"Invalid Active Directory Pathname Was Passed" Error Message When You Try to Copy an Object

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SYMPTOMS

When you try to copy or to move a Microsoft Active Directory directory service object, the operation is unsuccessful, and you receive the following error message:

Object_Name cannot be copied because an invalid Active Directory pathname was passed

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CAUSE

This issue may occur if both of the following conditions are true:

Your computer is running Microsoft Windows 2000 Service Pack 4.
The Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) distinguished name of the object contains a forward slash (/) character.

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A supported hotfix is available from Microsoft. However, this hotfix is intended to correct only the problem that is described in this article. Apply this hotfix only to systems that are experiencing this specific problem.

If the hotfix is available for download, there is a "Hotfix download available" section at the top of this Knowledge Base article. If this section does not appear, submit a request to Microsoft Customer Service and Support to obtain the hotfix.

Note If additional issues occur or if any troubleshooting is required, you might have to create a separate service request. The usual support costs will apply to additional support questions and issues that do not qualify for this specific hotfix. For a complete list of Microsoft Customer Service and Support telephone numbers or to create a separate service request, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://support.microsoft.com/contactus/?ws=support (http://support.microsoft.com/contactus/?ws=support)

Note The "Hotfix download available" form displays the languages for which the hotfix is available. If you do not see your language, it is because a hotfix is not available for that language.

Prerequisites

To install this hotfix, you must have Microsoft Windows 2000 Service Pack 4 (SP4) installed on your computer.

Restart Requirement

You do not have to restart your computer after you apply this hotfix.

Hotfix Replacement Information

This hotfix does not replace any other hotfixes.

File Information

The English version of this hotfix has the file attributes (or later) that are listed in the following table. The dates and times for these files are listed in coordinated universal time (UTC). When you view the file information, it is converted to local time. To find the difference between UTC and local time, use the Time Zone tab in the Date and Time tool in Control Panel.

   Date         Time   Version            Size    File name
   --------------------------------------------------------------
   04-Aug-2003  19:30  5.0.2195.6798     468,240  Dsadmin.dll      
   04-Aug-2003  19:30  5.0.2195.6798     142,096  Dsuiwiz.dll      
   15-Jul-2003  19:08  5.0.2195.6776   4,858,368  Sp3res.dll

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STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed in the "Applies to" section of this article.

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MORE INFORMATION

For additional information about how hotfix packages are named, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

816915 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/816915/ ) New Naming Schema for Microsoft Windows Hotfix Packages

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