topic Re: "This May Be An Invalid Directory" Error When Specifying Directory in Revit Architecture Forum

"This May Be An Invalid Directory" Error When Specifying Directory File Paths

Seychellian — Mon, 15 Apr 2019 13:01:36 GMT

Hi, we keep all our textures on the network drive so that they are accessible to everyone in the office. However we are unable to get Revit 2019 to add the location to the list of additional Render Appearance Paths.

See attached screen-grab for error.

It allows me to add the Parent folder of the network drive (\\Psa-qnap\02. PSA\) but isn't interested in anything deeper down the path. I don't think it is a "too many character" as from my count there is only 17.

Does anyone have any inkling of what may be generating the error?

We appear to be getting the same error on the Family Templates directory also (although in this case it allows us to select folders further down the directory)

Re: "This May Be An Invalid Directory" Error When Specifying Directory

Seychellian — Tue, 16 Apr 2019 09:35:59 GMT

No replies..... Did I post this thread at a bad time (i.e When Revit 2020 was just released)?

Re: "This May Be An Invalid Directory" Error When Specifying Directory

RobDraw — Tue, 16 Apr 2019 11:21:29 GMT

Please remember that this is a user forum. Users helping users on a voluntary basis.

This probably is not a Revit issue.

Have you checked the permissions of the folder(s) in question? They might be read only or have some other restriction.

Re: "This May Be An Invalid Directory" Error When Specifying Directory

Seychellian — Tue, 05 Nov 2019 05:48:46 GMT

Hi Rob, yes i have given my windows account full permission to the entire folder.

Re: "This May Be An Invalid Directory" Error When Specifying Directory

RobDraw — Tue, 05 Nov 2019 12:10:10 GMT

It's been seven months. I guess it has been a bad time for you for while.

Have you tried a different directory?

Re: "This May Be An Invalid Directory" Error When Specifying Directory

Seychellian — Tue, 26 Nov 2019 08:00:12 GMT

Yes I cant select any directory on my network server.

Re: "This May Be An Invalid Directory" Error When Specifying Directory

Seychellian — Sat, 11 Apr 2020 15:48:33 GMT

Just a follow up to this. I never managed to resolve it so i had to move all my textures from the NAS to my internal hard drive and then intermittently copy them across so that other people could have access to them. Really not ideal at all.

During this corona business I have been working from home and I have copied all the network files onto a recently formatted external HDD (FAT32). Now again I am getting the same issue when I try to select a directory from the HDD.

Im hoping that someone here can point me in the right direction.....

Re: "This May Be An Invalid Directory" Error When Specifying Directory

Seychellian — Sat, 04 Jul 2020 05:30:38 GMT

@RobDraw @Anonymous @ToanDN

When i specify the first level of the directory of the Ext HDD it allows it.

When i specify the 2nd level of the directory of the Ext HDD it allows it.

When i specify the 3rd level of the directory (or anything deeper) of the Ext HDD I get the error.

This happens on all multiple devices that I try (NAS, Ext HDD etc) including my PC.

I cant work out why it accepts some directories and not others. I have unchecked "read only" on all the directories (and sub folders) that I am trying to use.

Re: "This May Be An Invalid Directory" Error When Specifying Directory

RobDraw — Sat, 04 Jul 2020 10:55:32 GMT

I had no idea when the thread started or any time that you resurrected it. Nothing has changed and with the fact that no one else has responded any of those times, I would guess that you probably should find your solution elsewhere.

Going nuclear is the only thing I can offer.

If you haven't reinstalled Revit, I'd give that a try but I think that you would have already done that.

Reformat everything.

Re: "This May Be An Invalid Directory" Error When Specifying Directory

ToanDN — Sat, 04 Jul 2020 18:42:04 GMT

You need to map your NAS or external drive to a letter then add the drive letter:\folder\subfolder... in the Revit Additional Rendering path. And while we are at it, why do you add C:\ProgramData... to the list? That is unnecessary.

Re: "This May Be An Invalid Directory" Error When Specifying Directory

Seychellian — Thu, 24 Sep 2020 07:55:57 GMT

i believe that this had something to do with the 255 character limit. Sorry I cant be more specific than that. Hopefully it helps someone else in the same poition though.

Re: "This May Be An Invalid Directory" Error When Specifying Directory

TripleM-Dev.net — Fri, 25 Sep 2020 17:19:37 GMT

It's the decimal point + space in the foldername, somehow it's not allowed.

Re: "This May Be An Invalid Directory" Error When Specifying Directory

Seychellian — Sat, 26 Sep 2020 06:18:26 GMT

@TripleM-Dev.net

I don't think so dude. I got it working by reducing the number of characters in the path.

See below the current path which I was able to add.....

Re: "This May Be An Invalid Directory" Error When Specifying Directory

TripleM-Dev.net — Sat, 26 Sep 2020 13:38:10 GMT

Uhm, I stand corrected.

It seems if the LAST foldername has a period + space in the name selected with the "Browse For Folder" it will give the error. (Bug..)

Typing the path directly into the option does works.

Try it with for example

"D:\Test\12. new" -> Error with the "Browse For Folder"

"D:\Test\12. new\Folder2" -> no error

Next to this the length of the path can also be a issue (255 I think, although Win 10 could support more)

Re: "This May Be An Invalid Directory" Error When Specifying Directory

Seychellian — Wed, 06 Jan 2021 08:48:35 GMT

You're 100% right.

The final folder cant have period in it.