~locked~ suffix on .afdesign file

[jeanyates]

I'm using affinity designer 2.5.3 and when I try to open a file named MARESH-7-24-2024-tasting-menu-FRONT.afdesign, a message shows at the top of the app window saying "loading one document", but the file never loads. The file name has changed in the app and "~lock~ is added at the end of the filename. How do I open this file? Thanks in advance for your assistance!

[Pšenda]

1 hour ago, jeanyates said:

The file name has changed in the app and "~lock~ is added at the end of the filename.

A file with the ~lock~ extension does not replace the original file, but is created alongside it - it is a file with the same name that the application uses to control access to the file.
So in your case (you write file name has changed) the original file has disappeared?
Can you provide the *.afdesign file for someone else to try to open?

Edited July 31, 2024 by Pšenda

[jeanyates]

Thanks for your response. The original file is still in the cloud drive (gdrive) but it does not open in AD either. Trying different possible workarounds I was finally able to extract the contents by dragging the file into an open but empty new file in AD. The layers were finicky, some wouldn't open to be edited, but copying an individual element/layer and pasting them into yet another a new file has given access to the text/image. Strange and frustrating. I'd like to know how the file became corrupted/not working. It was first made in an earlier version of AD and edited in a later  version. Thoughts anyone?

[Pšenda]

4 hours ago, jeanyates said:

The original file is still in the cloud drive (gdrive)

It sounds like you are working directly with a file stored in cloud storage (in a folder that is then shared to the cloud). It is always recommended to work on local files, and save to external devices and clouds only for backup and sharing.