PS Save AS doesn't save PDF files to same folder as original with save as original folder checked

​@bellevue scott 

​@Scott_BFAR 

Here are the 2-part scripts that I mentioned earlier...

Script 1 of 2 will leave the rasterized PDF page/s open so that you can work on them. You would then run the 2 of 2 script to save the open doc/s to the folder where the PDF was originally opened from. This might suit your workflow better than automatically saving/opening the rasterized files.

/*
Open PDF Pages 1 of 2.jsx
Stephen Marsh
1st August 2026 - v1.0: Initial release
2nd August 2026 - v1.1: Script rewritten with a custom UI window

SCRIPT 1 OF 2: Open and rasterize a single PDF and write the original file path location to a log file
*/

#target photoshop;

var pdfFilterString = ($.os.indexOf("Windows") !== -1)
    ? "PDF files:*.pdf,All files:*.*"
    : pdfOpenFilter;

var modeLabels = ["RGB", "CMYK", "Grayscale", "Lab"];
var modeMap    = [OpenDocumentMode.RGB, OpenDocumentMode.CMYK,
                   OpenDocumentMode.GRAYSCALE, OpenDocumentMode.LAB];

var bitDepthLabels = ["8 Bits/Channel", "16 Bits/Channel"];
var bitDepthMap    = [BitsPerChannelType.EIGHT, BitsPerChannelType.SIXTEEN];

var cropLabels = ["Bounding Box", "Media Box", "Crop Box", "Bleed Box", "Trim Box", "Art Box"];
var cropMap    = [CropToType.BOUNDINGBOX, CropToType.MEDIABOX, CropToType.CROPBOX,
                   CropToType.BLEEDBOX, CropToType.TRIMBOX, CropToType.ARTBOX];

// Upper bound used only when the page range is left blank and the total page count is unknown
// (stops automatically once a page fails to open)
var allPagesSentinelMax = 999;

// Parse a page range string like "1,3,8-10" into an array of individual page numbers
function parsePageRange(rangeStr) {
    var pages = [];
    var parts = rangeStr.split(",");
    for (var i = 0; i < parts.length; i++) {
        var part = parts[i].replace(/^\s+|\s+$/g, ""); // trim whitespace
        if (part === "") continue;

        if (part.indexOf("-") !== -1) {
            var bounds = part.split("-");
            var startPage = parseInt(bounds[0], 10);
            var endPage = parseInt(bounds[1], 10);
            if (!isNaN(startPage) && !isNaN(endPage)) {
                var lo = Math.min(startPage, endPage);
                var hi = Math.max(startPage, endPage);
                for (var p = lo; p <= hi; p++) {
                    pages.push(p);
                }
            }
        } else {
            var singlePage = parseInt(part, 10);
            if (!isNaN(singlePage)) {
                pages.push(singlePage);
            }
        }
    }
    return pages;
}

function uniqueSortedPages(arr) {
    var seen = {};
    var result = [];
    for (var i = 0; i < arr.length; i++) {
        var v = arr[i];
        if (v >= 1 && !seen[v]) {
            seen[v] = true;
            result.push(v);
        }
    }
    result.sort(function(a, b) {
        return a - b;
    });
    return result;
}

var previousLogFile = File(Folder.desktop + "/_PDF_File_Path_Log.txt");
previousLogFile.remove();

/*
// Disabled for now, could be used if the 2 of 2 script is modified to automatically loop over and save all unsaved docs...

// Save any new/unsaved documents that don't have a path yet before the dialog is shown
alert("Unsaved files should be saved before this script continues to run...");
saveUnsavedDocuments();
*/

// Script UI dialog
var dlg = new Window("dialog", "Open PDF Pages - Script 1 of 2 (v1.1)");
dlg.orientation = "column";
dlg.alignChildren = "fill";
dlg.spacing = 10;
dlg.margins = 16;

var theFile = null;

// Source file panel
var filePanel = dlg.add("panel", undefined, "Source PDF");
filePanel.orientation = "row";
filePanel.alignChildren = "left";
filePanel.margins = 12;
filePanel.spacing = 10;

var browseBtn = filePanel.add("button", undefined, "Choose PDF...");
var fileNameText = filePanel.add("statictext", undefined, "No file selected", { truncate: "middle" });
fileNameText.preferredSize.width = 320;

