>>>>>hh="d:\outmail\out"+TTOC(DATETIME())+".dbf"
>>>>>hh=STRTRAN(hh," "+"")
>>>>>hh=STRTRAN(hh,":"+"")
>>>>>hh=STRTRAN(hh,"/"+"")
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>the value of hh is d:\outmail\out07012015084913.dbf
>>>>>
>>>>>SELECT outmail
>>>>>
>>>>>COPY TO &hh
>>>>>
>>>>>I get invalid path or filename - what am I doing wrong?
>>>>>
>>>>>d:\outmail dirctory exists exists as does the file outmail
>>>>
>>>>Do not use macro, use Name expression instead.
>>>>Also make sure that "d:\outmail\ folder exists
>>>>

>>>>hh="d:\outmail\out"+TTOC(DATETIME())+".dbf"
>>>>
>>>>hh=CHRTRAN(hh," :/", "")
>>>>
>>>>SELECT outmail
>>>>TRY
>>>>   md ("d:\outmail\") && It is closed in quotes and brackets just in case there are spaces in the folder name
>>>>CATCH
>>>>ENDTRY
>>>>
>>>>COPY TO (hh) && Here
>>>>

>>>
>>>I still get the error - d:\outmail exists
>>
>>change code
>>to
>>

>>hh="d:\outmail\out"+TTOC(DATETIME())+".dbf"
>>
>>hh=CHRTRAN(hh," :/", "")
>>
>>SELECT outmail
>>TRY
>>   md ("d:\outmail\") && It is closed in quotes and brackets just in case there are spaces in the folder name
>>CATCH
>>ENDTRY
>>
>>_CLIPTEXT = hh
>>
>>COPY TO (hh) && Here
>>

>>
>>Paste Clipboard content in the next message.
>>
>>What happens if you change
>>

>>COPY TO (hh) && Here
>>

>>to
>>

>>COPY TO d:\outmail\outxyz.dbf
>>

>>
>>?
>That copies fine

first, just try backwards until it fails, adding more steps, going from working example.
Your Chrtran() looks very suspicious, as it deletes slash and double colon but leaves backslash in path