diff --git a/examples/cli/image_metadata.cpp b/examples/cli/image_metadata.cpp
index 8dd339c88..ba0d6da23 100644
--- a/examples/cli/image_metadata.cpp
+++ b/examples/cli/image_metadata.cpp
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@
 #include <cctype>
 #include <cstdint>
 #include <cstring>
+#include <filesystem>
 #include <fstream>
 #include <iomanip>
 #include <iostream>
@@ -276,7 +277,7 @@ namespace {
     }
 
     bool read_file(const std::string& path, std::vector<uint8_t>& data, std::string& error) {
-        std::ifstream fin(path, std::ios::binary);
+        std::ifstream fin(std::filesystem::u8path(path), std::ios::binary);
         if (!fin) {
             error = "failed to open file: " + path;
             return false;
diff --git a/examples/cli/main.cpp b/examples/cli/main.cpp
index e8174d27c..ca8ce4e79 100644
--- a/examples/cli/main.cpp
+++ b/examples/cli/main.cpp
@@ -188,7 +188,7 @@ struct SDCliParams {
             if (++index >= argc) {
                 return -1;
             }
-            imatrix_in.push_back(argv[index]);
+            imatrix_in.push_back(argv_to_utf8(index, argv));
             return 1;
         };
 
@@ -323,13 +323,14 @@ void sd_log_cb(enum sd_log_level_t level, const char* log, void* data) {
 bool load_images_from_dir(const std::string dir,
                           std::vector<SDImageOwner>& images,
                           int max_image_num = 0) {
-    if (!fs::exists(dir) || !fs::is_directory(dir)) {
+    const fs::path dir_path = fs::u8path(dir);
+    if (!fs::exists(dir_path) || !fs::is_directory(dir_path)) {
         LOG_ERROR("'%s' is not a valid directory\n", dir.c_str());
         return false;
     }
 
     std::vector<fs::directory_entry> entries;
-    for (const auto& entry : fs::directory_iterator(dir)) {
+    for (const auto& entry : fs::directory_iterator(dir_path)) {
         if (entry.is_regular_file()) {
             entries.push_back(entry);
         }
@@ -337,12 +338,12 @@ bool load_images_from_dir(const std::string dir,
 
     std::sort(entries.begin(), entries.end(),
               [](const fs::directory_entry& a, const fs::directory_entry& b) {
-                  return a.path().filename().string() < b.path().filename().string();
+                  return a.path().filename().u8string() < b.path().filename().u8string();
               });
 
     for (const auto& entry : entries) {
-        std::string path = entry.path().string();
-        std::string ext  = entry.path().extension().string();
+        std::string path = entry.path().u8string();
+        std::string ext  = entry.path().extension().u8string();
         std::transform(ext.begin(), ext.end(), ext.begin(), ::tolower);
 
         if (ext == ".jpg" || ext == ".jpeg" || ext == ".png" || ext == ".bmp" || ext == ".webp") {
@@ -397,19 +398,19 @@ void step_callback(int step, int frame_count, sd_image_t* image, bool is_noisy,
     // is_noisy is set to true if the preview corresponds to noisy latents, false if it's denoised latents
     // unused in this app, it will either be always noisy or always denoised here
     if (frame_count == 1) {
-        fs::path path = cli_params->preview_path;
-        if (encoded_image_format_from_path(path.string()) == EncodedImageFormat::UNKNOWN)
+        fs::path path = fs::u8path(cli_params->preview_path);
+        if (encoded_image_format_from_path(path.u8string()) == EncodedImageFormat::UNKNOWN)
             path += ".png";
-        if (std::regex_search(path.string(), format_specifier_regex))
-            path = fs::path(format_frame_idx(path.string(), continuous_preview_counter++));
-        if (!write_image_to_file(path.string(),
+        if (std::regex_search(path.u8string(), format_specifier_regex))
+            path = fs::u8path(format_frame_idx(path.u8string(), continuous_preview_counter++));
+        if (!write_image_to_file(path.u8string(),
                                  image->data,
                                  image->width,
                                  image->height,
                                  image->channel,
                                  "",
                                  cli_params->compression_quality)) {
-            LOG_ERROR("save preview image to '%s' failed", path.string().c_str());
+            LOG_ERROR("save preview image to '%s' failed", path.u8string().c_str());
         }
     } else {
         int fps = cli_params->preview_method == PREVIEW_PROJ ? cli_params->preview_fps / 4 : cli_params->preview_fps;
@@ -420,12 +421,12 @@ void step_callback(int step, int frame_count, sd_image_t* image, bool is_noisy,
 }
 
