Folders turn to 0 KB unix executable files in FAT32 drive

I two external drives in FAT32 format. Suddenly, what were once folders have now become 0 kb unix executable files, with a 12-31-1969 timestamp. One of the drives now doesn't mount.
This is a slightly different problem that when FILES do the same thing. I haven't found any ideas on the case of folders.
TestDisk tells me the disk geometry is bad (check sum doesn't match). If something that was once a folder now isn't, that would explain why the checksum is bad - optimistically, the files are still on the drive somewhere, but I can't get to them. Is there a way to change the file type from unix file back to directory? As far as I could tell, chmod will only change file types.
DiskUtility's Repair Disk gives me the error: Unable to read directory (Input/output error). The underlying task reported failure on exit.
DiskWarrior is no help, as these are FAT drives.
A change in these directories would easily explain why the directory structure is unreadable.
How do I set these unix executables back to folders, and how do I repair the directory structure??
Thank for any ideas!

Nasty. Your best bet is to use data recovery software to extract & backup whatever files you can, then completely reformat it.
http://www.cgsecurity.org/wiki/TestDisk
http://www.macworld.com/article/143139/2009/10/recovererased_harddrive.html
http://download.cnet.com/Data-Recovery/3000-2094_4-10298807.html
.

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Unix Executable Files Problem

My husband moved from PC to Mac and had the Apple Store transfer his libraries to it - including picture files. Every time he opens iPhoto he is told that there are 14 files not yet imported. However, they can't be imported and on inspection turn out to be Unix Executable Files. Each time he does this another Recovered File folder appears in his picture folder on the HD.
I've tried to find out what the files are - but, of course, can't open them. I suspect that they maybe Clip Art from his PC version of Microsoft Office. They can't be deleted. If I put a Recovered File folder in Trash and Empty Trash, it just turns up in the Picture Folder again!
While not a disaster, it's very irritating. Is there anything he can do?

Quit iPhoto and right click (control click) on your iPhoto library (by default in the pictures folder) and select the show package contents command - find the folder names import (or importing) and drag it to the desktop, close the iPhoto library and launch iPhoto - you will be fine
Open the import(ing) folder on the desktop and see if there is anything you want to save in it - if there is import them to iPhoto and then trash the import(ing) folder
LN

One of the folders on my external hard drive has transformed into a unix executable file and I can no longer access my files. Is there any way to save the data?

One of the folders on my external hard drive has transformed into a unix executable file and I can no longer access my files. Is there any way to save the data?

Wow, have seen Files do that, but a whole Folder as I recall!
Could be many things, we should start with this...
"Try Disk Utility
1. Insert the Mac OS X Install disc, then restart the computer while holding the C key.
2. When your computer finishes starting up from the disc, choose Disk Utility from the Installer menu. (In Mac OS X 10.4 or later, you must select your language first.)
Important: Do not click Continue in the first screen of the Installer. If you do, you must restart from the disc again to access Disk Utility.
3. Click the First Aid tab.
4. Select your Mac OS X volume.
5. Click Repair. Disk Utility checks and repairs the disk."
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106214
Then try a Safe Boot, (holding Shift key down at bootup), run Disk Utility in Applications>Utilities, then highlight your drive, click on Repair Permissions, reboot when it completes.
(Safe boot may stay on the gray radian for a long time, let it go, it's trying to repair the Hard Drive.)

How do I open my old Appleworks documents which have turned into Unix Executable Files? I would like to convert them into Pages documents.

How do I open my old Appleworks documents which have turned into Unix Executable Files? I would like to convert them into Pages documents. I also have old Word Perfect documents which have become similarly unopenable.

