Photoshop CS4 - Not enough RAM to open a file???

[soom1976]

I get this wonderful "Not Enough RAM" message, while trying to open a big TIF file (over 100 Mb). Till now it happened with big files that were saved in Windows. All other programs, including Photoshop CS3 opens the files just great. Resaving files in any other app helps, but this thing is a joke - I'm thinking going back to CS3... : (

Thanks.

[c.pfaffenbichler]

What are Your Photoshop – Preferences – Performance-settings?

Are other files open which (with their History) could be a drag on Your RAM?

[soom1976]

My memory prefs are default (60% RAM, 4 cache levels)

History states 60

I have NO open documents whatsoever. My MACs RAM is 4GB. Every other program, even Photoshop CS3 opens those files even with many files open and many apps running, including Photoshop CS4! Yet, the same file is opened by CS3, but not by CS4.

This looks like a bug to me.

[c.pfaffenbichler]

What about Scratch Discs?

You might try raising the Memory Usage to 95%.

Is OpenGL enabled?

What are the settings in CS3?

And as a side-note: 60 History Steps seems a bit wasteful to me.

[soom1976]

1. My scratch disk has 160 GB free memory.

2. My CS3 Settings are exactly the same.

3. I am working with 60 steps history for about 7 years already with all the old versions of Photoshop on old computers. The History ONLY affects temp file sizes on the disk, not the RAM.

4. Open GL enabled. I tried to disable it, no result.

5. I have installed the latest Photoshop update - NADA

: (

[c.pfaffenbichler]

Ad 1) Is it a dedicated, internal Scratch Disk or does it have any other traffic?

Ad 3) That History can not be kept in the RAM would be news to me, where have You read that?

Anyway I’m baffled, maybe You could also try reducing Memory Usage, if increasing hasn’t helped.

Perhaps one of the Adobe-employees who drop by here occasionally has insights regarding the matter; but I can’t remember having come across complaints about CS4-specific performance-drops as compared to CS3 here (with the exception of Snow Leopard-specific troubles possibly).

[soom1976]

1. No, currently I don't have a dedicated scratch disk, but I don't have one for couple of years now, and it never bothered me yet...

3. As far as I know history is kept in temp files. They are too big to be kept in RAM - ram is kept for operation, not for remembering history states. I was personaly deleting them manually in older versions of Photoshop - (they were staying on a disk after a crash). I don't know, maybe technology has changed recently, but anyway - it's not about that - again - every other program can open those files even with less ram availible.

I tried to reduce Memory usage, didn't help.

I am opening tens of those files at a time in Photoshop CS3, and it works. I just switched recently to CS4, and it's performance is worse so far...

I found tens of forum threads about RAM issues...

I even found this issue in "Known Issues" posted by adobe support, but all they advise is disable or enable Open GL and alter the memory setting, and few more little settings, but they don't help...

Thanks for answering anyway.

[c.pfaffenbichler]

Maybe You might consider investing into more RAM and a dedicated Scratch Disk. (Easy said when one works on a company-Mac and doesn’t have to pay for that kind of stuff oneself …)

http://kb2.adobe.com/cps/404/kb404440.html

I understand that every operation, when RAM is exceeded, can flow into the Scratch, History included. 

»Purging Histories can release RAM or scratch disk depending on how recent your history data is.«

Sorry that I could not provide any help.

And my last post should not indicate that only Adobe-employees could be able to help; hopefully someone more knowledgeable on the matter will chime in.

[soom1976]

Well, my MacBook Pro doesn't allow more RAM than 4 Gb, but this is enough to run InDesign, Bridge, Mozilla, Photoshop, Skype, and some other small apps, all dealing with big projects and files at the same time, and it works perfect!!! It's only this Potoshop CS4, with this kind of files (saved immediately in Windows and bigger than ~100 Mb).

Even when I close everything else, it still can't open them...

[Zytryx]

I'm right here with you.  I have 5GB, and can open the exact same file and even larger in CS3, but in CS4 I also get this error, there is a definite problem here.

[Lundberg02]

Get iFreeMem and use it with Activity Monitor to find what is going on.

[soom1976]

Sorry for the late reply

I've tried this app iFreeMem - it doesn't help anyhow, it clears the unused memory, but Photoshop CS4 still cannot open those big files. It just wouldn't, no matter how big is my memory.

Again I repeat – Photoshop CS3 opens them just fine, even when many other apps are running at the same time.

So I suppose It's just a stupid bug in CS4...

[Tai_Lao]

You may not have have enough contiguous, unfragmented available disk space for the scratch file in your one-drive laptop machine.  Think 35 to 50 times the size of your largest file ever, perhaps more.

Or are you saying that CS3 opens the same file on the very same machine?  

Wo Tai Lao Le

我太老了

[soom1976]

thanks for the concern, but please read the answers in this thread carefully – I have already answered about Scratch disks - I have 160Gb of free disk memory, and yes - My CS3 Photoshop opens exactly the same files with no problems. The bug only concerns files bigger than 100 Mb, and saved in Windows. Same size files saved on MAC open just fine...

[Wade_Zimmerman1]

60 history states? Good luck on a MacBook.

If you are more realistic about your resources you will find your files will probably open but I would connect tis mac Book up to a fast eternal drive and use that as a scratch disk by partitioning it and using one of the partitions as the scratch.

