Help please! Files lost after InDesign update...

[janej41321764]

Hi - I had 3 large files that I have been working on for the last few weeks. The last edits I made were this morning (16th March). InDesign updated after I finished working on them. I have just tried to open the files - they are showing in "Open Recent" but the files are no longer there. I have searched my PC & external drives but cannot find them. I have versions of the files from 14th March. The only .indd files I have dated 16th March are "Adobe Experimentation" files which I guess were placed on my PC during the update. The update seems to have removed today's version of the three files. Can anyone help me recover them?

[Willi Adelberger]

Adobe updates do never remove files automatically. Where did you save those files? If you have saved them on DropBox or similiar services you have a good chance to recover accidently deleted files.

[janej41321764]

Hi Willi - I am running a scan now to see if they have been accidentally moved or deleted but an initial search of .indd files on my entire PC could not find anything other than files that were saved before the update. There is nothing in the recycle bin either. So I have older versions of those files but have lost all the edits I made last night and this morning. I'm completely baffled. The only files I have dated today are a bunch of Adobe Indesign files that are not mine, is that normal during an update?

[BobLevine · Accepted solution]

It sounds like you didn't save them but if you did, whatever happened didn't happen because of the update. As already pointed out, if you saved them in a Dropbox, OneDrive or similar service, you can easily recover them.

[Dilys_Faithful9552]

Now I have similar issues, I saved my documents on the cloud on the 14th of September and shut down my laptop. I turned on my laptop today and opened Adobe and everything is gone. Please what can I do?

[Abhishek Rao]

Hi @Dilys_Faithful9552,

I’m really sorry to hear about the trouble you’re facing- it’s frustrating to lose important work like that, and I’m here to help.

First, I want to confirm that your files were saved to the Adobe Creative Cloud. Could you please check your cloud documents by visiting https://adobe.ly/4gsJlAz to see if your files are stored there?

If they’re not appearing, there could be an issue with syncing. Make sure you’re logged in with the correct Adobe ID on both your desktop and the cloud. Also, check if the files were saved to another cloud service (like Dropbox or OneDrive) or locally on your device.

It would also help to know which version of InDesign you’re using and whether you’re on macOS or Windows. 

Looking forward to hearing from you, and we’ll do our best to recover those files!

Thank you,
Abhishek Rao

[Dilys_Faithful9552]

Thank you very much

I have done all of that but it's not working, it's not showing my recent
save from last week.

I use Windows

[Dilys_Faithful9552]

I also don't have it saved elsewhere 

[Abhishek Rao]

Hi @Dilys_Faithful9552,

I’m really sorry to hear that you’re still having trouble with your files. I understand how distressing this situation must be. Given that the files aren’t showing up in Adobe Creative Cloud or any other locations, here is an additional steps you can try:

Check the InDesign Auto-Save Location:

• • Open InDesign and go to Edit > Preferences > File Handling (Windows) or InDesign > Preferences > File Handling (macOS).
  • Check the location set for the Auto-Save files and navigate to that folder on your computer to see if there are any recent versions of your files.

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.

Additionally, were you experiencing crashes in InDesign when this issue occurred? If so, we suggest trying the troubleshooting steps outlined in this help article: Crash on Launch to see if it resolves the problem.

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.

Thank you for your patience, and I hope we can get this resolved for you soon.

Thank you, 
Abhishek Rao

[Abhishek Rao]

Hi @Dilys_Faithful9552,

Additonally, since the files have been missing after the update, it's possible that resetting preferences during the update might have affected the file locations or paths.

Could you try to remember the location where you were saving your files before the InDesign update? It’s worth checking those locations as your files might still be there.

Thank you for your patience, and I hope you’re able to locate your work soon.

Best,
Abhishek Rao