// Page range panel (disabled until a PDF is chosen)
var rangePanel = dlg.add("panel", undefined, "Pages");
rangePanel.orientation = "column"; // column so the status text sits on its own line below
rangePanel.alignChildren = "left";
rangePanel.margins = 12;
rangePanel.spacing = 8;
rangePanel.enabled = false; // inactive until a file is selected

var pageRangeRow = rangePanel.add("group");
pageRangeRow.orientation = "row";
pageRangeRow.alignChildren = "left";
pageRangeRow.spacing = 8;

pageRangeRow.add("statictext", undefined, "Page Range:");
var pageRangeInput = pageRangeRow.add("edittext", undefined, "1");
pageRangeInput.characters = 20;
pageRangeInput.helpTip = 'Leave blank for all pages, or enter specific pages/ranges, e.g. "1,3,8-10"';

pageRangeRow.add("statictext", undefined, "of");
var totalPagesInput = pageRangeRow.add("edittext", undefined, "");
totalPagesInput.characters = 4;
pageRangeRow.add("statictext", undefined, "total pages (optional if unknown)");

var detectStatusText = rangePanel.add("statictext", undefined, "", { multiline: true });
detectStatusText.characters = 60;
detectStatusText.alignment = "fill";

// Rasterization options panel
var optionsPanel = dlg.add("panel", undefined, "Rasterization Options");
optionsPanel.orientation = "column";
optionsPanel.alignChildren = "left";
optionsPanel.margins = 12;
optionsPanel.spacing = 8;

// Two-column layout: Color Mode + Resolution stacked in column 1,
// Bit Depth + Rasterize To stacked in column 2, so each column's
// labels/controls line up vertically and the two columns align with each other.
var optionsColumns = optionsPanel.add("group");
optionsColumns.orientation = "row";
optionsColumns.alignChildren = "top";
optionsColumns.spacing = 24;

var col1 = optionsColumns.add("group");
col1.orientation = "column";
col1.alignChildren = "left";
col1.spacing = 8;

var col1Row1 = col1.add("group");
col1Row1.alignChildren = "left";
var colorModeLabel = col1Row1.add("statictext", undefined, "Color Mode:");
colorModeLabel.preferredSize.width = 85;
var modeDropdown = col1Row1.add("dropdownlist", undefined, modeLabels);
modeDropdown.selection = 1; // Zero indexed, 1 = CMYK

var col1Row2 = col1.add("group");
col1Row2.alignChildren = "left";
var resolutionLabel = col1Row2.add("statictext", undefined, "Resolution (PPI):");
resolutionLabel.preferredSize.width = 85;
var resolutionInput = col1Row2.add("editnumber", undefined, "600"); // Resolution PPI
resolutionInput.characters = 6;

var col2 = optionsColumns.add("group");
col2.orientation = "column";
col2.alignChildren = "left";
col2.spacing = 8;

var col2Row1 = col2.add("group");
col2Row1.alignChildren = "left";
var bitDepthLabel = col2Row1.add("statictext", undefined, "Bit Depth:");
bitDepthLabel.preferredSize.width = 50;
var bitDepthDropdown = col2Row1.add("dropdownlist", undefined, bitDepthLabels);
bitDepthDropdown.selection = 0;

var col2Row2 = col2.add("group");
col2Row2.alignChildren = "left";
var cropLabel = col2Row2.add("statictext", undefined, "Crop To:");
cropLabel.preferredSize.width = 50;
var cropDropdown = col2Row2.add("dropdownlist", undefined, cropLabels);
cropDropdown.selection = 1; // Zero indexed, 1 = MEDIABOX

var row3 = optionsPanel.add("group");
var antiAliasCheckbox = row3.add("checkbox", undefined, "Anti-aliased");
antiAliasCheckbox.value = true;

var suppressWarningsCheckbox = row3.add("checkbox", undefined, "Suppress Warnings");
suppressWarningsCheckbox.value = true;

var flattenCheckbox = row3.add("checkbox", undefined, "Flatten image");
flattenCheckbox.value = false;

