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MissSparkles75
Known Participant
November 22, 2016
Answered

Pasting into a unlocked layer won't work when another layer is locked (CS6)

  • November 22, 2016
  • 4 replies
  • 8192 views

I'm not completely sure if this has just started happening since my very recent upgrade to Mac OS Sierra Version 10.12.1 but I'm pretty sure it has.

So, I have a top layer with artwork on (spread over several sublayers), I want to copy elements of this artwork onto another top layer, I select the elements with the selection tool and hit 'Cmd+C', I then lock that top layer and in a new top layer I have created, I 'Cmd+V' or 'Shift+Cmd+V' the selected elements, but instead of pasting onto the only unlocked top layer, I keep getting the error message that says 'You are attempting to paste or drag into one or more layers that are locked or hidden. Do you want to unlock and show all appropriate layers?'

This is something that Illustrator has done for many years but only intermittently, and often when this has happened just creating a new top layer rectifies the problem but now it will just not paste into another top layer, it wants to paste back into the locked top layer that the artwork was copied from, EVERY time! If I unlock that top layer, sure enough it pastes right back into that top layer, so I'm having to laboriously select every sublayer I want to copy elements from and drag them all (whilst holding down alt) into another new top layer, this is driving me bananas!! Can anyone help please?

I am currently running Illustrator CS6 Version 16.0.5, is it that Adobe are losing interest in helping with bugs like this as they want to encourage people to sign up to Illustrator CC?

    This topic has been closed for replies.
    Correct answer Monika Gause

    THis is caused because you have the option "Paste remembers layers" turned on, but a layer is locked that is needed for pasting.

    You will need to either:

    - Switch this option off (in the layers panel menu)

    - unlock the layer

    - move objects from that layer to another one before copying

    4 replies

    J
    javiers99547757
    New Participant
    March 24, 2023

    oddly, and i have no idea why. "Paste Remembers Layers" did not work for me..

    what did work is under "options for Layer (...name)" (Layer menu).

     

    i clicked off "Print".. and the pasting into whatever layer worked fine. Trial and error. You can see thin blue outline of previosulty checked box. Hope helps someone. i was going crazy. missing deadline.

    V
    vxrworks
    New Participant
    December 12, 2022

    Thank you, Thank you, Thank you... I really appreciate the solution it was driving me crazy before I relented and did a google search

      simontokapk
      simontokapk
      New Participant
      August 1, 2019

      Usually I find "paste remembers layers" very useful, but then I also run in this locked layers issue from time to time May be this could be useful for anybody here MaxTube APK

      Monika Gause
      Monika GauseCorrect answer
      Adobe Expert
      November 22, 2016

      THis is caused because you have the option "Paste remembers layers" turned on, but a layer is locked that is needed for pasting.

      You will need to either:

      - Switch this option off (in the layers panel menu)

      - unlock the layer

      - move objects from that layer to another one before copying

        M
        MissSparkles75Author
        Known Participant
        November 22, 2016

        Monika, you are an absolute star, thank you SO much, I discovered 'Paste remembers layers' only very recently and switched it on, I didn't even think about it being that that was causing the problem, thank you, thank you, thank you!

        Monika Gause
        Monika Gause
        Adobe Expert
        November 22, 2016

        You're welcome.

        Usually I find "paste remembers layers" very useful, but then I also run in this locked layers issue from time to time :-)

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