 static fs::path get_video_audio_sidecar_path(const SDCliParams& cli_params) {
-    fs::path out_path     = cli_params.output_path;
+    fs::path out_path     = fs::u8path(cli_params.output_path);
     fs::path base_path    = out_path;
     fs::path ext          = out_path.has_extension() ? out_path.extension() : fs::path{};
-    std::string ext_lower = ext.string();
+    std::string ext_lower = ext.u8string();
     std::transform(ext_lower.begin(), ext_lower.end(), ext_lower.begin(), ::tolower);
-    const EncodedImageFormat output_format = encoded_image_format_from_path(out_path.string());
+    const EncodedImageFormat output_format = encoded_image_format_from_path(out_path.u8string());
     if (!ext.empty()) {
         if (output_format == EncodedImageFormat::JPEG ||
             output_format == EncodedImageFormat::PNG ||
@@ -450,14 +451,14 @@ bool save_results(const SDCliParams& cli_params,
     }
 
     namespace fs      = std::filesystem;
-    fs::path out_path = cli_params.output_path;
+    fs::path out_path = fs::u8path(cli_params.output_path);
 
     if (!out_path.parent_path().empty()) {
         std::error_code ec;
         fs::create_directories(out_path.parent_path(), ec);
         if (ec) {
             LOG_ERROR("failed to create directory '%s': %s",
-                      out_path.parent_path().string().c_str(), ec.message().c_str());
+                      out_path.parent_path().u8string().c_str(), ec.message().c_str());
             return false;
         }
     }
@@ -465,9 +466,9 @@ bool save_results(const SDCliParams& cli_params,
     fs::path base_path = out_path;
     fs::path ext       = out_path.has_extension() ? out_path.extension() : fs::path{};
 
-    std::string ext_lower = ext.string();
+    std::string ext_lower = ext.u8string();
     std::transform(ext_lower.begin(), ext_lower.end(), ext_lower.begin(), ::tolower);
-    const EncodedImageFormat output_format = encoded_image_format_from_path(out_path.string());
+    const EncodedImageFormat output_format = encoded_image_format_from_path(out_path.u8string());
     if (!ext.empty()) {
         if (output_format == EncodedImageFormat::JPEG ||
             output_format == EncodedImageFormat::PNG ||
@@ -493,8 +494,8 @@ bool save_results(const SDCliParams& cli_params,
         std::string params          = gen_params.embed_image_metadata
                                           ? get_image_params(ctx_params, gen_params, metadata_seed, cli_params.mode)
                                           : "";
-        const bool ok               = write_image_to_file(path.string(), img.data, img.width, img.height, img.channel, params, cli_params.compression_quality);
-        LOG_INFO("save result image %d to '%s' (%s)", idx, path.string().c_str(), ok ? "success" : "failure");
+        const bool ok               = write_image_to_file(path.u8string(), img.data, img.width, img.height, img.channel, params, cli_params.compression_quality);
+        LOG_INFO("save result image %d to '%s' (%s)", idx, path.u8string().c_str(), ok ? "success" : "failure");
         return ok;
     };
 
@@ -502,14 +503,14 @@ bool save_results(const SDCliParams& cli_params,
         if (generated_audio == nullptr) {
             return;
         }
-        if (write_wav_to_file(wav_path.string(),
+        if (write_wav_to_file(wav_path.u8string(),
                               generated_audio->data,
                               generated_audio->sample_count,
                               generated_audio->channels,
                               generated_audio->sample_rate)) {
-            LOG_INFO("save result audio to '%s'", wav_path.string().c_str());
+            LOG_INFO("save result audio to '%s'", wav_path.u8string().c_str());
         } else {
-            LOG_WARN("failed to save result audio to '%s'", wav_path.string().c_str());
+            LOG_WARN("failed to save result audio to '%s'", wav_path.u8string().c_str());
         }
     };
 
