Do memory cards have any max file size limitation?

Question

Not sure where to ask this question,so perhaps it is physical limitation. I have 8Gb flash micro SD memory card. When I copy any file size of up to few gigabytes, copying happens normally. But if I am trying to copy file over 4Gb file, then system tell me like insufficient memory on card, although 8Gb is available. So perhaps only 32 bit address is used for keeping size of file in micro SD card, or my micro SD defective?

Answer 1

There are three things to consider here:

1. There are different SD versions that support different capacities:

   • SD - 4GB
   • SDHC - 32GB
   • SDXC - 2TB

2. Most filesystems are limited in their size. You need to pick a filesystem that is capable of using the entire size of the SD card. Which one you chose is also dependent on the environment you will be using it in. Some common choices for high capacity filesystems include:

   • FAT32 - 2TB
   • exFAT - 512TB
   • NTFS - 2⁶⁴ clusters (multiples of 512 bytes)

3. Most filesystems have a limit on the size of any one individual file:

   • FAT32 - 4GB
   • exFAT - 512TB
   • NTFS - 16EB

Answer 2

If the memory card's file system is FAT32, then it has a file limit of 4GB. To get over this limitation, you could format your memory card to the NTFS file system. If you don't want to lose all the information on the card, you could convert to NTFS using this command: convert G: /FS:NTFS in the Command Prompt (assuming your memory card's label is G: ) Be aware that the digital camera won't support NTFS.