Member Avatar for KaosReigns

Hi guys and gals.
i have a problem with one of our macs at work,

we have a mac running 10.3 server which has a 500 gb Hd connected to it by firewire, all macs can use the files on this drive.

i am running osx10.3.7 and i can read and write files to this server ok and all files are recognised by the correct programs and have the correct icons
but when another user using osx10.3.8 saves files to this drive all the icons are blank white icons and are not recognized by any apps even the ones that created them.

any help with this would be much appreciated as its getting to point that any work done by this user cant be recognised at all

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by kc0arf

Dani AI

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Following and , the most efficient approach is to isolate whether the cause is: a local association/cache problem on one client, loss of Mac-specific metadata during the save process, or a server/volume-format mismatch. The checklist below gives safe, ordered diagnostics and fixes so a full reformat is not the first step.

  • Run quick isolation tests: create small test files on each machine and copy them both ways between a known-good Mac and the shared volume. This shows whether metadata is being lost on write or whether the problem is local to a client.
  • Check how the share is presented and the server volume format. Mac metadata and resource forks require a Mac-friendly backend (Mac OS Extended / HFS+); non-AFP shares or non-Mac filesystems often strip Finder info and create AppleDouble "._" companion files.
  • Inspect a sample file with Finder Get Info to confirm its Kind and Open With. Use Change All to reassign the correct app where appropriate, then restart Finder or log out to see if icons return.
  • Refresh association/icon caches rather than immediately reinstalling: safe utilities or a LaunchServices cache rebuild will commonly restore correct icons and app mappings on the client that shows the problem.
  • Look for AppleDouble files and compare extended attributes between copies from different clients (xattr or file utilities). Presence or absence of FinderInfo attributes pinpoints whether metadata is being preserved.
  • If reformatting is considered, take a full verified backup that preserves resource forks (use Disk Utility, a block-level clone tool, or similar) and validate the metadata on a restored sample before wiping the volume.

If tests isolate the failing side (client vs. server), targeted steps—rebuilding LaunchServices, changing share protocol to AFP, or reformatting to HFS+ with a verified backup—are the appropriate next actions.

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Member Avatar for kc0arf

Hello,

I am wondering if your computers are saving with the file extensions (hello.doc, picture.psd, quarkthing.qpd) and his is not.

If it were OS 9, I would say a desktop file needs to be rebuilt, but this is OS X, and that should not be the case anymore.

Is it still happening?

Christian

Member Avatar for KaosReigns

up this is still happeneing, we have tried all sorts to get it to work properly, and now my manager has decided to format the drive and instal from fresh,

Im keeping out of his way lol

Member Avatar for kc0arf

Okdokie.

Christian

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