Participant

Question

Cannot open new files after 2026 update

Forum|Forum|8 months ago
November 4, 2025
6 replies
1553 views

We recently installed the new 2026 update (20.0) and now on one of our computers we are unable to open any new files/documents and the window that contains suggested files sizes does not appear either. I've tried updating the Microsoft C++ but not having any luck with that fix. It is on a computer that is a little out of date (nothing crazy) but now when I reinstall 2025 it is doing the same error of not opening new files/documents.

camilone

Participant

i even re-installed InDesign and still cannot open any old file. adobe really became the worst possible company with the most unreliable products in my whole tech stack.

Abhishek Rao

Community Manager

Hi @camilone,

Sorry to hear you’re running into this, I understand how frustrating it can be when you’re unable to even open or create files after an update.

Could you please confirm the exact version of InDesign you’re currently using along with your OS details. I’d also like to understand the exact behavior you’re seeing, so it would really help if you could share a short screen recording showing the complete workflow from launching InDesign to the point where you try to open or create a file and what happens next, including if any error appears.

Once I have that, I’ll try to reproduce the scenario on my end and investigate this further. If this is happening with a specific file, feel free to share it here or via DM if it’s confidential. You can use any public cloud sharing service like Google Drive or Dropbox to share the file.

Looking forward to your update.

Abhishek

S

Supa_Pea

Known Participant

Has anyone got a solution of this issue yet? I have been having this issue for a few months now and nothing seems to fix it? It’s very annoying. Many thanks.

Abhishek Rao

Community Manager

Hello everyone,

I appreciate the update. Please attempt to change the file association for your INDD files to make sure they open with InDesign 2026, and then test the issue once more. Occasionally, Windows may continue to associate files with an older version even after an upgrade, which could lead to the behavior you're experiencing. You can refer to the instructions in the guides found here: https://adobe.ly/4r8ymBB and here https://adobe.ly/49wCntv or here https://adobe.ly/4phmBXW

After you update the association, try opening your files again and let me know if everything starts to work.

Abhishek

J

jeanette_4855

Participant

I have the same problem! Two days ago I started noticing weird stuff happening with my INDD files, and discovered that my CC had installed ID2026 in addition to 2025, and I suddenly had TWO versions installed. (Also double versions of Illustrator and Photoshop). CC usually just upgrades and keeps ONE active version. I noticed error messages when I tried opening some files, and thought uninstalling the older version and rebooting the computer would help. I kept only the 2026 version.

This is where it gets really weird. I was able to continue working on the three files I had created during the day, using ID2026, but then discovered that it will not open any of my hundreds of docs created in the previous version!! So now I have to reinstall the 2025 version, and potentially scrap the newer one, until Adobe gets their stuff together and presents a functioning upgrade. I can see why you wouldn't be able to open a newer doc in an older version, but opening older docs in the new upgraded version should always work!

leo.r

Community Expert

using ID2026, but then discovered that it will not open any of my hundreds of docs created in the previous version!!

By @jeanette_4855

Can you please elaborate: what exactly happens when InDesign 2026 will not open files created in the previous version? Can you post a screenshot of the error or anything else that helps understand the issue. Also, what's your operating system version and how much RAM do you have?

M

Mary35782085jvai

Participant

Abhishek Rao

Community Manager

Hi @dandyjack,

Sorry about the trouble. Could you please try manually resetting your InDesign preferences and check if that helps? You can follow the steps here: https://adobe.ly/4hSvGUz.

If the issue persists, please try renaming a couple of folders to refresh the internal configuration. Rename the CEP folder to CEP.old from this location:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\Adobe

If that doesn't help, rename the UXP folder to UXP.old from the following locations:
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Adobe\
C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\Adobe\

Once done, relaunch InDesign and try creating a new document again. Please let me know if this resolves the issue.

Looking forward to your update.

Abhishek

Abhishek Rao

Community Manager

Greetings @dandyjack,

I wanted to follow up and see how everything is progressing. Were you able to implement the earlier suggestions, and did they have any impact on your side? If the problem persists, please inform me, so we can explore the next steps together.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Abhishek

D

dandyjackAuthor

Participant

Apologies it is the 21.0 update and after uninstalling/reinstalling, nothing is fixed. Same with the 20.5.1 version after this update.

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