How do I recover files after a crash that simply didn't open?
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i was working in illustrator (beta) 29.3.0 when it crashed. upon reopening it, i got a popup that it recovered the two opened files. i hit 'confirm' to open the recovered files, then nothing happened. can i recover them manually somehome?
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Hello @vincentd6087485,
I'm sorry to hear about your experience. Would you mind confirming if the file was saved locally on your computer and in which directory?
Also, please check if your file is still available in the recovery folder as an AID file. If yes, please share a link to the file after uploading it to a file-sharing service so I can check it. Although I cannot guarantee a successful recovery, I will try my best to do so.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Anubhav
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thank you. it was. after posting this i read i should 'open the .aid file in illustrator,' so i tried to. it did nothing, other than make the only .aid file dissapear from the datarecovery folder.
illustrator just crashed again, with the same issue. said it recovered my files upon reboot, but did not load them. the datarecovery folder doesn't have a .aid file this time. still missing since yesterday. there are only .aishm files from today in any of the subfolders.
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Beta versions can be unstable. That's why they are betas.
The recovery function is not a backup. You need to save your work regularly. Particularly when using a beta version.
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Hello @vincentd6087485,
Thank you for sharing the details. If the AID files cannot be opened, chances are the file is lost. We understand this may not be the ideal outcome, and we apologize for any inconvenience caused.
Could you confirm if the file was saved on a network, removable drive, or a cloud-synced folder like Google Drive or Dropbox? Storing files in such locations can sometimes lead to corruption issues. To prevent this from happening in the future, we recommend saving your work locally first and then manually copying it to your desired backup location.
To avoid similar situations in the future, we advise saving multiple copies of your active work locally or saving them as cloud documents.
Please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any further questions or need assistance. We're here to help.
Anubhav
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@Anubhav M
Hello, for no apparent reason the Adobe_illustrator(version 2025_29.3) program has closed (I have been experiencing this frequently lately). The file I was working on for about 2 hours yesterday suddenly closed and when I reopened it, it did not recover again. I have been looking for recovery files since yesterday but only .aishm files are available.
I just saw your answer and I would like to say that the file I was working on is on a removable SSD disk. After today I will copy it to the local file and work there and then save it back to disk. Unfortunately it's an unsolvable situation, Adobe should improve this issue. Thanks for the answer though.
Quote from you: “Can you verify if the file is saved to a network, removable drive, or a cloud-synced folder such as Google Drive or Dropbox? Storing files in such locations can sometimes lead to corruption issues. To prevent this from happening in the future, we recommend that you first save your work locally and then manually copy it to the desired backup location.”
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Hello @KÜN Kurumsal İletişim,
Although Illustrator supports working across networks, removable media, and cloud-synced folders (Google Drive / Dropbox / OneDrive, etc.), and is vigorously tested across multiple configurations, not all configurations, including different software, hardware, settings, and access rights, have been tested. Therefore, your configuration can cause errors, crashes, or unexpected behavior. You may learn more about this here: (https://adobe.ly/4hHL2dN).
I understand this is not ideal, and I apologize for the inconvenience. Additionally, for help with crashes, kindly try the suggestions shared in this help article (https://adobe.ly/432a1nE) and check if they help.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Anubhav
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I have just experince loosing my files and with no data recovery files in sight. Adobe should relook at the 29.3.1 version.
I can only see the .aishm. Does anyone know if these files would hold any of the recovery data?
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