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Li_Boar
Li_Boar
Participant
May 18, 2026

Keyboard shortcuts and workspace resets every time Photoshop starts

  • May 18, 2026
  • 1 reply
  • 7 views

Keyboard shortcuts reset almost every time Photoshop starts. On top of that, almost every time I get a message saying it can’t load the custom workspace so it resets to default. I use a lot of custom shortcuts and panels so it’s maddening to have to redo this Sisyphean task several times a week.

Anyone else constantly running into this?

Release 27.6.0. 

1 reply

Srishti Bali
Community Manager
Srishti BaliCommunity Manager
Community Manager
May 19, 2026

Hi ​@Li_Boar 

 

Thanks for reaching out. When keyboard shortcuts and workspace layouts reset every time Photoshop launches, it’s usually related to preferences not being saved correctly on the system.

A few things to check that commonly help:

  • Make sure Photoshop has full read/write permissions to its preferences folders. On macOS, check System Settings > Privacy & Security > Files and Folders, and Full Disk Access.
  • Try resetting preferences once, then immediately re‑customize shortcuts and workspace and quit Photoshop normally (File > Quit) to ensure changes are written to disk.
  • If you’re using any system cleanup, sync, or profile management tools, temporarily disable them to confirm they aren’t removing preference files on launch or exit.

  • Test by creating a new OS user account and launching Photoshop there. If settings persist in the new account, the issue is likely user‑profile specific.

 

Let us know if any of these steps help, or if you need any further assistance. 

Thanks, Srishti Bali | Community & Engagement Strategist, Digital Imaging | Adobe
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