Affinity Designer file is corrupted suddenly

[Old Bruce]

8 hours ago, Folkes said:

My latest  document (uni work) opens, but it wont allow me to add pages or save? Any ideas?

The title of this thread says it is about Designer. Designer cannot add Pages. Not sure about the inability to save.

[alex_hacker]

Hi there,
I am new to the forum and hope you can help me.

Is there a solution for the corrupted files?

My students are working on a large project and now the file is suddenly corrupted,

greetings
Alex

[LondonSquirrel]

2 hours ago, alex_hacker said:

Is there a solution for the corrupted files?

A solution? Maybe not a 100% definite way. But you can take steps to at least minimise the effects of it.

1. Do frequent 'Save as' to a new file name, e.g. Somedoc-20220226-01.afdesign, Somedoc-20220226-02.afdesign, etc. Effectively you are doing your own versioning.

2. Save to a local disk in a directory which is not under the control of a cloud service. You can always move your files there afterwards if you want them backed up.

3. Once in a while, open one of your saved files and check that it can still be read.

There are quite a few hints through this thread and others about trying to mitigate corruption to files. These three should help you get started.

I have no idea how widespread the issue of corrupted files is. The cases we see mentioned here are probably not the only ones. But out of millions of files it's probably a very small fraction of a percentage. Nonetheless I would not want to lose a file I have been working on due to corruption. If your files are important then consider treating them accordingly.

 

[Wosven]

1 hour ago, LondonSquirrel said:

Somedoc-20220226-01.afdesign, Somedoc-20220226-02.afdesign

Instead of writting dates (the Explorer or Finder can display last modified date in a column, and order by it), versioning (v1, v2, v3, v4....) should suffice.

[LondonSquirrel]

9 hours ago, Wosven said:

Instead of writting dates (the Explorer or Finder can display last modified date in a column, and order by it), versioning (v1, v2, v3, v4....) should suffice.

I prefer putting the date in the filename, because if I copy that file to somewhere else (at least on macOS) the timestamp shows the time of the copy.

e.g.

(47) % ll background-banners.afdesign 
-rw-r--r--@ 1     75K 28 Jun  2021 background-banners.afdesign

(48) % cp background-banners.afdesign ~/Desktop/

(49) % ls -l ~/Desktop/background-banners.afdesign 
-rw-r--r--@ 1 xxx  staff  76868 27 Feb 09:23 /Users/xxx/Desktop/background-banners.afdesign

I can do 'cp -p', of course. Or using Finder it seems to preserve the time stamps. But it's just my preference to have date/time in the filename.

[Wosven]

59 minutes ago, LondonSquirrel said:

somewhere else (at least on macOS) the timestamp shows the time of the copy.

But even in another place, v10 will be bigger than v5.

 

[edit] And if it's for backup, I don't look at the modification date, only version.  I order by date to get faster to the last version, since it's usually one ofthe last modified/saved. If I need to work from a different emplacement, I update the version when doing a "save as" or after the copy, modifying the file's name, to avoid confusion. [/edit]

Edited February 27, 2022 by Wosven

[v_kyr]

38 minutes ago, Wosven said:

But even in another place, v10 will be bigger than v5.

You mean by the version number (?), since file size not necessarily if I refactor and optimize things inside files (like removing layers, combining things etc.).

However, saving often and continiously -with including a timestamp or file version indicator- is always a good thing to do in order to deal with and prevent possible data losts. When working with multiple persons (teams) on files it's mandantory to keep some own history/backups here for sureness. - Ideally here in such team scenarios, some setup and in the background running/event listening OS monitoring process would then automate that sort of backup saving task, aka triggering changes and new file creations (by file extensions etc.) and on any occurence performs then a timestamp based file renaming & copying/moving to backup storage place.

Usually the Affinity file format itself is internally slightly modeled after an incremental contents backup like system scheme, but as we often see here in the forum, there are still situations possible where that scheme doesn't work always flawlessly on saving to different storage places.

[Wosven]

16 minutes ago, v_kyr said:

You mean by the version number (?)

Yes, the version number, not the file's size, since it can be different, like once you delete the image(s) that was/were used as template(s) to redraw something, etc.

18 minutes ago, v_kyr said:

When working with multiple persons (teams)

If they think to create new version, that's already good. But they won't always think of modifying the timestamp if you wrote it in the file name. (People tend to choose the simplest or laziest way... and I do it when working on simple files that won't take hours.)

Number version are easier, and since the time I worked with QXD, it's enough to keep files and reverse to an older one when one is corrupted.

 

You can have servers and their backup, or/and also use oneDrive or other services/apps depending of the OS.

All will depend of the way we're working. If we only work on a single file each day, timestamps can be added, it won't be so much of a problem or wasted time. But if you work on different files, at some point, the simplest trick do it better without error (erasing the last characters of the file name and incrementing the version is easy, it's common when creating and sending PDF to clients, etc.).

