How to queue up Windows 8 file coping to only have one copying at a time

I have a new Nettop using Win7 and noticed a weakness with the Windows ‘Copy/Paste’ command. When I download typically large films using JDownloader to the C: drive, JD checks the file MD5 and tells me if there are any errors. I then move infrequently accessed large files onto an (new, not powered unless in-use) external USB Western Digital Passport drive.

When unzipping some of the files on the USB drive (that JD had verified as ok when downloaded onto C:) 7zip reported CRC errors.

If I unzip to the local HDD C: no errors occur. Ran the WD Lifeguard Diagnostics to check its USB cable & detailed sector check – 9hrs to check the full 1TB – Disk Passed.

For that reason I feel reasonably confident my HDDs are ok. As a temp solution I now use 7zip to encapsulate with CRC, move my large files from C: to the ext USB drive - as that will immediately tell me if the Windows Copy/Paste operation introduced an error. In Googling for fixes to this problem I see many references to the poor Windows quality in not reporting file copy errors, but haven't yet found articles focusing on a seamless more secure way of performing what should be a day-to-day operation.

Dropping down to MSDOS xcopy type UI is impracticable in an efficient GUI work environment, likewise a full blown 'File Compare' operation as in backup programs would be too slow.

I heard something like the free 'Teracopy' that builds itself into the Explorer file right-click menu is the right type of seamless solution and CRC checks every Copy - i.e what I am now manually doing using 7zip's encapsulate/copy/extract.

However, a number of user reviews in betanews.com last month said Teracopy was UNRELIABLE ! I prefer to keep a minimum of installed programs, and so check independent reviews before risking installing then having to uninstall something.

I have searched the net for comparative reviews of Windows GUI Tools to seamlessly integrate with Windows to “improve the reliability of the Explorer Copy/Paste function”. Apart from the Wikipedia ‘Comparison of File Managers’ which does at least have a tiny part on ‘robust file copy’, I have not found any comparative review that addresses this problem.

Clearly any 3rd party utility must have PROVEN RELIABILITY (i.e good reviews), to improve on the Windows OS, i.e not jumping from pan to fire.

Anybody know of an improvement on Teracopy ?

Robocopy/Richcopy usually gets my vote.

I've used RichCopy before when copying large files. It's comparable to TeraCopy in terms of features, but it lacks shell integration. I've found it to be quite reliable. Alternately, I came across a Lifehacker article talking about other copy utilities that may be of interest, though the article's focus is on speed, not error-less copying.

Fastcopy has always been reliable (and fast) for me.

A really viable option is plain old xcopy. I have a GUI front-end for xcopy available (free) at http://lorenstuff.weebly.com/ It is not a replacement or improvement on xcopy, just a GUI that simplifies the use of the program (point & click instead of command-line). The controls are:source, destination, set switches, & run.

I had the same problem with a USB hard drive. A few bytes per Gigabyte were being corrupted, sometimes when copying files to the USB drive, sometimes when reading back from the USB drive. I assumed the USB drive was faulty so took it back to the shop and got it replaced. Had the same problem with the replacement. Gave up at this point, took the HD out of the USB enclosure and installed it in a USB enclosure from a different manufacturer. This fixed the problem. Personally, I think your WD Passport drive is simply unreliable and I would replace it with a drive that actually works, rather than try to get around the problem with a software fix.

I use XXCOPY.