Best bet might be to try opening them using LibreOffice [free] and save them to .doc.
Do you really want to save them as .pages files? You are jumping from the frypan into the fire. Yet another proprietary format that Apple has again deadended with no working translation.
Peter

Backup files are now Unix Executable files

I backed up my iPhone on my laptop (pc) but when i but transferred all my iPhone backup files to my iMac there was a couple of folders that are now Unix Executable files which are coincidentally are the same backups that I cant use to restore my iPhone without receiving an error message.
Also, is there a program that I can use to read the history.mapsdata file? Thanks

I automatically run OnyX once a week for maintenance, but it didn't help this situation.
Those chores won't reset the LaunchServices database. Go to the Maintenance heading and click on the Reset tab. Turn on the check box for "LaunchServices database" (all other check boxes off). Click the Reset radio button and then Execute. Restart your Mac.
OS X will automatically rebuild the database according to the applications on your hard drive, giving preference to Apple applications as they would be when you first install OS X. So if you have the Acrobat Reader set up to open PDF files, you'll have to do that again as they will be set back to Preview.
Actually it's .qxd not .qkd for Quark XPress file extensions.
That's it! I knew .qkd was wrong, but Quark 6.x won't show you the old extensions when you save a file, and I couldn't remember it (been using InDesign steadily for a while now).

Unix Executable files within apple programs, problem???????????

Sometime ago i was using logic pro 7,and saving my project folders on an external drive,,,all of my folders turned into EXE files and couldnt be read,,
Now ive wiped my internal drive,,reloaded the install disks,,used disk warrior,
If i highlight any icon such as logic,iDVD,garage band,,or any other,,"show package contents" ???? click contents then open the "MacOS" folder,, A black Unix Executable file is here,,,,in all programs,!!!!!!!!!!
I have tried to find out if this is normal as i lost a huge amount of project folders,,,,but there is nothing or no one i can find to resolve this issue,
i would just like to feel safe as im not much of a computer wizard,,
anyone got an idea? yours confused,, steve

I have tried to find out if this is normal
Yes, it is.
(48530)

Old Quark files are now Unix Executable Files

I made hundreds of archive CD's with Mac's running OS 9 back in 1990's. They contain Quark files and .tif's. I've referred back to these CD's many many times over the years with no problems. My new iMac has the intel processor. I pop an archive CD in and all the files (with no extensions like "tif" or ".qkd" or ".eps") are now "Unix Executable Files" that won't open.
I simply add an extension to the images files (like ".tif") and they work. HOWEVER, it's not so easy with the Quark files. I add ".qkd" to the file name and it still remains a Unix file.
I launch Quark and try to open the file through the finder and it doesn't work. I took an archive CD to a friends house whose on a G5 and the CD worked properly with no extensions needed to be added.
So I figure the problem is with the Intel/PC based processor. I shouldn't have sold my old G5.
One forum claimed that a program called "File Buddy" did the trick for him. Does anyone have any other ideas other than me buying a non-Intel Mac.
I love our new iMacs but I need these archive CD's to work!
Thanks

I automatically run OnyX once a week for maintenance, but it didn't help this situation.
Those chores won't reset the LaunchServices database. Go to the Maintenance heading and click on the Reset tab. Turn on the check box for "LaunchServices database" (all other check boxes off). Click the Reset radio button and then Execute. Restart your Mac.
OS X will automatically rebuild the database according to the applications on your hard drive, giving preference to Apple applications as they would be when you first install OS X. So if you have the Acrobat Reader set up to open PDF files, you'll have to do that again as they will be set back to Preview.
Actually it's .qxd not .qkd for Quark XPress file extensions.
That's it! I knew .qkd was wrong, but Quark 6.x won't show you the old extensions when you save a file, and I couldn't remember it (been using InDesign steadily for a while now).

Word Docs have become Unix Executable Files!

The subject says it. This has happened on both my wife's iMac G5, and my MacBook Pro. Some, not all, of our Word docs, (both using 2004, running OS X.4.7) have had their icons turned into a gray console, and in "Get Info" identify themselves as "Unix Executable File." When opened in Word, I get the option to open as if it were a foreign file, and typically, it opens with all formatting gone, and all kinds of bizarre characters at the beginning (and sometimes end) of the doc.
Now, I can salvage the data, it seems, but is there some way to simply undo this damage without manually going through every file?
I must say, this is exactly the kind of junk that I would expect to find on a PC. This is a stunningly bad problem, by far the worst I've experienced in almost 15 years of using Macs. I would assume that Apple is aware of this, and that they can:
1) Explain what happened.
2) Explain a quick and easy fix.
Thanks to anyone (from Apple or otherwise) who can do 1 and 2 above.

