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Question

When opening some EPS files: "The operation cannot complete because of an unknown error. [CANT]"

Forum|Forum|6 years ago
October 1, 2019
4 replies
8335 views

Hi!

The following error appeared for the first time today for me.

I was creating a barcode at https://www.free-barcode-generator.net/ean-13/ as usual. I downloaded the EPS version of the barcode. When opening the file in Illustrator, the Illustrator app froze for 15 seconds and then this error appeared: "The operation cannot complete because of an unknown error. [CANT]." When clicking "OK", the EPS file opens but the document is empty.

* As mentioned I could not open the EPS file itself, but I was in fact able to place the same EPS file inside other Illustrator documents (but then the barcode shows up as an embeded object that I can't edit).

* I was able to preview the same EPS file in other programs, such as Adobe Bridge and LibreOffice Draw.

* I got the same error when trying to open some SVG files and JPG files in Illustrator that I already had on my computer.
* The online barcode creator also created AI version of the barcode. The AI file could be opened in Illustrator with no problems.

* I was able to open some old EPS files I already had on my computer.

The same error message was mentioned in some other Adobe community threads, but those posts didn't help me, and the symptons were not exactly the same. I have tried to uninstall and delete the Illustrator preferences and then reinstall it, and also running Illustrator as admin. I still get the error.

I am using Adobe Illustrator version 23.1 (I think I got that update today or yesterday). But I also reverted to 23.0.5, but I got the same problem there.

I also got some Windows updates today: KB4517211 (Win10 update), KB4522738 (.Net Framework), KB2827228, KB2817316, KB2768005, KB2850064 (all 4 for MS Office 2013), KB2837652 (MS SkyDrive) and KB2760212 (MS SharePoint Designer 2013).

The problem is of course very annoying. I'm not sure yet how much it will affect my work.

Anyone having a clue?

[EDIT 1]

I don't think this has to do with the free online barcode service. I also have problem with some PDF files that I could open in Adobe Illustrator earlier, but today the PDF files will not open in Illustrator.
I also get the same error message when opening a SVG file. When I click OK, the SVG file opens anyway and I can see it's content. But when I edit the file I get a "low RAM" warning in Illustrator. My computer is just two months old and has 32 GB ram.

Bug

This topic has been closed for replies.

TL321Author

Participating Frequently

Just some extra info:

I have this problem with opening some EPS/SVG/PDF files in Illustrator 23.x (I tested 23.0.5, 23.1).

I just installed Illustrator 21.0 on the same computer, and there is no problem in this version when I open the same EPS/SVG/PDF files.

As mentioned before, I had not problems with version 23.x until 1 Oct 2019 when I got some Windows updates and maybe an Illustrator update to 23.1.

Monika Gause

Community Expert

There's no point in discussing this issue on the forum. Someone will need to have a look into your system and those files.

TL321Author

Participating Frequently

Here are three screenshots from my computer.

* Screenshot 1: This is the error I get when I try to open certain files. It first showed up yesterday. In this case I was opening an SVG file I found on my computer.

* Screenshot 2. The SVG file opens up. But when I try to move the object (the pointing finger) a bit, I get the error message in screenshot 2.
* Screenshot 3: When I click on the object (the pointing finger) with any tool I get this "low RAM" warning. When I try to save the SVG file as AI, I get the "low RAM" warning again. The file is saved as AI, but when I close and then reopen the AI file in Illustrator it appears to be empty. When I open the AI file in Photoshop, it shows up as a small transparent square.

Monika Gause

Community Expert

Which app generated that SVG? I can't decipher the screenshot, which zoom are you viewing it in? It might be really large. About the Photoshop issue: Photoshop opens the embedded PDF file. If there is none, then Photoshop can't open anything. https://youtu.be/IpDh8Y7q8yE

TL321Author

Participating Frequently

I probably downloaded that SVG file from the web somewhere several years ago. At that time there were no problems to open and edit the SVG file with the pointing finger in Illustrator. The zoom says "77%" when I open the SVG file. When I save it as AI and close and reopen the AI file, then the pointing hand is gone (the document is empty), and the zoom says about "3%" and the ~~artboard~~* hardly fits on the screen. The Artboard Options dialog says that both width and height are 0.35 mm and both X and Y are -2888.78 mm. I opened that AI in Photoshop, and Photoshop just showed a small transparent square. Thanks for the nice video.

*[CORRECTION]: I think it is the canvas that wont fit. The artboard is maybe just 1 square pixel, but I'm not sure.

Mike_Gondek10189183

Community Expert

Use that site to generate .ai or .pdf files. EPS has not been updated in a verty long time, avoid using EPS format whenever possible.

You already mentioned " The AI file could be opened in Illustrator with no problems." so not sure why you are not using that.

TL321Author

Participating Frequently

Thanks for replying. Yes, I could use the AI (and I will if necessary). I first noticed this EPS problem when using the barcode service earlier today, but later I noticed that I got even bigger problems. The barcode PDF file doesn't open either (I get the same error message). And I have the same or similar problems with some SVG files, JPG files, PDF files and EPS files that I had on my computer since before. Illustrator wont open them, or I will get a "low RAM" warning. I have been able to open all those files in Illustrator before.

Monika Gause

Community Expert

When placing the file, just embed it. But look carefully that embedding doesn't affect the stroke widths. Nobody can guarantee that this service generates good PostScript code.

TL321Author

Participating Frequently

Thanks for your reply. I just sent an email to the barcode service to check if they have made any changes to their PostScript code recently (I didn't think of that). The EPS files from that barcode service could be opened in Illustrator before, yesterday as latest.

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