An Azure Blob Storage account with hierarchical namespace enabled represents directories explicitly. Match that account configuration by selecting Use Hierarchical Namespace (Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2) on the Files.com Remote Server. This lets Files.com use directory-aware operations appropriate to the storage account.

The Files.com option describes how to connect to an existing account. It does not enable or disable hierarchical namespace in Azure. Microsoft treats enabling hierarchical namespace as a permanent storage-account change; use Azure's configuration guidance when making that storage decision.

Directory Behavior

In a flat namespace, reports/2026/january.csv is a single object name. A folder is a shared prefix, and moving a tree can require processing every object below it. With hierarchical namespace, Azure has actual directory entities and supports directory-level access controls and operations.

That distinction matters for applications organizing a data lake, moving completed data between working locations, or enforcing directory access. It is separate from upload or download throughput. Hierarchical namespace also changes feature compatibility: Azure Blob versioning is not available on these accounts.

Files.com Operations

Files.com uses Azure's Data Lake endpoint for directory deletion. For individual file moves, Files.com uses a native rename when the account's endpoint supports it, with copy-and-delete handling when that endpoint cannot perform the native operation. A move requiring copy and delete has the partial-completion consequences of two separate operations.

A folder move can involve multiple files. Review the operation's complete result before dependent work uses its destination.

The connection's credential still needs the Azure permissions for its operations. For a service or user-delegation SAS performing native moves, include Azure's Move permission along with the other required permissions. Files.com folder permissions separately govern access through the mount.

A Namespace Mismatch

When hierarchical namespace is enabled in Azure but its Files.com option is not selected, directory operations can fail because the connection uses the wrong directory semantics. A directory-deletion error asking you to enable hierarchical namespace on the Remote Server indicates this mismatch.

Confirm the storage account's configuration, then select the matching option on the Remote Server. Changing credentials or granting broader access does not correct a namespace mismatch.