Unable to open .aix file in Illustrator

[ClementNWRPC]

I am attempting to open an .aix (Adobe Illustrator Exchange) file exported from ArcGIS Pro into Illustrator CC (24.2.3) Illustrator is telling me that it is an aunknown format and cannot be opened. I don't even see .aix as an available file format in the "open" window. I have the ArcGIS MAps extension for creative cloud extension installed and am signed in to the ArcGIS Online acccount that I administer.

Can anyone help me figure out how to use this?

[Ashutosh_Mishra]

Hi there,

Sorry to hear about your experience. I'd request to follow suggestions given on Adobe community discussion and let us know if they help.

Regards,

Ashutosh

[ClementNWRPC]

Those steps in the link you gave are exactly what I did, Until I get to step 4 .aix doesn't show up as a valid file type, in the file > open window. 

[madisonh81101424]

Did you ever get an answer to this? I'm having the same problem.  I've downloaded the ArcGis to Adobe software, I updated both apps to 2020, I logged into ArcGis in illustrator, and yet it still says unknown and doesn't show .aix as a compatible file type.  Spent the last hour trying to make this work thinking it would save me time and now I feel like I've just wasted an hour and should've done old fashioned PDFs.

[Alex5FB1]

I am also having the exact same problem.  .AIX is not an option in the 'file type."  I had no issues at all until Creative Cloud auto-update to Illustrator 2021.  I have uninstalled Illustrator 2021, then reinstalled 2020, and I am still not able to use .aix files.  In 2020, I can at least pull up the ArcGIS plugin, whereas I could not in 2021, but I still cannot use .aix files. Very frustrating, especially since Adobe did an auto-update the day before I was supposed to give a presentation on the ArcGIS Plugin for Adobe.  I am not able to give the presentation now.  I have even tried uninstalling 2020 and reinstalling again with the same issue.  Thank for any advice you can give.

[karmadz]

Hi @Alex5FB1 

There was an issue with the plugin compatiabilitiy on macOS around the Oct 2020 timeframe. This has since been resolved and a new patch compatible with latest Illustrator updates is availble on our website. If you encountered this please feel free to try with the latest when you get a chance. Feel free to write to the ArcGIS Maps for Adobe community if you continue to see issues. 

[Kinjal Manish5CD0]

I had similar issues. This is what worked for me:

In Illustrator (whichever version you want to use), go to windows => Extensions and check if it has "ArcGIS maps for Adobe Creative Cloud" extension INSTALLED IN SOFTWARE. 

If it misses the extension, you have to probably download it again. (This is where I think the issue lies, when Illustrator updated, it failed to download the extension and hence we can't seem to open the AIX file)

Link to download: https://www.esri.com/en-us/arcgis/products/maps-for-adobecc/overview

Once you have downloaded it, sign in and you should be good to go. 

[aidanw415]

Are you required to have a special ArcGIS user type in order to use the .aix files in illustrator? I recently downloaded ArcGIS Pro and my main use of the software is to get layers for cartography to use in illustrator. I read on the ESRI website that they want you to have a Creator user type to use the adobe files but that costs $500/year. Can this be right? 

[gheorgheh39149782]

Hi. I do have the Creator user type, but the cost of this licence includes in fact 5 of them.

I don't know if this kind of licence has an impact on the ArcGIS Maps for Adobe Creative Cloud.

[ClementNWRPC]

My use of ArcGIS is paid for by my employer and we have an organizational account for ArcGIS online. The Creator accounts come with our annual maintenenace on the software. I also have a personal ArcGIS license (non-commercial) at home ($100 a year) That license comes with ArcGIS online with the Creator user type as well. If you are paying for the ArcGIS software you probably already have access to creator user type.

[karmadz]

Responding late to this thread, sorry about that. If you have a named user account for ArcGIS Pro - like a GIS Professional account, the same account can be used with ArcGIS Maps for Adobe. If you run into issues with this please feel free to write into the ArcGIS Maps for Adobe community. Hope this helps.

[gheorgheh39149782]

I was not able to see the format Adobe Illustrator 2019 and 2021.aix. I have reinstalled the version of this software for 2020 and now it works.

[gheorgheh39149782]

Hi. In my case, it was compulsory to uninstall all new versions and to install the 2019 version. Probably, now it works even with the new versions.

[AFreed]

Thanks to all who have offered up solutions! I followed the instructions to download the ArcGIS Maps extension, but when it started the install process, I got an error message that "ArcGIS Maps for Adobe Creative Cloud 3.0.0 requires Adobe Illustrator 2020 (v24.0) - 2021 (v25.2.3)...to be installed".

I currently have Adobe Illustrator 2021 (24.4.1) - does that means that my Adobe software is too current to be compatible with the ESRI extension?

[karmadz]

Hi @AFreed 

Yes the current version of the plugin supports upto Illustrator version 25.2.3. See this post in the plugins user community forum. Please follow this post for updates. The team is actively working on resolving this for newer Illustrator versions. 

Thanks 

Madhura

ArcGIS Maps for Adobe Creative Cloud.

[default37srm80sgxf2]

Hi,

I'm having the same issue with my Windows 10 laptop.  I updated Illustrator and lost the ability to open .aix files.  Now I can't seem to find the Illustrator 25.2.3 version mentioned above.  25.4.1 runs the extension but won't still won't open .aix files created in ArcGIS Pro.  The error message states it's an unknown format and cannot be opened.

If anyone has a solution to this, please let me know.

[karmadz]

Hello, 

ArcGIS Maps for Adobe extension was updated yesterday to support the latest Adobe version Illustrator v26 and Photoshop v23. I recommend that you try the latest. It works best when you install or update Adobe apps before installing the extension. If you continue to have issue please leave a note in the Maps for Adobe Esri community forum, this will be the quickest way to get a response from the extensions development team. Here are some links for your reference

Extension latest version download & related release announcement.

Esri's Maps for Adobe community for Questions and Ideas

Thanks
Madhura

[Rain_01 · Accepted solution]

I just had this issue happen to me today and switched from my desktop to my laptop with the same issue. After trying all of the above recommendations without success I decided to change the "Mapping Profile" settings under the "ArcGIS Maps: Compilation" mode from "Default Profile (Recommended)" to "Legacy profile" and it worked!

[Mark95geo]

In looking at the ESRI support pages for this (https://doc.arcgis.com/en/maps-for-adobecc/latest/install/settings-window.htm), it appears that only those with an Organizational or Plus account can access the legacy profile.  I have an Online account and when I go to the Mapping Profile in the Application Settings under ArcGIS Maps Compilation is grayed out and unselectable.  Anyone have any experience with solving the .aix file format problem from an Online account?

[Mallory32954458qg71]

Even after switching to legacy it still gives me an unknown format error code...

[Srishti Bali]

Hi @Mallory32954458qg71

Thanks for reaching out. Is the issue specific to a particular file? If so, please share the file with us. You can upload it to Creative Cloud or a similar service and provide us with a download link.

Additionally, we've recently released an update for Illustrator that includes multiple fixes. If you're not already on the latest version, we kindly request that you install it and share your observations with us. Details can be found here.

We appreciate your cooperation in resolving this issue.

Regards,

Srishti