How to Fix ‘The Item Can’t be Copied because it is too Large For the Volume’s Format’ Error

A lot of people use USBs and other “Flash” storage devices to transfer their data between computers. Flash Storages are used because they provide much faster transfer speeds than most internet connections these days. However, many users have reported encountering the “The Item can’t be copied because it is too large for the volume’s format” error during the transfer of data on USB storage.

In this article, we will discuss some of the reasons due to which this error might be triggered and provide you with a viable solution to easily fix it. Make sure to implement the steps in the specific order in which they are provided to avoid any conflicts.

What Causes the “The Item Can’t be copied because it is too large for the volume’s format” Error?

The reason due to which this error occurs is:

• Invalid Format: Most users after encountering this error think that there isn’t enough space on the USB or it has been corrupted/damaged. However, that is not the case. This error is seen due to the limitations of the format which is being used by the USB drive. By default, all USB drives are formatted in the “FAT32” state. In this state, only “4GB” of data can be stored on the drive. Therefore, if the file is larger than “4GB” it can’t be stored.

Now that you have a basic understanding of the nature of the problem we will move on towards the solution.

Solution: Formatting USB

If the USB device has been formatted in the “FAT32” format users will encounter the error while transferring data larger than “4GB”. Therefore, in this step, we will be reformatting the device in a different format which supports more storage than “4GB”. For that:

1. Plug the USB device in a Windows computer.
2. Open “File Explorer” and click on “This PC” option from the left pane.
   Note: Open “My Computer” for Windows 7 and older operating systems

   

3. Right–click on the name of the USB Drive and select “Format“.

   

4. Click on the “File System” dropdown and select “NTFS” or “exFAT” from the dropdown.
   Note: If you select “NTFS” you will have to install an additional driver for MAC OS support.

   

5. Click on the “Start” button without changing any other options.
6. Wait for the format to be completed, copy the file on USB and check to see if the issue persists.