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Why Won't My PS3 Recognize the Size of a File?

The Playstation 3 represents an unusual direction for a home console in its official support for non-proprietary expansions and hardware. Through the adoption of the USB standard and SD memory cards, the PS3 platform is an especially versatile media player. Because the PS3 has a fixed hardware standard and software standards change relatively rapidly, it is common to see unusual file browsing errors.

File Size Limit
- The PS3 file system is formatted with some proprietary derivative version of the File Allocation Table (FAT) system. One limitation of this system is that it only recognizes up to 4GB of a file. While larger files may be accessed, the true file size either won't be displayed or will be incorrectly displayed as 4GB.
Firmware Issues
- Unfortunately, when the system's OS firmware is updated, there may be unforeseen consequences that affect a myriad of variables within the system. These are usually seen in the "changelog" or "patch notes." By ensuring that your PS3 is updated to the latest firmware, you can eliminate the possibility that an outdated system is the cause of the issue.
File Type
- The PS3 supports a large number of file and container types, including *.AVI, *.MP4 and *.MPV but support for some files is buggy. In some cases, the incomplete support of a file type will omit data such as headers that contain critical information like file size or duration.
External Drive Issues
- The PS3 supports USB attached external hard drives. Unlike the hard drive in the system with the OS installed, the external drive can be formatted with many different kinds of file systems, including the proprietary Microsoft New Technology File System (NTFS). While the OS can read files from this file system, it may cause unusual read errors due to lack of support for differing file system architecture.

PlayStation 3