Jeffois,
The first command I gave to you will render the directory in question, and all nested directories, inaccessible. The second command will make the diretories accessible again.
There is a possibility that there are files in this directory structure which are not owned by you. Not likely, but I must make the assumption that these could be encountered when I give such commands "in the dark" as it were. In such a case, you would see an error regarding these files, thus the warning.
You can return your directories to accessibility using the second command, regardless of errors you might encounter. If you do encounter errors, I will post a different form of the same commands that will work.
Be prepared to deal with this problem any time you transfer files from a Windows-formatted volume. This is not a Windows problem, but rather one of differences between the two file systems. If you see a file show up with the executable icon, you might want to remove the execute bit right away. Unfortunately, there is no way to do this in the GUI, so you must resort to using Terminal.
This shouldn't be too much of a problem. Just open Terminal, type this text with a traling space:
<pre style="overflow:auto; font-family: 'Monaco'; font-size: 10px">chmod a-x</pre>
then select all of the new files and drag them all into the Terminal window. This will create a rather long command line that includes the full path to every file you dragged in. Just press <RETURN>, and "POOF," no more execute bit!
Scott

Files changing to unix executable files in leopard!

I'm having files show up as UNIX EXECUTABLE FILES in Leopard. these are Quark Xpress files and a few tiff files.
These were backup files sent from a client on a Mac, there were compressed using Zip software. Also the same files that were not compressed are DOCUMENT files.
What is happening that Leopard can not recognize these files?
I tried removing "com.apple.LaunchServices" files

I found that a number of Windows files copied across to an external HFS+ hard disk from a Windows PC using MacDrive showed as Unix executables.
It turned out that they files had Execute permissions set for all users.
You can change the "Execute" setting using chmod in the terminal, but a simpler solution is to install FileUtilsCM, a free context menu control available from http://www.abracode.com/free/cmworkshop/file_utils.html
It offers a variety of high level controls, including remove file type and creator; remove resource fork; clear "execute" Unix attribute.
I found this fixed the problem for my files. The "clear execute" control fixed the file type, and the "remove type & creator" command converted the type back to Plain text from Document.
I don't know if it will work for your problem, but could be worth a try. Works in Leopard 10.5.1 for me.
Slightly more control is available from Super Get Info from Barebones http://www.barebones.com/products/super/index.shtml
That's not free, however, but it does allow you to set the file type and creator.
DN

Quark files show as unix executable files.

I have a strange issue. This is an all mac enviornment. The iMac's are running 10.4.11, and Quark express 6.0 One of the iMac's show the quark files as unix executable files. All of the other mac's can open the files without any issue.
On the iMac that has an issue, some of the folders show up as unix executable files as well. Also, there is a network share that is a log in item that should auto mount when the user logs in, it no longer mounts automatically. The only way to mount the share is by navigating through finder.
I was able to open one of the quark files by using open, then save the file using save as. this appended the file extension. I also enabled file extensions in finder, and manually appended the extension and they still would not associate with Quark. The file I did a save as does associate with Quark but it is the only one.
I repaired disk permissions and that did not help. Anyone have any ideas on this one?

I also couldn't find the download link for xsupport on the link you provided.
Looks like they have changed their business model. I just copied the URL out of the aboutbox of my copy of the Xsuppport toll but didn't crosscheck it.
Does that give any indication on what the problem is?
Not really, perhaps a corrupted or unreadable (by permission) .DS_Store file in the folder where your Xpress files reside, but then again that should affect other clients as well.
Which leads to the question:
When some clients have the correct mapping document <-> Quark Xpress and one (or more) other(s) don't, do you connect with different users to the server or are the users always the samr but the connection made from different machines?
If youuse different users to connect, then the problem very like is on the server side (addess rights, etc). If the same user has different results on different machines, the problem's most likely a local one. In which case you coud try all of ManiMenu's clean and deep clean actions.

Unix Executable Files...why won't they open?

