Macintosh Sees Incorrect File Size when Volume is Over 2 GB

When copying a file from a Macintosh client to a Windows NT Advanced Server Macintosh volume that is larger than two gigabytes (GB) in size, the file size is displayed incorrectly.

For example, a 12 KB file will appear as 11,176 bytes (because of the difference in disk formats) on the Windows NT computer and -1,721 bytes on the Macintosh computer.

This problem is caused by the Macintosh Finder. The Macintosh Finder was designed to handle volumes less than 2 GB and assume that the free volume space plus the used volume space equals the total volume size. Because of this, Windows NT Advanced Server reports file information to Macintosh clients through a filter. The filter reports that the total volume size and the free space on the volume are 2 GB if either is larger than 2 GB. In the case of the problem above, Finder attempts to reconcile and report the file size information based on the assumption that the total volume size is 2 GB + 12 KB.