// Dialog buttons
var btnGroup = dlg.add("group");
btnGroup.alignment = "right";
var cancelBtn = btnGroup.add("button", undefined, "Cancel", { name: "cancel" });
var okBtn = btnGroup.add("button", undefined, "OK", { name: "ok" });
okBtn.enabled = false;

browseBtn.onClick = function () {
    var f = File.openDialog("Select the PDF file to open", pdfFilterString, false);
    if (f !== null) {
        theFile = f;
        fileNameText.text = decodeURI(theFile.fullName);

        var detected = getPDFPageCountApprox(theFile);
        if (detected !== null && detected > 0) {
            totalPagesInput.text = String(detected);
            totalPagesInput.enabled = false; // auto-detected - lock it against manual edits
            detectStatusText.text = "";
        } else {
            totalPagesInput.text = "";
            totalPagesInput.enabled = true; // not detected - let the user type it in manually
            detectStatusText.text =
                "Couldn't auto-detect the page count (compressed PDF). You can enter it manually, or leave the it blank...";
        }

        // Reset the page range to a safe default: just page 1
        pageRangeInput.text = "1";

        rangePanel.enabled = true; // enabled once a file is selected
        okBtn.enabled = true;

        dlg.layout.layout(true); // re-measure/redraw so the status text isn't clipped
    }
};

// Populated by okBtn.onClick once validated, then consumed after the dialog closes
var allPagesMode = true;
var targetPages = [];

okBtn.onClick = function () {
    var totalRaw = totalPagesInput.text.replace(/^\s+|\s+$/g, ""); // trim
    var total = totalRaw.length ? parseInt(totalRaw, 10) : null;    // null = left blank/unknown
    var res = parseFloat(resolutionInput.text);

    if (theFile === null) {
        alert("Please choose a PDF file first.");
        return;
    }
    // Total page count is optional - only validate it if a value was actually provided
    if (total !== null && (isNaN(total) || total < 1)) {
        alert("Total pages must be a positive number, or left blank if unknown.");
        return;
    }
    if (isNaN(res) || res <= 0) {
        alert("Please enter a valid resolution.");
        return;
    }

    // Parse the page range field (blank = process all pages)
    var pageRangeText = pageRangeInput.text.replace(/^\s+|\s+$/g, "");
    allPagesMode = (pageRangeText === "");
    targetPages = [];

    if (!allPagesMode) {
        targetPages = uniqueSortedPages(parsePageRange(pageRangeText));
        if (targetPages.length === 0) {
            alert("Please enter a valid page range, e.g. \"1,3,8-10\", or leave it blank for all pages.");
            return;
        }
        // Only validate against the total page count if it's known
        if (total !== null) {
            var highestRequested = targetPages[targetPages.length - 1];
            if (highestRequested > total) {
                alert("The page range entered (highest page " + highestRequested +
                      ") exceeds the total page count (" + total + ").");
                return;
            }
        }
    }

    dlg.close(1);
};

cancelBtn.onClick = function () {
    dlg.close(0);
};

// ============================================================
// Show dialog and process
// ============================================================
if (dlg.show() === 1) {

    var pdfOpenOptions = new PDFOpenOptions();
    pdfOpenOptions.antiAlias            = antiAliasCheckbox.value;
    pdfOpenOptions.constrainProportions = true;
    pdfOpenOptions.suppressWarnings     = suppressWarningsCheckbox.value;
    pdfOpenOptions.usePageNumber        = true;
    pdfOpenOptions.resolution           = parseFloat(resolutionInput.text);
    pdfOpenOptions.mode                 = modeMap[modeDropdown.selection.index];
    pdfOpenOptions.bitsPerChannel       = bitDepthMap[bitDepthDropdown.selection.index];
    pdfOpenOptions.cropPage             = cropMap[cropDropdown.selection.index];

    var thePath = theFile.fsName;
    var sourceFolder = new File(thePath).parent.fsName;

    // Write the source folder to the log file
    try {
        var logFile = new File(Folder.desktop + "/_PDF_File_Path_Log.txt");
        logFile.encoding = "UTF8";
        logFile.open("w");
        logFile.write(sourceFolder);
        logFile.close();
    } catch (e) {
        alert("Unable to write log file:\n" + e);
    }

    var openedCount = 0;
    var doFlatten = flattenCheckbox.value;