I now have a new iMac and using Mavericks 10.9.3. I used TimeMachine to transfer my files (that contained these strange "Exec" files after I had updated to Mavericks on my previous iMac) a number of these files turned into something called "Exec" files (Black rectangular icon with green "exec" in the upper left corner). and randomly appeariing in diff software. Have these files become corrupted? Should I trash them?
Thanks for any help
Julie

In the Finder, click on these Exec files and press command+I. If the file is an AppleWorks document (even with no extension) it will tell you that. If it is a UNIX shell script with owner+group+world execute permissions, or a compiled executable from source code, it will state that it is a UNIX Executable File.
In the Terminal application, you can use the file command to discern (usually) more accurately what these black Exec documents comprise. The filenames that I use below at random, were created on my machine.
file -b dictx2
Mach-O 64-bit executable x86_64
file -b mvim
POSIX shell script text executable
file -b fubar.cwk # Finder Get Info says it is an AppleWorks document, and opens nicely in LibreOffice
data
The decision to delete these depends on what they are, the purpose they may continue to serve, and in the case of word processing documents, content for retention consideration.

UNIX Executable Files - Additional Info Needed About Zipped Files

I've tried to go through all of the questions posted so far but each link leads me back to the same three or four discussions. I have downloaded zipped folders of sound samples. When they are unzipped the files all have an extra space added just after the extension. This causes them to be read as UNIX Executable files. I've discovered the problem but the only cure I've found is to open their info page and erase the space and then confirm that they are aif files. Is there any way to stop this from happening in the unzip process? If not is there a method to change these in large groups as opposed to confirming every file one at a time? I've done about 100 of them but the next folder has 275 files. Also if the sounds were zipped as stereo files this folder also appears to have separate Left and Right files. I'm not sure if that also could have happened in the file compression process. The download site has hundreds of folders from different contributors but the file formatting is very consistent. Thanks for your time.

Download a renaming application such as "NameChanger."

Unix executable file won't open HELP!

I am having the same problem as one other person, my word folder has changed to a Unix executable file and I can't open the content in the folders anymore. I was just using the folder yesterday and now they are now working. Please help!

I'm not sure if this is your problem. But I was futzing with a file, and intentionally removed most of it's attributes, as reported by the mdls command.
I was able to get enough of them back, for the file to be recognized by the finder again.
This command lists the different importers.
$ mdimport -L
find the one that matches the filetype. Then run the following, where testfile is the file that you're having problems with.
mdimport -g /System/Library/Spotlight/XXXXXX.mdimporter testfile
I don't use Word, so I can't tell you the name of the importer file that you need. It may be possible to just
run
mdimport testfile
Nils

"Unix Executable File" how to read?

In clean up my older folders I've found several files that don't have any of the usual icons, but rather a Terminal file icon and the Get Info shows that they are "Unix Executable Files."
I opened them using Text Edit and found that some have the type/creator code of WDBN MSWD and others are PICT SPNT, or DRWG MD

Tod Wicks wrote:
In clean up my older folders I've found several files that don't have any of the usual icons, but rather a Terminal file icon and the Get Info shows that they are "Unix Executable Files."
I opened them using Text Edit and found that some have the type/creator code of WDBN MSWD and others are PICT SPNT, or DRWG MD
According to this Web page
http://support.grouplogic.com/?p=1563
the first one is a Microsoft Word file. According to a Web search the second one is from SuperPaint and the third is from MacDraw.

What is an unix executable file that appeared in my folder?

HI,
In my folders structure I have a folder named "jobs: where I put my working files etc.
Yesterday inside the "jobs" folder I found a file with the same name "jobs" , its icon is dark gray and it is a "unix executable file" with zero bytes...
How was it created there?
I think I did a permission repair this week, but this is the first time I see a Unix exec file ...

** folder named "jobs:" **
When I tried to create a folder with that name, the Finder told me that the name was not valid. A colon in a Mac file or folder name used to be a bad idea. I guess it still is. I'd rename that folder to exclude the colon.

Folders turn to 0 KB unix executable files in FAT32 drive

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