with Properties
- Open This PC; right-click on the hard disk drive which is facing the error ‘The directory name is invalid’ and select Properties from the menu.
- Properties tab will take you to the Tools button, hit the button and select the check option. It will help to scan and check the errors in the drive.
- Click on Scan drive to repair the same.
- Once the scanning is done restart the computer and sees the problem is fixed. If you still see the error ‘The directory name is invalid’ go for the next method.
Update Disk Driver with Device Manager
- Press Windows + R key.
- Now type devmgmt.msc and hit the OK button to open the Device Manager window.
- Select Disk drive from the drop-down list and expand it.
- Right-click and select your device facing the error and run the update Wizard.
- Now, check out whether the problem is fixed or not if not try the next method.
Create a new simple partition in unallocated space
- Summon a run window by pressing Windows + R and type diskmgmt.msc and then press the OK button to open the manager.
- Right-click on the unallocated space and choose to create New Simple Volume.
- Follow the Wizard and finish the process. Try to access the device again.
Necessary Changes in Command Prompt Properties
When you use run ad a feature there are chances that you will get the notification that the directory name is invalid in CMD. Changing the start in value in the CPP or the Command Prompt Property will help you to counter this problem. You need to follow the given steps to apply the changes.
- Type cmd in the search bar and then process for searching.
- Click the right button on the Command Prompt in the search result and select the Open File Location option to proceed further.
- Now click the right button again on the Command Prompt option and then go to Properties section by choosing the option from the bottom of the drop-down list.
- Here, you need to replace %HOMEDRIVE%%HOMEPLACE% with this one: %WINDIR%. And then click on the OK button.
Remove & Reinstall the Adobe Reader Setup
According to some reports if there are two different versions of Adobe Reader installed on your computer then you might need to suffer from this problem. The notification directory name is missing can be cured if you remove all the versions of Adobe reader that you currently have on your computer. After removing the current versions, you need to reinstall it in your PC and then check whether the problem is solved or not.
Create a Temporary Folder
Sometimes, multiple files move to the temporary folder during the software installation and executing the same. And in that case, you need to re-create the missing folder to overcome the issue. By default, Windows create 2 temp folders where one is located inside C:/Windows path and another is at C:/Users/UserNameFolder/AppData/Local.
Follow the below steps to proceed for creating a temporary file.
- Click on the Start menu and search for the Environment and click on the “Edit the system environment variables”.
- Go inside the Advanced tab and click on the Environment Variables.
- In the opened Window, double click on the TEMP variables to open the file. You can also click on the Edit button for the same function.
- Here, you need to write a custom name within the variable area which is denoted by a % sign.
- After finishing these steps, repeat the same thing for TMP file.
- Now go below the same window under System Variables Section. And then choose the TEMP file and click on Edit.
- Now browse the location which you have created following the above steps and then press on the OK button.
- Similarly, repeat the process for the TMP file.
Assign different alphabet to the Drive
It’s a simple solution but can work. Because sometimes a small cause can lead you to the problem. To execute the below steps to change your Disk Drive letter.
- Right-click on the Start button and choose the Disk Management tool.
- After going inside, navigate to the CD-ROM section, choose to Change Drive Letter and Paths followed by the right-click feature.
- In the next window, just select the drive and click on the Change button.
- Now go to the Assign drive letter section and choose the desired alphabet and then click on the OK button to save the changes.
Restore your Windows Settings
If you have noticed that earlier everything was working well but after making some changes, you are facing this error then you can restore your system to make it in the beginning stage.
- Click on the Start button and search for Create a restore point.
- Under the System Protection tab, just click on System Restore.
- In the next screen, you will get the option to choose the restore files, if you have created it earlier. Just choose the one and then click on the Next button to step ahead.
- Now, with the help of on-screen instruction, finish the file restoration process and then restart your system.
Update your Windows Operating System
Sometimes, you might get the Directory name is an invalid error due missing the updates. Co, the problem can be resolved after performing the Windows Update task.
- Click on the Start button and then tap on the Settings icon. You can also open the Settings window directly by pressing Win + I keys together.