@@ -522,7 +523,7 @@ bool save_results(const SDCliParams& cli_params,
         pattern += ext;
 
         for (int i = 0; i < num_results; ++i) {
-            fs::path img_path = format_frame_idx(pattern.string(), output_begin_idx + i);
+            fs::path img_path = fs::u8path(format_frame_idx(pattern.u8string(), output_begin_idx + i));
             if (write_image(img_path, i)) {
                 sucessful_reults++;
             }
@@ -540,11 +541,11 @@ bool save_results(const SDCliParams& cli_params,
 
         fs::path video_path = base_path;
         video_path += ext;
-        std::string final_ext_lower = ext.string();
+        std::string final_ext_lower = ext.u8string();
         std::transform(final_ext_lower.begin(), final_ext_lower.end(), final_ext_lower.begin(), ::tolower);
         const bool mux_audio = generated_audio != nullptr && (final_ext_lower == ".avi" || final_ext_lower == ".webm");
-        if (create_video_from_sd_images(video_path.string().c_str(), results, num_results, gen_params.fps, cli_params.compression_quality, mux_audio ? generated_audio : nullptr, params) == 0) {
-            LOG_INFO("save result video to '%s'", video_path.string().c_str());
+        if (create_video_from_sd_images(video_path.u8string().c_str(), results, num_results, gen_params.fps, cli_params.compression_quality, mux_audio ? generated_audio : nullptr, params) == 0) {
+            LOG_INFO("save result video to '%s'", video_path.u8string().c_str());
             if (generated_audio != nullptr && !mux_audio) {
                 fs::path wav_path = video_path;
                 wav_path.replace_extension(".wav");
@@ -552,7 +553,7 @@ bool save_results(const SDCliParams& cli_params,
             }
             return true;
         } else {
-            LOG_ERROR("Failed to save result video to '%s'", video_path.string().c_str());
+            LOG_ERROR("Failed to save result video to '%s'", video_path.u8string().c_str());
             return false;
         }
     }
@@ -701,7 +702,7 @@ int main(int argc, const char* argv[]) {
     LOG_DEBUG("%s", gen_params.to_string().c_str());
 
     if (!cli_params.imatrix_out.empty()) {
-        if (fs::exists(cli_params.imatrix_out) &&
+        if (fs::exists(fs::u8path(cli_params.imatrix_out)) &&
             std::find(cli_params.imatrix_in.begin(), cli_params.imatrix_in.end(), cli_params.imatrix_out) == cli_params.imatrix_in.end()) {
             LOG_WARN("imatrix file '%s' already exists and will be overwritten", cli_params.imatrix_out.c_str());
         }
diff --git a/examples/common/common.cpp b/examples/common/common.cpp
index 11b531f46..5fd016bce 100644
--- a/examples/common/common.cpp
+++ b/examples/common/common.cpp
@@ -75,7 +75,7 @@ static std::string utf16_to_utf8(const std::wstring& wstr) {
     return utf8;
 }
 
-static std::string argv_to_utf8(int index, const char** argv) {
+std::string argv_to_utf8(int index, const char** argv) {
     (void)argv;
     int argc;
     wchar_t** argv_w = CommandLineToArgvW(GetCommandLineW(), &argc);
@@ -91,7 +91,7 @@ static std::string argv_to_utf8(int index, const char** argv) {
 }
 
 #else  // Linux / macOS
-static std::string argv_to_utf8(int index, const char** argv) {
+std::string argv_to_utf8(int index, const char** argv) {
     return std::string(argv[index]);
 }
 
@@ -839,16 +839,17 @@ ArgOptions SDContextParams::get_options() {
 void SDContextParams::build_embedding_map() {
     static const std::vector<std::string> valid_ext = {".gguf", ".safetensors", ".pt", ".ckpt"};
 
-    if (!fs::exists(embedding_dir) || !fs::is_directory(embedding_dir)) {
+    const fs::path embedding_dir_path = fs::u8path(embedding_dir);
+    if (!fs::exists(embedding_dir_path) || !fs::is_directory(embedding_dir_path)) {
         return;
     }
 
-    for (auto& p : fs::directory_iterator(embedding_dir)) {
+    for (auto& p : fs::directory_iterator(embedding_dir_path)) {
         if (!p.is_regular_file())
             continue;
 
         auto path       = p.path();
-        std::string ext = path.extension().string();
+        std::string ext = path.extension().u8string();
 
         bool valid = false;
         for (auto& e : valid_ext) {
@@ -860,8 +861,8 @@ void SDContextParams::build_embedding_map() {
         if (!valid)
             continue;
 
