Public bug reported:
When copying a large number of files with non-ASCII filenames (e.g.,
Chinese characters) to an exFAT external SSD using GNOME Files
(Nautilus), the filenames are silently modified and characters are
replaced with underscores. As this issue silently modifies filenames, it
creates the risk of loss of original filenames.
Example:
宠物.mp3 → __.mp3
Steps to reproduce:
1. Connect an external SSD formatted as exFAT.
2. Open GNOME Files (Nautilus).
3. Select several hundred files containing Chinese characters in their
filenames.
4. Copy and paste them to the exFAT drive.
Result:
Filenames are renamed with underscores replacing the original characters.
Expected result:
Filenames should remain unchanged since exFAT supports Unicode filenames.
Environment:
Ubuntu 24.04.1 LTS
Locale: en_US.UTF-8
Mount:
/dev/sda2 on /media/peter/X9 Pro type exfat (rw,... iocharset=utf8 ...)
Additional observations:
- Copying a small number of files preserves filenames correctly.
- Copying via terminal tools like cp or rsync preserves filenames correctly.
- The issue only appears during large batch copies via GNOME Files.
ProblemType: Bug
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 24.04
Package: nautilus 1:46.2-0ubuntu0.2
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 6.8.0-100.100-generic 6.8.12
Uname: Linux 6.8.0-100-generic x86_64
ApportVersion: 2.28.1-0ubuntu3.8
Architecture: amd64
CasperMD5CheckResult: pass
CurrentDesktop: ubuntu:GNOME
Date: Sun Mar 8 20:26:13 2026
GsettingsChanges:
b'org.gnome.nautilus.preferences' b'default-folder-viewer' b"'list-view'"
b'org.gnome.nautilus.preferences' b'migrated-gtk-settings' b'true'
b'org.gnome.nautilus.window-state' b'initial-size' b'(1276, 885)'
InstallationDate: Installed on 2023-05-28 (1016 days ago)
InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 23.04 "Lunar Lobster" - Release amd64 (20230418)
ProcEnviron:
LANG=en_US.UTF-8
PATH=(custom, no user)
SHELL=/bin/bash
TERM=xterm-256color
XDG_RUNTIME_DIR=<set>
RebootRequiredPkgs: Error: path contained symlinks.
SourcePackage: nautilus
UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to noble on 2024-09-03 (552 days ago)
usr_lib_nautilus:
file-roller 44.3-0ubuntu1
nautilus-extension-gnome-terminal 3.52.0-1ubuntu2
** Affects: nautilus (Ubuntu)
Importance: Undecided
Status: New
** Tags: amd64 apport-bug noble wayland-session
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https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/2143686
Title:
GNOME Files (Nautilus) renames Unicode filenames to "__" when copying
large batches to exFAT
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