Can't have both Menus and Workspace

You’re welcome, Jim, and thanks for reposting when your first post slipped through the cracks. I’m glad everything is working again!

Jane

I did the Reset Preferences on Quit.  It seems to have corrected the problem, and my Actions were there as usual when it started back up.

Thanks again.

Yes, I have the Save Action you show but it seems to be the same file in the same place as at the address I gave, so I guess that is the file I want to save.

Thanks much for your help.  I will be resetting Photoshop this afternoon

Folders and Sets are essentially the same thing. The official name is "Set" and the icon is a folder. Note the screen tip.

You need to select the Set (folder), then go to the panel menu and choose Save Actions. You need to do this every time you change and action in the Set.

Please show a screen shot of your Actions panel. Make it wide enough and tall enough that we can see what's in it.

~ Jane

I don't have any folders called "Sets".  The only Actions folder I have is at the address given in my previous post.

C:\Users\MyUserName\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop CC 2019\Presets\Actions

Hi Jim,

When you backup your actions, you select the Set (folder) and save that. It saves all of the actions in the set; you don’t have to save individual actions. You should be doing that everytime you update an action within the set or you risk losing it.

I am going to take a leap and guess that the file Actions.atn was created some time ago?

Are your actions in the Set (folder) called “actions” or do the set(s) have another name(s)? Those folders (Sets) are what you have to save so you can load them back in from the panel menu.

If you, for example, create a new set, then create three actions in it, then save the set, then add a fourth action or modify one of the three, that new activity can be lost if the set is not saved again with the same name. Saving the Set again means the changes are included. If you delete an action and don’t save the set, the action is still in the set as it was last saved.

Also, it’s best practice not to put your actions in one of Photoshop’s default sets. Fortunately, actions can be moved from one set to another with drag and drop. (Or copy with Option/Alt + drag.) Then save the set.

Scroll to Manage Action Set in this Help file to read about saving and loading action sets:

https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/using/playing-actions.html#playing_and_managing_actions

You could try resetting your workspace one more time — the panels should look like mine if it works. But backup your actions whether or not it works!

~ Jane

Okay, but I have a lot of custom Actions I've made.  When I read about backing up actions everything I've found on the web says you have to do them one at a time.  Surly not.  I have gone to the Actions folder (C:\Users\MyUserName\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop CC 2019\Presets\Actions) and made a copy of Actions.atn.  Does that save all Actions?

Hi Jim,

Your Essentials workspace does not look correct. It should look like this when it is reset.

First BACK-UP any assets you have created such as swatches, brushes, etc, then RESET Preferences from Preferences > General > Reset Preferences on Quit. Then Quit and Relaunch.

~ Jane

Done.

It was not giving this edit screen before.

Hi Jim,

Edit your reply and you should be able to post the screen shots — or use the big blue reply button. Select your image, then use the Heads Up Display to change the size.

"Essentials" is the name of the default workspace.

~ Jane