- Now go with Update and Security option.
- In the next opened window, just click on the Check for updates and your job is done.
Update the Folder Path in Task Scheduler
If the path is not allocated correctly, then you can face the issue. You need to cross-check with the folder or file location path.
- Click on the Start button and search for the Task Scheduler and then click on the result.
- Now navigate to the Task Scheduler Library. Select the file name which is causing issue and double-click on it to open the further settings.
- Now go inside the Actions tab and double click on Start a program file.
- Just cross-check the Program/ Script location. If it’s containing ” symbol at the beginning and end of the path then remove it and if not containing then add the “ symbol and then click on the OK button.
Update the Notification settings in the User Account Panel
You can execute the solution to resolve the directory name is invalid error. It will work for resolving this simple problem.
- Open the Control Panel by searching in your system or just right-click on the Start menu.
- Now short the view by option with small or large icon and then click on the User Accounts section.
- Further, you need to click on the Change User Account Control Settings.
- In the opened window, just pull down the slider at the extreme bottom and then click on the OK button to save the changes.
- Recommended to restart the PC before checking the solved error.
Access the Computer into a Safe Mode
There is a hope to resolve this invalid problem by experimenting with the Safe Mode.
- Press the Windows key on your keyboard and click on the Power button in the opened function list and further press the shift button and click on the Restart option.
- Your system will be restarted with some options on the screen. Just click on Troubleshoot.
- Further, you will get Advanced Option and here just click on the Startup Settings option.
- You will get the list of options again and you need to enter into the Safe Mode by choosing any preferred option for it.
- Now check for the issue. If it’s solved that means, there is any other software which is causing the problem at the time of using your system in a normal mode.
Scan Your System with an Antivirus
In most of the cases, anti-virus protects some file to execute and you can see such error message.
- Open the default Windows Defender or other Anti-Virus which you have installed in your PC.
- Disable Windows Protection from there for some time.
- Now restart your computer and enable it again.
- After that, check for the issue if it resolved. If not yet then scan the affected drive or the full system.
- It will show you the scanned report where you can see the problematic file. Just remove or repair it to fix the Directory name is invalid error.
Uninstall the Audio Driver from Device Manager
If you are facing the issue while inserted the CD or DVD and performing the task which is related to audio or other multimedia, then you need to reinstall your Audio Driver.
- Open the Device Manager by finding it in the search bar.
- After getting inside, click on the small arrow to expand the list of DVD/CD-ROM drives.
- Now right-click on the drivers installed inside and then choose to uninstall it.
- A dialog box will appear for the confirmation, just go with the appropriate option to move ahead.
- Now restart your PC and again open the same location. To open easily, you can right-click on the Start menu and choose the Device Manager from the list.
- After opening the panel, Navigate to the menu section and click on the Action tab and choose to Scan for Hardware Changes.
- Now the system will automatically search and update for the missing driver.
Modify Your Registry Files
The issue can be fixed by using another method and it is updating your registry file. To do so, first, you need to find the ID of the causing tool and then need to change its value inside the registry panel. Let’s execute the method step by step.
- Open the Device Manager followed by the right-click on the Start menu icon.
- Select and open the Properties of the affected driver. You can also double-click to open the Properties menu.
- Now, go to the Details tab. Here, you need to select Class Guid as a Property and then right-click on the shown value to copy the ID.
After getting the device ID, it’s time to find out the Registry Key for the affected tool.
- Open the Run box by pressing Win + R keys together and type Regedit command.
- Now go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE> SYSTEM> CurrentControlSet\Control.
- And then go inside Class folder.
- Now find out your device ID in the list, which you copied following the above steps. And then double click to see the files kept inside.
- Select the LowerFilrers file if you get there. Now right-click on it and choose to delete the file. Similarly, the process for the UpperFilters file if you get it.
- After finishing the above task, just restart your computer and check, the directory name is invalid has been resolved.
Conclusion
We as a team believe that our tutorials have sorted out your problems in just a few simple steps and if there are some niches where you need fixing, write us back. We provide our assistance in solving and fixing issues in Laptops, Androids, and Electronic gadgets.
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