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Kym5E5E
Known Participant
June 24, 2021
Question

Smart object missing

  • June 24, 2021
  • 3 replies
  • 5459 views

I can't seem to find a similar problem or a solution online. I have a photoshop file with a few linked smart objects. I was working on the file yesterday saved everything when I opened it today one of my smart ojects is now missing. I click on the link to reconnect it, it takes me to my appdata temp files and I can see all the other smart objects but not the missing one. I definetly didn't delete it so what has happened to it and how do I get it back? 

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    3 replies

    Mike_Gondek10189183
    Mike_Gondek10189183
    Community Expert
    June 25, 2021

    Please tell us about these smart objects did you copy from Illustrator and paste into photoshop? Might you have added this to a library when pasting? 

     

    This option is on by default, but annoying to many people and turned off. So you may want to check your library items and log in under same account, to see if the item still exists there.

     

     

    K
    Kym5E5EAuthor
    Known Participant
    June 28, 2021

    Oh yes I have that turned off. I only use my library for colours

    K
    Kym5E5EAuthor
    Known Participant
    June 24, 2021

    No unfortunatly I do not backup my application data. I don't know what has happend to the linked file because I never deleted it and it was working fine yesterday. I find it really odd, I've never had this happen before. I even tried to recoved old versions of the psd however the smart object is missing from them as well. 

    JJMack
    JJMack
    Community Expert
    June 24, 2021

    If you linked the smarts object layer to a temp file you most likely will need to create a  replacement object file and link the layer the the new file you create.  Or delete the smarts object layer and create a new smart object layer  to replace the one you deleted.

    JJMack
    JJMack
    JJMack
    Community Expert
    June 24, 2021

    I didn't intentinally link it to a temp file its just what Photoshop does by default. I created the smart object and until today I didn't really consider where photoshop saved it. I assumed it was embedded. I went through my recycling bin to see if it ended up there but no luck. The problem with creating a replacment is I have artwork I would have to recreate in the smart object. In the main PSD its still shows up as a highres image, I just can no longer edit it. 


    What you wrote does not make sense to me its not correct.

     

    " I created the smart object and until today I didn't really consider where photoshop saved it."

     

    You create a Smart object layer by either converting a  layer(s) to a smart object layer or place in an image files as an embedded smart object layer or as linked smart object layer.  There is not considering where photoshop saved some file.  Photoshop does not even have to have save the image file.  You specify which image file to link.   You would have to go far out of your way to specify a temp Photoshop file.  You would need to un hide your temp folder and then select some temp  file that Photoshop was using at the time you were creating the Smart Object Layer with a linked image file.    You would not have places a temp file without considering temp space.  You most likely linke to a file that was not in temp space  and at some later point in time that file was deleted. The only reason Temp space is in this thread is you also wrote

     

    " it takes me to my appdata temp files and I can see all the other smart objects but not the missing one"  That to is wrong to me.  Linked smart object  image files should not be in temp space.  You should not see your other linked smart objects image files in you user id temp space. You would have to have a strang work flow for them to be in temp space

     

     

     

    JJMack
    JJMack
    JJMack
    Community Expert
    June 24, 2021

    Do you  backup your application user data.  If your linked  smart object layers linked object files has been deleted you need to recover the deleted file.  If your linked smart object layer was link to  a files in a Temp folder it is very likely that the file would be deleted when the application that was using the temp file  terminated or the drive was cleaned up.   Temp files will be deleted. Currently there are 592 temp files in my user Id Application Local Temp folder.  The largest  7GB files is Photoshop's scratch disk space it will grow and it  will be deleted when I close Photoshop.

    I Closed PS and tries deleting all files in my temp folder.  31 were not deleted for they are is use by Chrome, Adobe Creative Cloud,  Node.js and other services that are running

    That freed around 15GB on my C:

    JJMack
    K
    Kym5E5EAuthor
    Known Participant
    June 28, 2021

    No I don't backup my user data unfortunatly. I think it was probably cleaned up by Windows. I did check my recycling bin but nothing useful 

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