"Bad key length"

C

chenly

Moof!
Disk First Aid has returned the following error after twice running a disk repair:

bad key length

Does anyone know what this is and/or how to fix it?

The machine boots VERY SLOWLY and does the same shutting down (around ten minutes each way), but is otherwise OK.
 
Sounds like your file directory is losing fast, with problems that Disk First Aid will report, but not fix. Time for a good disk repair utility, such as Disk Warrior (now at version 3)
 
Sorry, my own private joke. Your directory structure has some corruption which Disk First Aid reports (but can't repair). (Don't ask me what causes this. File systems are not perfect, stuff happens.) This problem will not fix itself, and you can already see that performance is suffering. This likely will get worse if you make no attempt to repair it (hence my weak attempt at sports humor), which means that you will need to purchase a good repair utility, such as Disk Warrior, which should be able to repair your drive.
 
Thank you, DeltaMac. Even though I'm asking everyone again, this was very helpful. Is there anyone out there who knows what

bad key length

means specifically?
 
this is just a guess, key length probably means that a directory key entry has to be an even integer in length, and Disk First Aid found a key that seems to have an odd integer length, so it reports it as bad key length. Again, this is just a guess. Maybe someone more knowledgable will give you a more specific answer.
Probably no way to avoid the problem again (or to know what really caused it) My opinion FWIW: Repair the problem, you shouldn't see this happen again (assuming your hard drive is not beginning to fail. ) Good Luck :)
 
He might be able to explain it for free, and Diskwarrior will probably fix it for a fee.
 
Booting from CD and running Verify/Repair Disk (NOT permissions but the other one) could fix your problem for free, AFAIK. Otherwise try the geniusses first and paid solutions last...
 
From Alsoft (DiskWarrior);

Every file or folder (item) on a Mac OS Standard (HFS) or Mac OS Extended (HFS Plus) disk has a directory key. The term "key" is a shorter way of referring to a directory key. Item names can have a variable number of characters (length). Keys, in turn, are variable length because one component of a key is the name of its item.

Although item names are variable length, they do have a maximum length. This imposes a maximum length on keys. A key with an invalid length is one which exceeds the maximum. It is essential that an item's key not be invalid if it is to be accessed. Disk First Aid tests key lengths at the same time that key order is tested.

Unfortunately, Disk First Aid and even some third party repair utilities are unable to repair this problem. If your utility cannot fix this problem then you will have to use a more potent repair utility such as DiskWarrior.
 
There was indeed a bad key length, repaired by Greg at the Mall of America Apple Store. He qouted me $50, but I bought the program he used to do it (Alsoft's DiskWarrior), so they waived the service fee. Kewl!
 
So basically, he explained it for free and Diskwarrior did it for a fee. Hmm.

Good thing it's fixed! If you have any other questions, ask Bob. :)
 
Basically, yes. I also had the option for him to just fix it for $50, but I sprang for an extra $30 to own the tool he used. Teach a man to fish and all that...
 
Damn they charge $50 for that, wow. I would have bought the software as well, I can't wait till next month when the Cleveland Apple store opens, I bet i will end up buying a Powerbook or iBook when i go in there, i know it, it will make saving difficult.
 
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