-        std::string key   = path.stem().string();
-        std::string value = path.string();
+        std::string key   = path.stem().u8string();
+        std::string value = path.u8string();
 
         embedding_map[key] = value;
     }
@@ -1572,7 +1573,7 @@ ArgOptions SDGenerationParams::get_options() {
         if (++index >= argc) {
             return -1;
         }
-        ref_image_paths.push_back(argv[index]);
+        ref_image_paths.push_back(argv_to_utf8(index, argv));
         return 1;
     };
 
@@ -1580,7 +1581,7 @@ ArgOptions SDGenerationParams::get_options() {
         if (++index >= argc) {
             return -1;
         }
-        ref_video_paths.push_back(argv[index]);
+        ref_video_paths.push_back(argv_to_utf8(index, argv));
         return 1;
     };
 
@@ -1588,7 +1589,7 @@ ArgOptions SDGenerationParams::get_options() {
         if (++index >= argc) {
             return -1;
         }
-        ref_video_audio_paths.push_back(argv[index]);
+        ref_video_audio_paths.push_back(argv_to_utf8(index, argv));
         return 1;
     };
 
@@ -1596,7 +1597,7 @@ ArgOptions SDGenerationParams::get_options() {
         if (++index >= argc) {
             return -1;
         }
-        ref_audio_paths.push_back(argv[index]);
+        ref_audio_paths.push_back(argv_to_utf8(index, argv));
         return 1;
     };
 
@@ -1604,7 +1605,7 @@ ArgOptions SDGenerationParams::get_options() {
         if (++index >= argc) {
             return -1;
         }
-        ref_audio_paths.push_back(argv[index]);
+        ref_audio_paths.push_back(argv_to_utf8(index, argv));
         return 1;
     };
 
@@ -1703,15 +1704,15 @@ ArgOptions SDGenerationParams::get_options() {
         if (++index >= argc) {
             return -1;
         }
-        const char* arg = argv[index];
-        std::ifstream f(arg, std::ios::binary);
+        const std::string arg = argv_to_utf8(index, argv);
+        std::ifstream f(fs::u8path(arg), std::ios::binary);
         try {
             prompt = std::string(std::istreambuf_iterator<char>{f}, {});
         } catch (const std::ios_base::failure&) {
             f.setstate(std::ios_base::failbit);
         }
         if (f.fail()) {
-            LOG_ERROR("error: failed to read prompt file '%s'\n", arg);
+            LOG_ERROR("error: failed to read prompt file '%s'\n", arg.c_str());
             return -1;
         }
         return 1;
@@ -1721,15 +1722,15 @@ ArgOptions SDGenerationParams::get_options() {
         if (++index >= argc) {
             return -1;
         }
-        const char* arg = argv[index];
-        std::ifstream f(arg, std::ios::binary);
+        const std::string arg = argv_to_utf8(index, argv);
+        std::ifstream f(fs::u8path(arg), std::ios::binary);
         try {
             negative_prompt = std::string(std::istreambuf_iterator<char>{f}, {});
         } catch (const std::ios_base::failure&) {
             f.setstate(std::ios_base::failbit);
         }
         if (f.fail()) {
-            LOG_ERROR("error: failed to read negative prompt file '%s'\n", arg);
+            LOG_ERROR("error: failed to read negative prompt file '%s'\n", arg.c_str());
             return -1;
         }
         return 1;
@@ -2050,22 +2051,22 @@ static bool resolve_model_file_from_dir(const std::string& model_name,
     if (model_name.empty() ||
         model_name.find('/') != std::string::npos ||
         model_name.find('\\') != std::string::npos ||
-        fs::path(model_name).has_root_path() ||
+        fs::u8path(model_name).has_root_path() ||
         ends_with_valid_ext()) {
         LOG_ERROR("%s must be a model name without path or extension: %s", label, model_name.c_str());
         return false;
     }
 
-    fs::path model_dir_path = model_dir;
+    fs::path model_dir_path = fs::u8path(model_dir);
     for (const auto& ext : valid_ext) {
-        fs::path try_path = model_dir_path / (model_name + ext);
+        fs::path try_path = model_dir_path / fs::u8path(model_name + ext);
         if (fs::exists(try_path) && fs::is_regular_file(try_path)) {
-            resolved_path = try_path.lexically_normal().string();
+            resolved_path = try_path.lexically_normal().u8string();
             return true;
         }
     }
 
