Unable to open psd file

Hi,

This is my first post. I'll explain the problem and give system data at the end. Hope you can help as I'm worried that I could lose more work and I use this program to make my living...

Problem
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PS CS displays alert "There was a problem reading the layer data. Read the composite data instead?" when opening a file I created yesterday. Choosing to read composite data prompts another alert "Could not complete your request because a color was specified using an unsupported color space."

Nothing I've tried seems to allow me to access the file.

The file was created from new using PS CS. It's a smallish file of 3.5Mb containing a website template I designed. I sliced it up in Image Ready, saved optimised images and saved the file in Image Ready before closing it down. I also did some editing in IR although I can't remember exactly what - various edits of type and shape layers, and slice sizes and names.

System data
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Adobe Photoshop Version: 8.0 (8.0x118)
Operating System: Windows XP
Version: 5.1 Service Pack 1
System architecture: AMD CPU Family:6, Model:6, Stepping:2 with MMX, SSE Integer Processor speed: 1343 MHz
Built-in memory: 1023 MB
Free memory: 597 MB
Memory available to Photoshop: 933 MB
Memory used by Photoshop: 80 %
Image cache levels: 4
Use image cache for histograms: No
Serial number: You wish :)
Application folder: C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop CS\ Temporary file path: C:\DOCUME~1\ROBERT~1\LOCALS~1\Temp\ Photoshop scratch has async I/O enabled
Scratch volume(s):
F:\, 76.3G, 48.6G free
Primary Plug-ins folder: C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop CS\Plug-Ins\ Additional Plug-ins folder: not set
Installed plug-ins:
ADM 2.84pe69a 02.06.17-00:03:36h
ASDStrm 1.02x7 02.02.15-01:45:06h
Accented Edges 8.0
Acrobat TouchUp Image 8.0 (8.0x115)
Angled Strokes 8.0
Average 8.0 (8.0x115)
BMP 8.0 (8.0x115)
Bas Relief 8.0
Camera Raw 2.0
Chalk & Charcoal 8.0
Charcoal 8.0
Chrome 8.0
Cineon 8.0 (8.0x115)
Clouds 8.0 (8.0x115)
Color Halftone 8.0 (8.0x115)
Colored Pencil 8.0
CompuServe GIF 8.0 (8.0x115)
Conditional Mode Change 8.0 (8.0x115)
Contact Sheet II 8.0 (8.0x115)
Conté Crayon 8.0
Craquelure 8.0
Crop and Straighten Photos 8.0 (8.0x115)
Crop and Straighten Photos Filter 8.0 (8.0x115)
Crosshatch 8.0
Crystallize 8.0 (8.0x115)
Cutout 8.0
Dark Strokes 8.0
De-Interlace 8.0 (8.0x115)
Difference Clouds 8.0 (8.0x115)
Diffuse Glow 8.0
Displace 8.0 (8.0x115)
Dry Brush 8.0
Embed Watermark 1.70.19
Export Transparent Image 8.0 (8.0x115)
Extract 8.0 (8.0x115)
Extrude 8.0 (8.0x115)
FastCore Routines 8.0 (8.0x115)
Fibers 8.0 (8.0x115)
Film Grain 8.0
Filmstrip 8.0 (8.0x115)
Filter Gallery 8.0
Fit Image 8.0 (8.0x115)
Fresco 8.0
Generic EPS 8.0
Generic PDF 8.0 (8.0x115)
Glass 8.0
Glowing Edges 8.0
Grain 8.0
Graphic Pen 8.0
Halftone Pattern 8.0
Ink Outlines 8.0
Lens Blur 8.0
Lens Flare 8.0 (8.0x115)
Lighting Effects 8.0 (8.0x115)
Liquify 8.0
MMXCore Routines 8.0 (8.0x115)
Mezzotint 8.0 (8.0x115)
Mosaic Tiles 8.0
Multi-Page PDF to PSD 8.0 (8.0x115)
Multiprocessor Support 8.0 (8.0x115)
NTSC Colors 8.0 (8.0x115)
Neon Glow 8.0
Note Paper 8.0
Ocean Ripple 8.0
Online Services 8.0x100
PCX 8.0 (8.0x115)
PDF Image 8.0 (8.0x115)
PNG 8.0 (8.0x115)
PNG Icons 1.21x7 2001.12.14-1602h.21s
Paint Daubs 8.0
Palette Knife 8.0
Patchwork 8.0
Paths to Illustrator 8.0 (8.0x115)
Pattern Maker 8.0 (8.0x115)
Photo CD 8.0 (8.0x115)
Photocopy 8.0
Photomerge 8.0 (8.0x115)
PhotomergeCylmap 8.0 (8.0x115)
PhotomergeRender 8.0 (8.0x115)
PhotomergeUI 8.0 (8.0x115)
Picture Package 8.0 (8.0x115)
Picture Package Filter 8.0 (8.0x115)
Pinc

Did you try opening the image in Photoshop and ImageReady?

From the error, it sounds like the file was damaged by some disk or memory corruption.

Could you get that error by saving over a network?

Yes, saving over a network is a quick route to corruption.

saving over a network is a quick route to corruption.

Money too... from what I hear... wouldn't know. :(

Hi guys, thanks for the replies.

I've tried opening the file in IR too. The program opens normally, but part way through the "Reading document" progress dialogue, an alert says "Could not complete the operation. an assertion has failed." On clicking OK the file opens. However, whilst the layers all seem to be intact in the layers palette, they are all empty.

I spent a long time searching through the forum postings trying to find any similar problems and the only thing I found that seems related was when a guy changed the colour of a type layer in IR using a swatch colour with the type palette open, and then saving the file from within IR. This apparently caused him to lose his file.

Could my problem be related? I could have done exactly the same thing - the problem is that since I didn't know at the time that this would happen I wasn't really remembering what operations I did. I only noticed the problem next time I tried to open the file a day later.

By the way, I'm not working on a network, so we can rule that out. I'd be surprised if it was a memory or disk corruption issue because I've only just changed to PS CS and this never happened before with PS6. It was the kind of operation I do regularly - nothing new or unusual. Could it be that PS6 had some immunity to a condition on my PC that CS is now affected by? Or, dare I say it, could it be a CS bug :) Sorry! Well actually I hope it is because at least there's a chance of a patch to fix it!

Is there anything else worth trying to salvage the file, and also, are there any other known issues when using IR that might cause similar problems?

Any help is really appreciated!

Cheers,

Rob

try opening the file on another machine if possible. if it doesn't open there the file is likely toast.

Thanks Dave - just tried it with PS6 on another machine. At first it said it had repaired some damaged layer sets, then it said the file was incompatible with this version of PS. I expected that though.

I don't have another machine available with PS CS I'm afraid so I can't try that. If anyone can accept a 3.5Mb file I'd be happy to email it to someone to try out - just let me have your email address.

To Chris Cox - have you heard of this type of problem before in PS CS? I'm guessing from your earlier post in this thread that it's not a known bug at the moment.

Rob

Not that it is actual solution, but try it in IrfanView. If it won't open it, don't know anything that will.
(it can't preserve layers, but might get you flattened version).

Mac

Robert - no, it is not a known problem. But it does sound exactly like what we see when the file gets corrupted by bad disks, network servers, etc.