    // Build the list of pages to open from the parsed page range
    var pagesToOpen = [];
    var probingUnknownTotal = false; // true = sequentially probing page-by-page until one fails (end of doc)

    if (allPagesMode) {
        var totalRaw = totalPagesInput.text.replace(/^\s+|\s+$/g, "");
        var knownTotal = totalRaw.length ? parseInt(totalRaw, 10) : null;
        if (knownTotal !== null && !isNaN(knownTotal) && knownTotal > 0) {
            // Total page count is known (auto-detected or entered manually) - open every page
            for (var p = 1; p <= knownTotal; p++) pagesToOpen.push(p);
        } else {
            // Total page count is unknown - probe sequentially and stop at the first page that fails to open
            probingUnknownTotal = true;
            for (var p = 1; p <= allPagesSentinelMax; p++) pagesToOpen.push(p);
        }
    } else {
        pagesToOpen = targetPages;
    }

    for (var i = 0; i < pagesToOpen.length; i++) {
        var p = pagesToOpen[i];
        pdfOpenOptions.page = p;
        var docCountBefore = app.documents.length;
        try {
            app.open(theFile, pdfOpenOptions);
            if (app.documents.length > docCountBefore) {
                openedCount++;
                app.activeDocument.name =
                    File(thePath).name.replace(/\.pdf$/i, "") + "_p" + p;
                if (doFlatten) {
                    app.activeDocument.flatten();
                }
            }
        } catch (e) {
            if (probingUnknownTotal) {
                // Expected: this is how the last page of the document is detected - stop silently
                break;
            }
            alert("Page " + p + " failed to open:\n" + e);
        }
    }

    // Notification
    app.beep();
    //alert("Opened " + openedCount + " of " + pagesToOpen.length + " requested page(s) from:\n" + sourceFolder);

} else {
    // user cancelled the dialog
}


function getPDFPageCountApprox(file) {
    var count = null;
    try {
        file.open("r");
        file.encoding = "BINARY";
        var raw = file.read();
        file.close();

        var matches = raw.match(/\/Type\s*\/Pages[^>]{0,200}?\/Count\s+(\d+)/g);
        if (!matches) {
            matches = raw.match(/\/Count\s+(\d+)[^>]{0,200}?\/Type\s*\/Pages/g);
        }
        if (matches && matches.length) {
            var counts = [];
            for (var i = 0; i < matches.length; i++) {
                var m = matches[i].match(/\/Count\s+(\d+)/);
                if (m) counts.push(parseInt(m[1], 10));
            }
            if (counts.length) count = Math.max.apply(null, counts);
        }
    } catch (e) {
        count = null;
    }
    return count;
}

function pdfOpenFilter(file) {
    if (file instanceof Folder) return true;
    return file.name.match(/\.pdf$/i) != null;
}

// Returns true if the document has been saved to disk at least once.
// A brand-new/never-saved document throws when you access .fullName / .path,
// so that's used as the "no path" test.
function documentHasPath(doc) {
    try {
        var f = doc.fullName;
        return true;
    } catch (e) {
        return false;
    }
}

/*
// Loops over every open document; any document without a path (never saved)
// is saved and closed. SaveOptions.SAVECHANGES triggers Photoshop's own native
// Save dialog for a never-saved document, so the user picks the format/location
// there - no need to build extra save options
function saveUnsavedDocuments() {
    if (app.documents.length === 0) return;

    // Snapshot the docs first since closing changes app.documents as we go
    var docsToCheck = [];
    for (var i = 0; i < app.documents.length; i++) {
        docsToCheck.push(app.documents[i]);
    }

    for (var j = 0; j < docsToCheck.length; j++) {
        var doc = docsToCheck[j];
        if (documentHasPath(doc)) continue;

        try {
            doc.close(SaveOptions.SAVECHANGES);
        } catch (e) {
            alert("Unable to save \"" + doc.name + "\":\n" + e);
        }
    }
}
*/

/*
Open PDF Pages 2 of 2.jsx
Stephen Marsh
1st August 2026 - Initial release
2nd August 2026 - v1.1: End-of-script custom UI window

SCRIPT 2 OF 2: Save the rasterized PDF as a TIFF to the original PDF location from the log file created by the 1 of 1 script.