-    LOG_ERROR("can not find %s %s in %s", label, model_name.c_str(), model_dir_path.lexically_normal().string().c_str());
+    LOG_ERROR("can not find %s %s in %s", label, model_name.c_str(), model_dir_path.lexically_normal().u8string().c_str());
     return false;
 }
 
@@ -2359,10 +2360,18 @@ bool SDGenerationParams::extract_and_remove_lora(const std::string& lora_model_d
         }
 
         fs::path final_path;
-        if (is_absolute_path(raw_path)) {
-            final_path = raw_path;
-        } else {
-            final_path = fs::path(lora_model_dir) / raw_path;
+        try {
+            if (is_absolute_path(raw_path)) {
+                final_path = fs::u8path(raw_path);
+            } else {
+                final_path = fs::u8path(lora_model_dir) / fs::u8path(raw_path);
+            }
+        } catch (const std::exception&) {  // not UTF-8, e.g. a prompt file in another encoding
+            LOG_WARN("invalid lora path %s", raw_path.c_str());
+            tmp     = m.suffix().str();
+            prompt  = std::regex_replace(prompt, re, "", std::regex_constants::format_first_only);
+            missing = true;
+            continue;
         }
         if (!fs::exists(final_path)) {
             bool found = false;
@@ -2376,7 +2385,7 @@ bool SDGenerationParams::extract_and_remove_lora(const std::string& lora_model_d
                 }
             }
             if (!found) {
-                LOG_WARN("can not found lora %s", final_path.lexically_normal().string().c_str());
+                LOG_WARN("can not found lora %s", final_path.lexically_normal().u8string().c_str());
                 tmp     = m.suffix().str();
                 prompt  = std::regex_replace(prompt, re, "", std::regex_constants::format_first_only);
                 missing = true;
@@ -2384,7 +2393,7 @@ bool SDGenerationParams::extract_and_remove_lora(const std::string& lora_model_d
             }
         }
 
-        const std::string key = final_path.lexically_normal().string();
+        const std::string key = final_path.lexically_normal().u8string();
 
         if (is_high_noise)
             high_noise_lora_map[key] += mul;
diff --git a/examples/common/common.h b/examples/common/common.h
index 74a057d0b..91e75c685 100644
--- a/examples/common/common.h
+++ b/examples/common/common.h
@@ -12,6 +12,10 @@
 #include "resource_owners.hpp"
 #include "stable-diffusion.h"
 
+// The command-line argument at `index` as UTF-8 (on Windows, read again from
+// the UTF-16 command line: argv itself is in the ANSI code page).
+std::string argv_to_utf8(int index, const char** argv);
+
 #define SAFE_STR(s) ((s) ? (s) : "")
 #define BOOL_STR(b) ((b) ? "true" : "false")
 
diff --git a/examples/common/media_io.cpp b/examples/common/media_io.cpp
index ba0e8c5b2..baac6d200 100644
--- a/examples/common/media_io.cpp
+++ b/examples/common/media_io.cpp
@@ -15,10 +15,12 @@
 
 #define STB_IMAGE_IMPLEMENTATION
 #define STB_IMAGE_STATIC
+#define STBI_WINDOWS_UTF8
 #include "stb_image.h"
 
 #define STB_IMAGE_WRITE_IMPLEMENTATION
 #define STB_IMAGE_WRITE_STATIC
+#define STBIW_WINDOWS_UTF8
 #include "stb_image_write.h"
 
 #define STB_IMAGE_RESIZE_IMPLEMENTATION
@@ -147,7 +149,7 @@ class MemoryMkvWriter : public mkvmuxer::IMkvWriter {
 #endif
 
 bool read_binary_file_bytes(const char* path, std::vector<uint8_t>& data) {
-    std::ifstream fin(fs::path(path), std::ios::binary);
+    std::ifstream fin(fs::u8path(path), std::ios::binary);
     if (!fin) {
         return false;
     }
@@ -170,7 +172,7 @@ bool read_binary_file_bytes(const char* path, std::vector<uint8_t>& data) {
 }
 
 bool write_binary_file_bytes(const std::string& path, const std::vector<uint8_t>& data) {
-    std::ofstream fout(fs::path(path), std::ios::binary);
+    std::ofstream fout(fs::u8path(path), std::ios::binary);
     if (!fout) {
         return false;
     }
@@ -714,7 +716,7 @@ static std::pair<uint64_t, uint64_t> audio_sample_range_for_video_frame(const sd
 }
 