[v_kyr]

45 minutes ago, Wosven said:

If they think to create new version, that's already good. But they won't always think of modifying the timestamp if you wrote it in the file name. (People tend to choose the simplest or laziest way... and I do it when working on simple files that won't take hours.)

Since of the laziness to commonly have for performing such tasks manually, an automated process would be one possible way to overcome with this!

45 minutes ago, Wosven said:

... But if you work on different files, at some point, the simplest trick do it better without error (erasing the last characters of the file name and incrementing the version is easy, it's common when creating and sending PDF to clients, etc.).

Those who do/have develop(ed) software too, may know the "touch" tool, which performs file timestamp modifications on files/folders. Together with some fswatch etc. usage/setup it can be used to automate such processes via some clever made script.

[LondonSquirrel]

52 minutes ago, Wosven said:

All will depend of the way we're working.

I managed DNS for years, and having a serial number in the form YYYYMMDD01, YYYYMMDD02, etc, is what I'm used to. Whatever floats your boat...

I think this should be built into Affinity, with a choice of numbering/naming schemes.

[Wosven]

5 hours ago, LondonSquirrel said:

I think this should be built into Affinity, with a choice of numbering/naming schemes.

Sorry, it's not about you, but about the idea that the apps corrupt too many files while saving that it would need a special implementation to backup each version when saving... 😱 😫 😂 😭

[RB DESIGN]

NOTES FOR: FILE CORRUPTION, " CANNOT SAVE FILES ", " CANNOT OPEN FILES ", OR " DON"T HAVE PERMISSION TO... " ISSUES:

1: FILE CORRUPTION: ///  OS & Application compatibility 

This is probably SOP for most but I started using Affinity products 3+ years ago and had eventually spread my process over separate machines and different Operating Systems. So I first checked to make sure that all versions of Affinity products were operating on the proper OS they were designed for. I also begin making sure to monitor files that migrated between older and newer environments and made sure to save them often and in a more programatic naming system, IE: Date created- file # - and Tag or "Name" ( 2022-001-filename.afdesign ) or ( filename-001-2-14-22.afdesign ) and saving multiple files so that I had at least 3 working versions of the file from different dates/times to insure that I wasn't loosing more work than I was comfortable with at any one time. ( Especially for large files ) 

2 FILE CORRUPTION PT 2:  ///  NEED MORE RAM 

Memory allocation was a critical part in resolving many of the issues for one of my machines. I would recommend purchasing more RAM for your machine if you are having slow performance, crashing, or issues saving your larger files. The inability to manage application and device resources due to a lack of RAM caused all of these issues for one of my machines. Not having enough RAM caused at least three of my files too corrupt, including the the file that prompted my post, because my machine simply ran out of RAM needed to finish processing a save request. On a MAC you can use your Activity Monitor app. from Utilities to view the amount of Memory being used when your applications are running. A good way to tell if you need more RAM is to run the activity monitor while saving a file and if your computer uses all of your memory and/or you start to see it using large amounts of Swap memory you might need more RAM. ( This is of greater importance if you have very little storage left on your machine. IE: 1tb machine with 10 gb available. )

2. " CANNOT SAVE FILES ", " CANNOT OPEN FILES ", OR " DON"T HAVE PERMISSION TO... " ISSUES:   ////   REINSTALL OS. **** WITH CAUTION ****

If step one and two still don't help, and if you use a MAC with the most current OS, you might need to completely wipe your internal drive(s) and install a fresh version of the OS before downloading and installing the most recent version of Affinity software. YES, that's right, COMPLETELY DELETE YOUR HD!  I spent several hours with upper level MAC Support on this. There is apparently an issue surrounding the how the install occurs and how your OS is updated, and how they are tied to you appleid/keychain as this process has changed in the last few MAC OS releases. If done in the correct sequence, No Problem, if not then you get the "Do not have permission to... " or "Cannot Save File" error messages and no amount of sorting through your preferences will change this.

The resolution that finally worked for me was to....

FIRST STEP: Thoroughly back-up/SAVE everything from your machine that you need before doing anything else. Use timemachine or whatever you prefer just make sure you get everything you want saved on some other drive or machine because this resolution requires deleting the entire volume(s).
( *Note if you haven't done this before please read up before trying as you will need to familiarize yourself with using the apple key commands for " Internet Recovery Mode" and" Recovery Mode" and how you will need to use them with DISK FIRST AID; This might take a good deal of time to complete ) (*Please make sure to have all the documentation/Serial#'s you need for application installs ready as you may need them to re-install some applications and their updates. ) 

SECOND STEP: Only after you have created a complete backup of everything you want saved, and I do mean EVERYTHING, please double check... Make sure you are connected to the internet, then use the Disk First Aid Application to completely erase your HD. ( I had to erase my machines HD multiple times because the first aid would complete the erasure and create an extra phantom drive leaving me with two HD's. Apple Support explained that this was normal and was part of the difference between the original/factory OS and the newest OS which was part of the reason for the permissions errors. )

THIRD STEP: After you have erased the HD enough times to have a single drive remaining then you will need to use either "internet recovery" or "recovery" and reinstall the native OS or original factory OS on your HD and continue installing the OS updates all the way to the most current OS without installing anything else until the final OS is completely installed and updated. Then you should be able to reinstall all your applications and have permissions restored. 

