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richard james vic
Known Participant
March 25, 2022
Question

Links broken between 2 computers

  • March 25, 2022
  • 4 replies
  • 2051 views

Three people  are working on documents (a magazine). Files are on each individual computer, not networked.

File paths are identical, but when moving files to a differnt machine many links are broken.

The directory structure is:

.../Month/ < contains indd and indb files

../Month/article/ < contians text (word format) and images for each article in seperate folders.

The .../path and drive letter are identical between machines. (All Windows machines)

This file strucure has to be maintained (I understand "Package" does not do this).

It is not obvious why the links are broken.

Is there a simple way of relinking  *all* files at once, not going through each article linking files.

Richard

4 replies

T
tm907
Participant
May 13, 2023

I'm having the same issue and don't want to package since we have a reoccurring InDesign Book with over 20 files in it, we just end up ignoring the links until the final compilation. At that time, one computer links any files missing. Odd that it only happens with one particular group of files from a folder called "Renderings" on our system.

 

From computer to computer, could it be an issue of computer compatibility or is it InDesign software not being able to recognize "Users/"name"/..." when the user 1 edits then hands it to user 2. Since we use Dropbox it could also be a Dropbox related issue. I'm not sure what the exact cause is at this time.

rob day
Community Expert
rob dayCommunity Expert
Community Expert
May 13, 2023

Since we use Dropbox it could also be a Dropbox related issue. I'm not sure what the exact cause is at this time.

 

You can collaborate using a sync’d workflow with either Adobe’s Creative Cloud or Dropbox, both work the same way. The Adobe sync folder is the Creative Cloud Files folder, which is installed by default in your computer’s user folder.

 

To maintain normal links, the linked assets have to be included in the synced job folder. There is no hand off or packaging because the links are automatically synced to the invited user’s computers on every save. If you are using Dropbox smart sync’ing should be turned off because InDesign links have to be saved (sync’d) on a local volume.

 

rob day
Community Expert
rob dayCommunity Expert
Community Expert
March 25, 2022

Hi @richard james vic , if all of the users have CC subscriptions you could consider using your CC account’s sync’ing capabilities to collaborate remotely. Save the magazine and its assets to your User>Creative Cloud Files folder and invite the others to collaborate. In that case you would never need to move or package the magazine. See this thread for details on cloud sync’ing.

 

https://community.adobe.com/t5/indesign-discussions/do-indesign-links-work-with-adobe-cloud-multiple-users/td-p/11521179

 

    R
    richard james vicAuthor
    Known Participant
    March 25, 2022

    We do not want to use teh cloud.

    There should be no problem if the drive/paths/filenames are the same.

    Richard

    E
    Community Expert
    Eugene TysonCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    March 26, 2022

    If the links are broken you can set up InDesign to check for links

    https://helpx.adobe.com/ie/indesign/using/graphics-links.html#:~:text=Find%20missing%20links,or%20missing%20links.

     

    And you can relink all images to a folder - select all the images in the links panel

    And in the sub menu of the links panel select Relink to Folder

    https://helpx.adobe.com/ie/indesign/using/graphics-links.html#:~:text=Relink%20to%20a%20different%20folder

     

    I've no idea why your links are broken - they shouldn't be.

    But I'm not privy to your workflow and exact situation.

     

     

    Willi Adelberger
    Community Expert
    Willi AdelbergerCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    March 25, 2022

    You have tomove the whole directory to the other computer. Package would create working links, but make package once without cpying and relinking those files once.

    R
    richard james vicAuthor
    Known Participant
    March 25, 2022

    We are copying the entire tree.

    As I understand "Package" it destroys the dir structure which does not work.

    Richard

    rob day
    Community Expert
    rob dayCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    March 25, 2022

    As I understand "Package" it destroys the dir structure which does not work.

     

    There shouldn’t be a problem with packaging— it moves all of the assets into the same enclosing folder, so their status will remain normal assuming they are normal before you make the package.

     

    The sync’ing workflow eliminates the manual labor of packaging and moving files, if you don’t want to use Adobe’s syncing, you can do the same with a number of other file sharing services, e.g., Dropbox.

     

    With a sync’d workflow you are not editing files stored in the cloud. InDesign requires that documents and their assets to be local, so all the Creative Cloud Files Folder does is facilitate the file transfers to the three collaborators and ensures that the files are up-to-date. There are backup copies stored in your cloud account, but you don’t edit the backups.

     

     

    Derek Cross
    Community Expert
    Derek CrossCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    March 25, 2022

    Bear in mind you are licensed to install the application on two computers but may only use them one at a time (it's not allowed to use two at the same time). 

      R
      richard james vicAuthor
      Known Participant
      March 25, 2022

      All copies are licenced, not the issue

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