Power Platform Community Forum Thread Details

I'm using Power Automate to save files from Microsoft Forms into SharePoint folders.

However, the Create file action fails with the error:

"The specified file or folder name is too long. The URL path for all files and folders must be 400 characters or less."

I'm using a dynamic file name that comes from the uploaded file, and I believe it's too long.

How can I safely shorten the file name or avoid this issue altogether?

Is using guid() a good solution, or should I truncate the original name?

P.S: I’m also including a screenshot of the full file path used in my Case 1 inside the Switch control, in case it helps clarify the issue.

Thanks in advance!

Categories:

Using flows

HI,

Option 1: Use `guid()` for the File Name (Most Reliable)

This is often the cleanest approach:

Why?

guid() produces a short, unique identifier (xxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx)
You avoid any risk of exceeding limits.
You can still store the original file name in metadata columns if you need to reference it.

Example filename:

(to preserve the original extension)

How to set this in the Create File action:

File Name:

guid() & '.pdf'

or if you want to preserve extension dynamically:

Benefits:

Guaranteed unique.
Always short.
No path length issues.

Option 2: Truncate the Original File Name

If you prefer to keep a recognizable part of the filename, truncate it:

Example:

This keeps the first 50 characters.

To preserve the extension:

This reduces length while retaining readability.

Option 3: Clean + Truncate + Unique Suffix

Combine:

Clean filename (remove spaces/special characters)
Truncate
Add unique suffix

Example expression:

This results in a filename like:

Much safer for SharePoint URLs.

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Regards,
Riyaz

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Create file action fails in Power Automate due to long file path – how to shorten or fix it?

Option 1: Use `guid()` for the File Name (Most Reliable)

Option 2: Truncate the Original File Name

Option 3: Clean + Truncate + Unique Suffix

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Create file action fails in Power Automate due to long file path – how to shorten or fix it?

Option 1: Use guid() for the File Name (Most Reliable)

Option 2: Truncate the Original File Name

Option 3: Clean + Truncate + Unique Suffix

Helpful resources

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Introducing the 2026 Season 1 community Super Users

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Option 1: Use `guid()` for the File Name (Most Reliable)