Moving shared folders on server from an iMac or other network computer

Phil Anning 1 Reputation point
2021-09-22T16:19:15.6+00:00

So if I move a folder directly on a server, the files don't physically move on the disk, it just updates the file headers to say that they exist in a different directory now

But if I'm connected to the server over the network, in this case from a Mac and I do a drag and drop of a folder from one directory to another to move it, what happens? Depending on the data size, it takes a while to happen so I'm suspecting what is actually happening is that the data is copied to the Mac over the network and then copied back to the new location?

Can anyone confirm how this works on Windows Server?

Windows Server
Windows Server
A family of Microsoft server operating systems that support enterprise-level management, data storage, applications, and communications.
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  1. Limitless Technology 39,386 Reputation points
    2021-09-23T09:53:35.187+00:00

    Hello Phil A,

    This is a default behavior to keep performance and avoid unnecessary traffic over the storage. I can't confirm for Mac (maybe posting in a Mac community would help) but Windows Server will always apply the "economy" of do not move all file data, blocks or chunks within the same storage.

    If you need for any reason to accomplish that, I would recommend XCOPY or ROBOCOPY to move the files (first will copy, then delete source).

    Hope this helps in your case,

    --If the reply is helpful, please Upvote and Accept as answer--

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