 EncodedImageFormat encoded_image_format_from_path(const std::string& path) {
-    std::string ext = fs::path(path).extension().string();
+    std::string ext = fs::u8path(path).extension().u8string();
     std::transform(ext.begin(), ext.end(), ext.begin(), ::tolower);
 
     if (ext == ".jpg" || ext == ".jpeg" || ext == ".jpe") {
@@ -1413,7 +1415,7 @@ bool write_wav_to_file(const std::string& path,
         return false;
     }
 
-    std::ofstream file(path, std::ios::binary);
+    std::ofstream file(fs::u8path(path), std::ios::binary);
     if (!file.is_open()) {
         return false;
     }
@@ -1475,7 +1477,7 @@ bool load_wav_from_file(const std::string& path,
     sample_rate = 0;
     channels    = 0;
 
-    std::ifstream file(path, std::ios::binary);
+    std::ifstream file(fs::u8path(path), std::ios::binary);
     uint8_t riff_header[12];
     if (!file.read(reinterpret_cast<char*>(riff_header), sizeof(riff_header)) ||
         std::memcmp(riff_header, "RIFF", 4) != 0 ||
diff --git a/examples/server/routes_index.cpp b/examples/server/routes_index.cpp
index 1341ff84a..14ad814b4 100644
--- a/examples/server/routes_index.cpp
+++ b/examples/server/routes_index.cpp
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 #include "routes.h"
 
+#include <filesystem>
 #include <fstream>
 #include <iterator>
 
@@ -7,7 +8,7 @@ void register_index_endpoints(httplib::Server& svr, const SDSvrParams& svr_param
     const std::string serve_html_path = svr_params.serve_html_path;
     svr.Get("/", [serve_html_path, index_html](const httplib::Request&, httplib::Response& res) {
         if (!serve_html_path.empty()) {
-            std::ifstream file(serve_html_path);
+            std::ifstream file(std::filesystem::u8path(serve_html_path));
             if (file) {
                 std::string content((std::istreambuf_iterator<char>(file)), std::istreambuf_iterator<char>());
                 res.set_content(content, "text/html");
diff --git a/examples/server/routes_sdapi.cpp b/examples/server/routes_sdapi.cpp
index 22a710b7e..158b2afdc 100644
--- a/examples/server/routes_sdapi.cpp
+++ b/examples/server/routes_sdapi.cpp
@@ -28,10 +28,10 @@ static std::string extract_and_remove_sd_cpp_extra_args(std::string& text) {
 static fs::path resolve_display_model_path(const ServerRuntime& runtime) {
     const auto& ctx = *runtime.ctx_params;
     if (!ctx.model_path.empty()) {
-        return fs::path(ctx.model_path);
+        return fs::u8path(ctx.model_path);
     }
     if (!ctx.diffusion_model_path.empty()) {
-        return fs::path(ctx.diffusion_model_path);
+        return fs::u8path(ctx.diffusion_model_path);
     }
     return {};
 }
@@ -583,9 +583,9 @@ void register_sdapi_endpoints(httplib::Server& svr, ServerRuntime& rt) {
     svr.Get("/sdapi/v1/sd-models", [runtime](const httplib::Request&, httplib::Response& res) {
         fs::path model_path = resolve_display_model_path(*runtime);
         json entry;
-        entry["title"]      = model_path.stem();
-        entry["model_name"] = model_path.stem();
-        entry["filename"]   = model_path.filename();
+        entry["title"]      = model_path.stem().u8string();
+        entry["model_name"] = model_path.stem().u8string();
+        entry["filename"]   = model_path.filename().u8string();
         entry["hash"]       = "8888888888";
         entry["sha256"]     = "8888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888";
         entry["config"]     = nullptr;
@@ -598,7 +598,7 @@ void register_sdapi_endpoints(httplib::Server& svr, ServerRuntime& rt) {
         fs::path model_path = resolve_display_model_path(*runtime);
         json r;
         r["samples_format"]      = "png";
-        r["sd_model_checkpoint"] = model_path.stem();
+        r["sd_model_checkpoint"] = model_path.stem().u8string();
         res.set_content(r.dump(), "application/json");
     });
 