https://community.adobe.com/questions-712/ps-save-as-doesn-t-save-pdf-files-to-same-folder-as-original-with-save-as-original-folder-checked-1633715s
*/

#target photoshop;

if (app.documents.length === 0) {
    alert("No documents are open.");
} else {
    try {
        // Read the folder path from the Desktop log file
        var logFile = new File(Folder.desktop + "/_PDF_File_Path_Log.txt");

        if (!logFile.exists) {
            throw new Error("Log file not found on the Desktop:\n_PDF_File_Path_Log.txt");
        }

        logFile.open("r");
        logFile.encoding = "UTF-8";
        var folderPath = logFile.readln().replace(/^\s+|\s+$/g, ""); // trim whitespace
        logFile.close();

        if (!folderPath || folderPath === "Unknown path") {
            throw new Error("Invalid or missing path in the log file.");
        }

        var saveFolder = new Folder(folderPath);
        if (!saveFolder.exists) {
            throw new Error("The folder recorded in the log does not exist:\n" + folderPath);
        }

        // Build the TIFF filename from the active document name (strip any extension)
        var doc = app.activeDocument;
        var baseName = doc.name.replace(/\.[^\.]+$/, "");
        var tiffFile = new File(saveFolder + "/" + baseName + ".tif");

        // TIFF save options
        var tiffOptions = new TiffSaveOptions();
        tiffOptions.imageCompression = TIFFEncoding.TIFFLZW;
        tiffOptions.byteOrder = (Folder.fs === "Windows") ? ByteOrder.IBM : ByteOrder.MACOS;
        tiffOptions.layers = true;
        tiffOptions.transparency = true;

        // Save as TIFF
        doc.saveAs(tiffFile, tiffOptions, false, Extension.LOWERCASE); // false to save a copy

        // End of script notification
        app.beep();

        // ScriptUI notification dialog
        var resultDlg = new Window("dialog", "Open PDF Pages - Script 2 of 2 (v1.1)");
        resultDlg.orientation = "column";
        resultDlg.alignChildren = "fill";
        resultDlg.spacing = 10;
        resultDlg.margins = 16;

        // Message panel/group
        var msgPanel = resultDlg.add("panel", undefined, "");
        msgPanel.orientation = "column";
        msgPanel.alignChildren = "left";
        msgPanel.margins = 12;
        msgPanel.spacing = 8;

        var msgText = msgPanel.add(
            "statictext",
            undefined,
            "TIFF saved to:\n\n" + tiffFile.fullName,
            { multiline: true }
        );
        msgText.preferredSize.width = 400;

        // Buttons - right aligned, outside/below the message panel
        var resultBtnGroup = resultDlg.add("group");
        resultBtnGroup.alignment = "right";
        var resultCancelBtn = resultBtnGroup.add("button", undefined, "Cancel", { name: "cancel" });
        var resultOkBtn = resultBtnGroup.add("button", undefined, "OK", { name: "ok" });

        resultOkBtn.onClick = function () {
            resultDlg.close(1);
        };
        resultCancelBtn.onClick = function () {
            resultDlg.close(0);
        };

        if (resultDlg.show() === 1) {
            // OK - close the document, keeping the saved changes
            doc.close(SaveOptions.SAVECHANGES);
        }
        // Cancel - leave the document open for manual review

    } catch (e) {
        alert("Error:\n" + e);
    }
}

You do bomb. Thanks! I’m going to install this on Monday on the machine we use the most for file prep for uploaded files. Thanks so much. 

​@bellevue scott 

​@Scott_BFAR 

When you open a PDF file for rasterization/editing/saving - is it only a single page PDF? Do you open multiple PDF files from different sources before saving them?

EDIT: The scripts that I suggested yesterday: script 1 of 2 and 2 of 2 have been removed for now, back to the drawing board!

Are you rasterizing generic PDF files (essentially unsaved files with no backing path), or opening and saving Photoshop PDF files (which do have a backing path)?

my computer: Mac Tahoe 26.5.2, PS 27.8.0

I can’t reproduce this behavior. I’ve played with opening PDFs from different folders; Save As always defaults to original folder. In addition to 1. Save As to Original folder, I also have 2. Enable Legacy ‘save As’ checked. Unchecking 2, then restarting Ps, didn’t change the destination folder from the original, source folder.