Affinity Photo File damaged and will not open

[Kyron Darkfire]

I created an afphoto file yesterday and saved it. Today it get an error, when trying to open. "Datei scheint beschädigt zu sein" (File seems to be corrupted/damaged). I have Affinity Photo 2.0.4 running on Windows 10. Thumbnail in the Folder still shows the expected image, but it will not open in Affinity Photo anymore.

I'm sure, I saved the latest version, but it might have been still open and the program running, when I shut down the computer (unsure about that)

Any ideas?

[walt.farrell]

Can you share the file here, for us to examine?

[DWright]

If you can send me a copy of the file using the Dropbox link below I can see if it can be recovered

https://www.dropbox.com/request/BYmMiLMmJ1swTV3eeyvC

[Kyron Darkfire]

here is the file: https://darkfire.ddnss.de/s/AAcrXRrmEpXeo3z

But I would be curious as well: How can this happen and how to restore it?

[Pšenda]

4 hours ago, Kyron Darkfire said:

here is the file

Why don't you upload the file directly to the forum so that users who want to help can easily download it. Not everyone is willing to click on weird links.

[Kyron Darkfire]

3 hours ago, Pšenda said:

Why don't you upload the file directly to the forum so that users who want to help can easily download it. Not everyone is willing to click on weird links.

Done

[R C-R]

1 hour ago, Kyron Darkfire said:

Done

Where? All I see is your link to some other site.

[Kyron Darkfire]

7 hours ago, R C-R said:

Where? All I see is your link to some other site.

IMG_1251.afphoto

[cutout3]

23 hours ago, Kyron Darkfire said:

I created an afphoto file yesterday and saved it. Today it get an error, when trying to open. "Datei scheint beschädigt zu sein" (File seems to be corrupted/damaged). I have Affinity Photo 2.0.4 running on Windows 10. Thumbnail in the Folder still shows the expected image, but it will not open in Affinity Photo anymore.

I'm sure, I saved the latest version, but it might have been still open and the program running, when I shut down the computer (unsure about that)

Any ideas?

18 hours ago, DWright said:

If you can send me a copy of the file using the Dropbox link below I can see if it can be recovered

https://www.dropbox.com/request/BYmMiLMmJ1swTV3eeyvC

I'd send it to DWright, above, and see what he can do. I did not open your like; I'll let others more knowledgeable do that. Did you save the file to afphoto only or did you make an another internal or external copy? Otherwise, bummer!

Apparently, something similar happens to other folks as well. I guess there is some documented regularity? Was yours on V1 or V2? Here is a recent thread I read, and got involved with. Anyway, hope you get some answers. Please share them here, if you can.

 

[Kyron Darkfire]

It was not really mutliple hours of work and I might be able to reproduce it. But I'm very curious about it. I'm sure I had saved it at some point successfully, without getting any error message. I just would like to know, if a problem might occur, when Affinity and the file is still open, when I shut down my computer (which I most likely did). I would like to avoid these problems, if possible.

 

[carl123]

@Kyron 

Where was the file located?

Local internal drive
USB attached drive
NAS
In the Cloud
In a cloud synced local folder
etc

[Kyron Darkfire]

It was on an USB attached HDD.

[Pšenda]

33 minutes ago, Kyron Darkfire said:

It was on an USB attached HDD.

Unfortunately, another of the many cases of inappropriate use of Affinity applications, which are not yet designed to work seamlessly with external (not located directly in the PC) disks.

 

If you don't want to lose your work, always save it on a local disk, and only back it up on an external/network/cloud (as recommended by Serif in the attached thread).

[cutout3]

16 minutes ago, Pšenda said:

If you don't want to lose your work, always save it on a local disk, and only back it up on an external/network/cloud (as recommended by Serif in the attached thread).

I would like to read this. Where is the attached thread again? I don't see it. Thank you.

[R C-R]

8 hours ago, cutout3 said:

I would like to read this. Where is the attached thread again? I don't see it. Thank you.

Just click on the arrow at the top left right of the box showing "My work just went poof..." or search the forum on that if you do not see the box & its quote.

Edited May 5, 2023 by R C-R
Brain fart (thanks for the heads up, Alfred!

[Alfred]

12 minutes ago, R C-R said:

Just click on the arrow at the top left of the box

It’s at the top right for me.

[Kyron Darkfire]

8 hours ago, Pšenda said:

Unfortunately, another of the many cases of inappropriate use of Affinity applications, which are not yet designed to work seamlessly with external (not located directly in the PC) disks.

 

If you don't want to lose your work, always save it on a local disk, and only back it up on an external/network/cloud (as recommended by Serif in the attached thread).

Thank you. That was the information I was looking for. No external devices. Seems strange, but so be it.

[R C-R]

2 hours ago, Alfred said:

It’s at the top right for me.

DOH! Of course, you are right about that!

[cutout3]

13 hours ago, Pšenda said:

If you don't want to lose your work, always save it on a local disk, and only back it up on an external/network/cloud (as recommended by Serif in the attached thread).

 

13 hours ago, cutout3 said:

I would like to read this. Where is the attached thread again? I don't see it. Thank you.

 

7 hours ago, R C-R said:

Just click on the arrow at the top left right of the box showing "My work just went poof..." or search the forum on that if you do not see the box & its quote.

Good to know about the arrow at the top right. But that just took me the the already quoted post! I tried searching for the advice by Serif, but couldn't find anything. I searched for this: "save files to a local disk, or risk losing your work", and this: "If you don't want to lose your work, always save it on a local disk", and got no results.

Any other suggestions? Am I looking for an article or post, written by Serif, advising not to merely save your files to an external disc/source? Maybe there is no such advice by Serif (should be if it is a problem!!!) and that is why I cannot find it?

[Old Bruce]

1 hour ago, cutout3 said:

I searched for this: "save files to a local disk, or risk losing your work", and this: "If you don't want to lose your work, always save it on a local disk", and got no results.

I searched for Local Disk

 

[cutout3]

16 minutes ago, Old Bruce said:

I searched for Local Disk

 

Thank you Bruce! That helps.

So if it is a problem, as others have mentioned, why doesn't Serif make this disclaimer a bit more prominent (as in, a lot)?

[R C-R]

2 minutes ago, cutout3 said:

So if it is a problem, as others have mentioned, why doesn't Serif make this disclaimer a bit more prominent (as in, a lot)?

Many of us have wondered about that for years.....

[Pšenda]

1 hour ago, R C-R said:

Many of us have wondered about that for years.....

Although I asked for a warning to be displayed before saving and working on external drives many years ago, in the end I do not believe that Serif will take such a measure. By doing so, he would admit that he is unable to solve this serious problem and that he does not know how to deal with it.

[Pšenda]

2 hours ago, cutout3 said:

I would like to read this. Where is the attached thread again? I don't see it. Thank you.

[Pšenda]

3 hours ago, cutout3 said:

I searched for this: "save files to a local disk, or risk losing your work", and this: "If you don't want to lose your work, always save it on a local disk", and got no results.

Try Google search, gives more relevant results. 

https://www.google.com/search?q=save+files+to+a+local+disk%2C+or+risk+losing+your+work+site:forum.affinity.serif.com

https://www.google.com/search?q=If+you+don't+want+to+lose+your+work%2C+always+save+it+on+a+local+disk+site:forum.affinity.serif.com