diff --git a/examples/server/routes_sdcpp.cpp b/examples/server/routes_sdcpp.cpp
index 3139682f9..a6c8a1e8d 100644
--- a/examples/server/routes_sdcpp.cpp
+++ b/examples/server/routes_sdcpp.cpp
@@ -90,10 +90,10 @@ static json make_vae_tiling_json(const sd_tiling_params_t& params) {
 static fs::path resolve_display_model_path(const ServerRuntime& runtime) {
     const auto& ctx = *runtime.ctx_params;
     if (!ctx.model_path.empty()) {
-        return fs::path(ctx.model_path);
+        return fs::u8path(ctx.model_path);
     }
     if (!ctx.diffusion_model_path.empty()) {
-        return fs::path(ctx.diffusion_model_path);
+        return fs::u8path(ctx.diffusion_model_path);
     }
     return {};
 }
diff --git a/examples/server/runtime.cpp b/examples/server/runtime.cpp
index 1a71cf76f..76d89d397 100644
--- a/examples/server/runtime.cpp
+++ b/examples/server/runtime.cpp
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ static std::string lower_ascii(std::string value) {
 }
 
 static bool is_supported_model_ext(const fs::path& p) {
-    auto ext = lower_ascii(p.extension().string());
+    auto ext = lower_ascii(p.extension().u8string());
     return ext == ".gguf" || ext == ".pt" || ext == ".pth" || ext == ".safetensors";
 }
 
@@ -226,7 +226,7 @@ bool SDSvrParams::validate() {
         return false;
     }
 
-    if (!serve_html_path.empty() && !fs::exists(serve_html_path)) {
+    if (!serve_html_path.empty() && !fs::exists(fs::u8path(serve_html_path))) {
         LOG_ERROR("error: serve_html_path file does not exist: %s", serve_html_path.c_str());
         return false;
     }
@@ -260,7 +260,7 @@ void refresh_lora_cache(ServerRuntime& rt) {
         return;
     }
 
-    fs::path lora_dir = rt.ctx_params->lora_model_dir;
+    fs::path lora_dir = fs::u8path(rt.ctx_params->lora_model_dir);
     std::error_code ec;
     if (fs::exists(lora_dir, ec) && !ec && fs::is_directory(lora_dir, ec) && !ec) {
         try {
@@ -293,13 +293,13 @@ void refresh_lora_cache(ServerRuntime& rt) {
                 it.increment(ec);
             }
         } catch (const std::exception& e) {
-            LOG_WARN("error while scanning lora directory '%s': %s", lora_dir.string().c_str(), e.what());
+            LOG_WARN("error while scanning lora directory '%s': %s", lora_dir.u8string().c_str(), e.what());
             return;
         }
     }
 
     if (ec) {
-        LOG_WARN("error while scanning lora directory '%s': %s", lora_dir.string().c_str(), ec.message().c_str());
+        LOG_WARN("error while scanning lora directory '%s': %s", lora_dir.u8string().c_str(), ec.message().c_str());
         return;
     }
 
@@ -328,7 +328,7 @@ void refresh_upscaler_cache(ServerRuntime& rt) {
         previous_cache = *rt.upscaler_cache;
     }
 
-    fs::path upscaler_dir = rt.ctx_params->hires_upscalers_dir;
+    fs::path upscaler_dir = fs::u8path(rt.ctx_params->hires_upscalers_dir);
     std::error_code ec;
     if (fs::exists(upscaler_dir, ec) && !ec && fs::is_directory(upscaler_dir, ec) && !ec) {
         try {
@@ -384,13 +384,13 @@ void refresh_upscaler_cache(ServerRuntime& rt) {
                 it.increment(ec);
             }
         } catch (const std::exception& e) {
-            LOG_WARN("error while scanning upscalers directory '%s': %s", upscaler_dir.string().c_str(), e.what());
+            LOG_WARN("error while scanning upscalers directory '%s': %s", upscaler_dir.u8string().c_str(), e.what());
             return;
         }
     }
 
     if (ec) {
-        LOG_WARN("error while scanning upscalers directory '%s': %s", upscaler_dir.string().c_str(), ec.message().c_str());
+        LOG_WARN("error while scanning upscalers directory '%s': %s", upscaler_dir.u8string().c_str(), ec.message().c_str());
         return;
     }