[soom1976]

I have already answered this...

I work with 60 history states for about 7 years with much more crappy computers, and everything works fine.

I have exactly the same history and memory settings in CS3 and it WORKS FINE!

The problem is ONLY with Photoshop CS4, and ONLY with files saved in Windows. Even if I change ALL the memory settings in Photoshop CS4 to minimum, it still doesn't open. Even if I change the Scratch disks to another drive - it's still the same problem.

Only if I resave the same file in MAC with another application, then it opens just fine in Photoshop CS4!

Besides - there are people with exactly the same problem...

[Tai_Lao]

soom1976 wrote:

… read the answers in this thread carefully…

With all due respect, it is you who could craft your posts more carefully.

soom1976 wrote:

…I have already answered about Scratch disks - I have 160Gb of free disk memory…

You have stated you are on a one-drive laptop machine.  Therefore, you have no clue as to how much unfragmented available space you actually have for the Photoshop scratch disk.  Your drive unavoidably has fragmentation from prior use.  Also remember that, on a one-drive machine, Photoshop has to share the available drive space with the invisible, uncounted swap files of the OS.

soom1976 wrote:

…My CS3 Photoshop opens exactly the same files with no problems.

You still neglect to specify if this happens in CS3 on the very same drive, in the very same machine, today.

You could consider using the free http://s5.yousendit.com/ service to post a sample file that will not open in CS4.

All of this is predicated on your genuinely wanting help, of course.

Wo Tai Lao Le

我太老了

[pabloinla]

I have Photoshop CS4 which will not open a scanned file saved as .tif format, 135 Kb file.. This is a new problem; I get the Not Enough Ram message. However after reading your post, I opened a 42 Mb file from Raw image, no problem! So the problem seems to be the saved .tif file. The RAM message seems to be inaccurate. I just saved three scanned files and now try to open in PS CS4. First one I get the RAM message. Second one I get "not right kind of document" message. The third one opens. My conclusion is the the Out of RAM message is not accurate. Any comments?

[Guest]

Sometimes an error message of not enough RAM will appear if the file parser has issues with the type of TIF being opened. There are many flavors of TIFF.

Do you have any way of converting that TIF to another type prior to opening in Photoshop?

EDIT: Pabloinla, thanks for posting your sample file. It is definitely a non-standard TIFF file. Perhaps if the OP did the same, we could have recognized that this was a non-standard TIFF issue and not really a RAM issue.

[soom1976]

Marian Driscoll wrote:

Sometimes an error message of not enough RAM will appear if the file parser has issues with the type of TIF being opened. There are many flavors of TIFF.

Do you have any way of converting that TIF to another type prior to opening in Photoshop?

EDIT: Pabloinla, thanks for posting your sample file. It is definitely a non-standard TIFF file. Perhaps if the OP did the same, we could have recognized that this was a non-standard TIFF issue and not really a RAM issue.

I also think it has something to do with specific TIFs, saved in Windows, and not with RAM.

But - all other apps on my Mac can open those TIF files just fine.

This file that was posted here by pabloinla in the post before, is not my issue, because this one is really corrupt or something - I also cannot open it. My TIFFs are FINE, except that PS CS4 does not open them if they are bigger than ~100 Mb.

Sorry I didn't post the files here, but by the time I started this thread, I have already resaved all the problematic files into smaller ones. I will post a file as soon as I deal with them again.

[Tai_Lao]

soom1976,

Do you know if your problem TIFF file was also saved by HP hardware and MS software, like Pabloinla's?

Wo Tai Lao Le

我太老了

[soom1976]

Tai Lao:

I fully understand the need for a separate scratch disks, I just don't have one right now. But the most important argument is this: how do you explain Photoshop CS3 doing the same job and CS4 - not? Even if I work on a one piece disk, opening a 100 Mb TIF file should not be a problem. I open tens of hem at the same time in PS CS3 and they fly!

The TIF files were saved with 2 different programs: ACDSee 7 and XnView. They were scanned with Plustec OpticPro 320 scanner. both produced TIFs that don't open in CS4. I'll repeat again – every single application on my Mac can open and save them, except Photoshop CS4.

[Tai_Lao]

soom1976 wrote:

But the most important argument is this: how do you explain Photoshop CS3 doing the same job and CS4 - not?

Not an "argument" at all except in the sense you seem to love to argue.     I had already provided you with the answer to that in one of my posts above.  Here we go again:

Photoshop creates the scratch drive the instant you go to open an existing file or create a new one, setting its size on assumptions it makes based on your workflow history, not just the size of the file you're opening.  Thus, it is possible that the scratch disk sizes for CS3 and for CS4 will be different on your machine.  This will be the case if you have worked on bigger files or with more layers. etc, on one version than on the other one, even for the very same file.  The difference could be dramatic.

Wo Tai Lao Le

我太老了

[soom1976]

Oh, didn't get it first

When I get to it, I will try again with an empty external HDD and let you know... Hope external firewire HDD will do for a scratch disk?

I can't go and partition my disk now in the middle of the ongoing project.

[Wade_Zimmerman1]

I think I firewire drive should be more than adequate and if you get the same then it might be another problem, but I think this will work.