This was as far as I needed to go to resolve all of the permission related and file opening and saving related problems if your are still having issues I would contact Apple support and explain that you are having issues with the installation of the most recent OS update. They are aware of these compatibility issues and can be very helpful in resolving them or at least explaining if you might need to take an additional step to achieve the same results I did. 
 

3: IF YOU ARE STILL HAVING ISSUES THEN.... Check Font Compatibility:

After going through all of the above I still had some files open with display issues and no matter what I did I could not select the fonts that were displayed improperly. The problem turned out to be POSTSCRIPT fonts. I've been working as a designer for quite some time so I have many fonts from long long ago. These older fonts can be read by a number of applications but they are becoming less and less compatible. I would recommend updating to the OTF or TTF versions of your fonts to ensure that the Affinity applications can use them along with any other font management software you might be using. 

Hope this helps.
Best of luck.

 

[wcc2022]

Good day to you,

 

I worked on a calendar design yesterday and it cannot be opened today. The notification shows that the file is corrupted. The screenshot of the notification is attached. The affinity was saved in an external hardisk. Can you help me to recover the file? The affinity file is attached below too.

Thank you

1724717766_InnerPage.afdesign

[carl123]

@wcc2022

Recovered document is attached

The problem was the image called grass.png in the August Artboard, which was somehow corrupted

I have deleted the image so you will need to replace it from the original

PS I don't have all the fonts used in the document but it looks Ok to me. Suggest you check when opening the recovered file that all Artboards look OK

 

 

1 hour ago, wcc2022 said:

The affinity was saved in an external hardisk

Don't do that! 

Corrupt Affinity files mostly occur when your file is stored and worked on from a non-internal drive

Always use an internal drive for all work (you can copy it to another non-internal drive when completed)

Most corrupt files are NOT recoverable,

Always have multiple backups whilst working.

Suggest you use some sort of versioning when saving your work and save regularly to a new filename.
(E.g. myfile_v1.afdesign, myfile_v2.afdesign, myfile_v3.afdesign, etc) 

 

Note: For the Devs to be able to investigate these corruptions further can you specify what OS you are using, what harddisk it was and how you connected to it (e.g. USB cable, NAS etc)

1724717766_InnerPage_recovered.afdesign

[wcc2022]

@carl123

 

Thanks for your assistance!😀

[GraphicsByGreg]

This file JUST corrupted on me.  I have tried everything I can.  IF ANYONE can help..  I would greatly appreciate it thank you!!!!!!! 

LaTICE.afdesign

[LondonSquirrel]

28 minutes ago, GraphicsByGreg said:

This file JUST corrupted on me.  I have tried everything I can.  IF ANYONE can help..  I would greatly appreciate it thank you!!!!!!! 

Answered on your other post here: 

 

There's no need to cross post.

[Valeriu Bordei]

hey can someone help me recover my file? was working on it several hours and now says that it is corrupted, can you help and restore it? I saw carl helped a few guys, can you help me also? 

20220702234105.afphoto

[Dan C]

Hi @Valeriu Bordei,

Welcome to the Affinity Forums

I've been able to recover a slightly older version of the file from it's most recent save, and have attached this below.

I hope this helps!

20220702234105_F.afphoto

[Valeriu Bordei]

hey, Dan, i dont understand why i cant still open it, it says the same that the file is corrupted

 

[Valeriu Bordei]

@Dan C the file you sent, the program says it is still corrupted

Edited July 5, 2022 by Valeriu Bordei

[carl123]

Does this version open?

If not what version of APhoto are you on?

 

 

20220702234105b.afphoto

[Dan C]

I'm sorry to hear this, that's certainly strange to see!

I have attempted to repair your file using 2 other methods, and have attached these 2 files below. 

Do either of these open correctly for you?  

20220702234105_F3.afphoto 20220702234105_F2.afphoto

[Dan C]

Just now, carl123 said:

Does this version open?

FWIW, this version opens correctly for me!

[JamesP21]

Hi Everyone, 

I am having a similar issue with a file on affinity publisher. The file was corrupted. Can I send it to be recovered?

Thanks,
James

james_moran_process_book.afpub