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andrewk44205005
Participating Frequently
March 27, 2021
Question

Help with opening a indd file, asks for plugin

  • March 27, 2021
  • 5 replies
  • 3255 views

I created a file last year in september and now I can't open my own file?

It's a regular indd-file, but I get this message:

"Cannot open the file. Adobe InDesign may not support the file format, aplug-in that supports the file format may be missing, or the file may be open in another application"?

 

Don't know what to do, all my work is on it and I've read some threads here on this forum but none have worked so far.
Tried, resaving it on another computer, sending it to myself, zipping and then re-opening it, with no other result.

I have both the 2020 and 2021 indesign versions on my Mac Powerbook.

5 replies

annetteS2786464
annetteS2786464
Participant
June 26, 2025

I had a file situation like that when I had sent my file to a printer who had a plugin for preepress that I did not have so when they returned the file to me it was unopenable due to me not having the plugin. I had to ask for them to save the file with the plugin unchecked (not in use) and rename it. So you must have either opened the file on a computer/or older version of app that was running a plug in. The only way is to either install the plugin or open on the old version running the plug in and disable that plugin while saving 

Bill Silbert
Community Expert
Bill SilbertCommunity Expert
Community Expert
March 28, 2021

In your opening question you said that you tried saving it on another computer. Does that mean that you were able to actually open it on that computer? Eugene Tyson also asked you this but your reply to him did not sound like you were answering that specific question. If you can open it there or anywhere else then try exporting it as an IDML. That process can clear up some corruption in the file.

Bill Silbert
Community Expert
Bill SilbertCommunity Expert
Community Expert
March 28, 2021

Ir doesn't seem like anybody here has addressed the part of your error message dealing with a missing plug-in. If the error message is referring to a third party plug-in then it should be pointed out that any third party plug-ins that you may have installed must always be updated when you switch to a new version of InDesign. Not updating the plug-in will certainly get you the kind of error message that you're getting. You said that you have both CC 2020 and CC 2021 but you didn't say if you'd tried opening the file with the older version which may have the correct version of the plug-in. Double-clicking on an InDesign file from the desktop will always open the file in the later version. In order to open in an earlier version you will need to either go through File>Open when the older version is active or drag the file on top of the older version's icon in the dock of your Mac. To update third-party plug-ins you will need to go to the website of the plug-in's developer and get the update.

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andrewk44205005Author
Participating Frequently
March 28, 2021

Hi Bill,

 

I have no recollection of ever adding or downloading any plug-in is there a way for me to check if I have any plug-in?

 

thanks,

andrew

E
Community Expert
Eugene TysonCommunity Expert
Community Expert
March 28, 2021

The thing with plugins is that once it's installed on a computer that used the plgin and associated with the file is that it will look for that plugin regardless. You need to have the file exported as IDML and open it to clear the plugin information. You could try this http://kasyan.ho.ua/indesign/all/blind_open_and_idml-export.html

 

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andrewk44205005Author
Participating Frequently
March 27, 2021

I saved it to my computer and then I moved it to an external drive. I have since then deleted a lot of my files from my computer, due to space issues. And now I wanted to work on the document and can't open it?
I will look in to all of your recommendations.

 

Thank you for your quick response!

E
Community Expert
Eugene TysonCommunity Expert
Community Expert
March 27, 2021

Have you tried copying it back to your computer - or are you opening it from the external file?

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andrewk44205005Author
Participating Frequently
March 27, 2021

I tried, but same result.

 

E
Community Expert
Eugene TysonCommunity Expert
Community Expert
March 27, 2021

How did you resave it on another computer if you can't open it?

 

If you can open it and only get a missing plugin error - then use File>Export and choose IDML.

Open the IDML file in InDesign.

 

There's some info here

https://helpx.adobe.com/indesign/kb/troubleshoot-file-issues.html

 

There's an email link in the last paragraph

We're here to help!

 

 

If no resolution works, share the affected file with us at idfile@adobe.com. We'll investigate the issue and let you know if the recovery is possible. 

When you share your file(s) with us, you not only enable the Adobe team to find a solution to your problem, but also help us improve the overall user experience by identifying and resolving other similar issues.

We assure that your file will strictly remain confidential and will be used only for investigation purposes. Ensure that the file you share does not include any sensitive personal information.

We'll try our best to assist you, but as recovery depends on various factors, we cannot promise a permanent solution.

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