Can't move objects in Illustrator any more!

Thank you all, glad to help 😊

I don't know about Windows, but I just got help for the same issue on Mac, and the tech went into my settings and got rid of all the app's files, the preferences, etc., for Illustrator. These will regenerate when you reopen the app (or should). Make sure it's ok to get rid of them before doing it, but, if you can, it should solve the problem. (On Mac, they were under ~Library/Application Support/Adobe Illustrator 26/; ~Library/Preferences/Adobe Illustrator 26 Settings; ~Library/Preferences/Adobe/Adobe Illustrator. There may be more so do a system search to find the files.)

Or, just hop onto the help.adobe.com page and click the chat icon in the lower right and allow a tech to go into your computer to get rid of all the files. Took just a few minutes.

I just had this issue and so I stopped adobe update services from task manager and it unlocked my objects. Hopefully this helps anyone else with the same issue

Here in 2021 and this weird Photoshop/Illustrator glitch still exists. Had both programs open and after about 2 hours of work, I was no longer able to move objects in Illustrator. It would give me the error sound that you get when you try to do something but have to close a dialog/option box first. Only, there are no dialog boxes open. Literally opened a fresh doc, drew a square, filled it with red, swtiched to selection tool, and tried to click-drag it across the page. Error sound. 

I stumbled across this post and tried closing Photoshop. Illustrator started working again... Both versions were recently updated to the latest of the 2021 versions, so maybe that matters.

This is still an issue as of 10/20/2020... and this solve from below worked for me as well (found no reason to re-install)!
"Really, I've been trying to fix this for over an hour.  but turning off my photoshop solved the problem.  So much for work flow. "

I haven't seen this issue in a long time, but recently I copied an image from photoshop (21.1.3) to Illustrator (24.1.3) and suddenly I could not move anything.  I found this forum and tried just shutting down Photoshop and that worked, my Illustrator was working again.  Just throwing in my experience to let Adobe know it is a more widespread problem.

Hi

I was having the same issues not being able to move objects or images within Illustrator CC2020. In my particular situation, I opened images created in Photoshop and/or placed in Libraries. via Photoshop. 

When I either opened the image or placed from the library into Illustrator...I could not move the objects.

 Upon checking the images (some were deep in the layer as if they had been embedded), I discovered they were actually "UNembedded" by checking the top tool bar. Once I clicked on "unembedded", a window popped up to save the image (not complete ai file). It was psd  format. I saved the image and then I could again move the objects and/or individual images I was using in my  creation. 

I had been receiving the "linked images are missing" pop up when opening the ai file...I clicked on ignore sometimes and replace sometimes...so it seems the issue is, at least in my situation, created via Photoshop ..

Regardless, I am now back using my files...til the next time. 

Kathy

This has been a bug in Adobe Illustrator for years, and Adobe has never even admitted that there is a problem. I have this issue several times per week. I am unable to drag and move any object in Illustrator. I can select and move via the keyboard but not by mouse. The workaround (brutally time-consuming) for me is to restart the computer. Fortunately, there are shareware alternatives to Illustrator that are less prone to bugs and are better supported by software makers that are not the moneygrubbing MBAs that infest the management at Adobe.

davidicus,

If you have ruled out a corrupt document/file as mentioned in your second bullet, see A) below, you may try the list and see how far down you need to go, unless a brighter suggestion is posted.

If things that should work simply refuse to (all possibilities exhausted including the A) - C) below (and carefully making sure you are performing (all) the needed things)), you may try (the relevant part(s) of) the list 1) - 6) below.

Sometimes, (certain) things may fail or stop working for no apparent reason. When the (other) possible reasons/cures fail to work, it may be some kind of (temporay or permanent) corruption, or even some inconvenient preference setting(s), which may be cured with something on the following list set up in an attempt to provide a catchall solution for otherwise unsolvable cases. It starts with a few easy and harmless suggestions 1) and 2) for milder cases, and goes on with two alternative ways 3) and 4) of resetting preferences to the defaults (easily but irreversibly and more laboriously but more thoroughly and also reversibly), then follows a list 5) of various other possibilities, and it ends with a full reinstallation 6). If no other suggestions work, or if no other suggestions appear, you may start on the list and decide how far to go and/or which may be relevant.

The following is a general list of things you may try when

A) The issue is not in a specific file,

B) You have a printer correctly installed, connected, and turned on if it is physical printer (you may use Adobe PDF/Acrobat Distiller as the default printer with no need to have a printer turned on, obviously you will need to specify when you actually need to print on paper), and

C) It is not caused by issues with opening a file from external media.

You may have tried/done some of them already; 1) and 2) are the easy ones for temporary strangenesses, and 3) and 4) are specifically aimed at possibly corrupt/inconvenient preferences); 5) is a list in itself, and 6) is the last resort.

If possible/applicable, you should save current artwork first, of course.

1) Close down Illy and open again;

2) Restart the computer (you may do that up to at least 5 times);

3) Close down Illy and press Ctrl+Alt+Shift/Cmd+Option+Shift during startup (easy but irreversible);

4) Move the folder (follow the link with that name) with Illy closed (more tedious but also more thorough and reversible), for CS3 - CC you may find the folder here:

https://helpx.adobe.com/illustrator/kb/preference-file-location-illustrator.html

5) Look through and try out the relevant among the Other options (follow the link with that name, Item 7) is a list of usual suspects among other applications that may disturb and confuse Illy, Item 15) applies to CC, CS6, and maybe CS5);

Even more seriously (this may be serious because you may need to restore plugins and whatnot afterwards if you have customized things), you may:

6) A) Uninstall (ticking the box to delete the preferences if applicable), B) run the Cleaner Tool (if you have CS3/CS4/CS5/CS6/CC), and C) reinstall. You may try without step B), but sometimes it is needed, because otherwise things may linger.

As it appears from this thread, it may be worth repeating this if it fails to help the first time:

https://forums.adobe.com/thread/2283530

To uninstall:

https://www.adobe.com/cfusion/search/index.cfm?loc=en_us&term=uninstall&cat=support&product=illustrator&self=1

Cleaner Tool:

http://www.adobe.com/support/contact/cscleanertool.html