Can't move or drag layers to reorder

Forum|Forum|5 years ago
November 18, 2020
6 replies
9669 views

I've just updated to Photoshop and now I can't drag anything with the move tool inside the canvas, nothing is locked, Auto-select is active. I also can't drag layers in the layer panels to re-order them. It was working fine, and suddenly move tool stopped working, the same with the layers panel, If i try to drag any layer, cursor changes to the hand icon and inmediately changes back to the arrow cursor with no result at all.

Windows

Correct answer SuperMacGuy1

With regards to reordering in the layers panel, I found that disabling the live preview worked to fix it for me. That is to turn off: Layers panel > panel options > Preview on canvas when reordering layers

Stephen Marsh

Community Expert

I wonder if the layer keyboard shortcuts/keycuts would work when the mouse doesn't.

Windows users would swap Control and Alt instead of Command and Option (don't type the + symbol and spaces). Note that layer visibility will affect the expected behaviour of the select commands.

Move current target layer to front (top) layer	Command + Shift + ]
Move current target layer up	Command + ]
Move current target layer down	Command + [
Move current target layer to back (bottom) layer	Command + Shift + [

M

Muadib

Participating Frequently

it´s 2025 and I cant reorder layers in photoshop on w11.

used photoshop since v4, professionally for more than 20 years. the absolute garbage this software has become is astounding. the indifference and incompetence is criminal. wacom and adobe are a pair from hell.

turned off layer preview, no difference.

the problem is apparently from pressure cutting off. I cant even drag a selection for example. it moves for a bit and stops. only in photoshop.

SuperMacGuy1Correct answer

Participant

With regards to reordering in the layers panel, I found that disabling the live preview worked to fix it for me. That is to turn off: Layers panel > panel options > Preview on canvas when reordering layers

M

majorkira

Participant

Thank you so much for this! I have been so annoyed by this problem for the past few months! You are a life saver.

Zesty_wanderlust15A7

Known Participant

Pretty sure I've seen a similar thing when trying an old plugin that doesn't get updated anymore. It doesn't necessarily occur immediately, but suddenly it's there. It became mostly unusable for this reason only...

IOW, always good to try and exclude some (older) plugins. I've also seen CEP extensions can clash with each other, causing "weird events."

T

talgatj89726636

Participant

I've just stumbled upon this issue, not related to any Photoshop update.

Surprisingly enough what resolved it (not permanently) was just moving the whole Photoshop window to the other screen (I work on two displays). Then when I moved it back to the main screen the locking layers problem was gone.

I suspect something with the display drivers or windows patch.

Windows 10 Pro 22H2

Photoshop 22.5.2.

nVidia display drivers: 473.47