I updated Storyline due to the latest release. I then attempted to open a file I had been working on just previous to this release and now I receive the error message - "This project is invalid or corrupt and cannot be opened. It may have been created in an earlier version of Storyline."
Please let me know if there is a fix here, I'm under a time constraint and don't need this headache with this course.
I'm sorry to hear about the difficulty you're having with your file. First you'll want to check the following which could have caused file corruption:
Work on your local drive (your C: drive).Working on a network drive or a USB drive can cause erratic behavior, includingfile corruption, loss of audio, and other unexpected behavior.
You should also make sure the directory pathto your project files and your published output is less than 260 characters(for example C:\Articulate).
Avoid using special characters, accents orsymbols in your file names.
I'm sorry to hear about the difficulty you're having with your file. First you'll want to check the following which could have caused file corruption:
Work on your local drive (your C: drive).Working on a network drive or a USB drive can cause erratic behavior, includingfile corruption, loss of audio, and other unexpected behavior.
You should also make sure the directory pathto your project files and your published output is less than 260 characters(for example C:\Articulate).
Avoid using special characters, accents orsymbols in your file names.
Hello, I'm having the same problem. I tried importing the old one into a blank project as you suggested, and I got the following message (please note, I chose to import Storyline, and browsed to the location of the corrupt Storyline project):
Normally when we we see the "powerpoint exception" error, I would ask you to follow the troubleshooting steps here, but these are specific to Powerpoint files. Since you're getting this message when working on importing a Storyline file into a Storyline file, can you share the problematic Storyline file with us? If you'd prefer not to share in the forums, I can send directions on how to send to me privately.
I produced a large eLearning piece about a year ago using the previous version of Storyline. I updated to the latest version about a month ago I have just had a client request to republish one of the original courses into a stand alone version. Whenever I publish any projects written using the previous version of Storyline all my text formatting appears corrupted - different sizes, text not fitting on the screen. I don't get any error messages but the content is unusable.
I need to get this file off to the client ASAP - any suggestions? Should I try and re-install the previous version of Storyline and, if so, where do I find it?
If that doesn't make a difference, I recommend creating a new project file with the new version. Import the slides from your previous project(s) into the new file. Publish and test the content on a web server or LMS. Does the same thing happen?
Did you try the solution that Ashley shared above?
Work on your local drive (your C: drive).Working on a network drive or a USB drive can cause erratic behavior, including file corruption, loss of audio, and other unexpected behavior.
You should also make sure the directory path to your project files and your published output is less than 260 characters(for example C:\Articulate).
Avoid using special characters, accents or symbols in your file names.
2> My file is saved in the default C:\Users\apalekar\Documents\My Articulate Projects
3> My file name is navigation.story
I had started creating this file in the trial version of Storyline 2, then I purchased Storyline 2- I upgraded the file and it worked well until today!
Can I share this file with you to see if you can resolve this? Please let me know your email address as I have tried every other option and I am terrified at the thought of having to recreate because of software issues.
Thank you for sharing your file with me. Unfortunately, I am unable to open as well and it will not even allow me to use the slides in another project. Looks like this file is corrupt.
Unfortunately, once a *.story file becomes unusable, it's no longer recoverable.
Hi Everyone, I had the same issue this morning and after reading the posts here, I was very disappointed as I lost almost 2 days of work.
However, the good news is that I have found a way to recover some of the work if you still have the original files. I am using Windows 7 and there is a recovery mode of windows 7 itself.
Right click the file and check properties -> from the top tabs, select "Previous versions" and if you were lucky enough then the windows may have saved the last saved version of your file. All you need to do is to select the most latest one and click "Restore". Beware, the file will be replaced and you will no longer have the original file so make sure you create a backup before making any changes.
Has anyone figured out a solution for this. I have had a help ticket open for a month, all kinds of advice and none of it works. I have tried everything here and still can't open the files. I have shared the files, nobody at articulate has been able to figure it out either. We are down to reloading windows is the new suggestion. Huge risk and work--has anyone else tried that and did it work?
Does this seem to be a widespread problem? If/when our organization does the upgrade to Storyline 2, what precautions should we take to avoid this type of issue. While I want to recommend the upgrade to SL2 with our Organization, it is becoming increasingly hard to do so with reports from users like these, and there seem to be a lot of them.
We will not risk losing money and time by having our courses created in SL1 get corrupted once we upgrade to SL2. I guess what I am asking is, when is the update fix coming that will assure us all that these types of things will no longer happen?
Muhammad you have saved me the night before Thanksgiving on a project that is due December 1st. Utilizing your solution after trying everything under the sun for an entire day has saved me.
I had the invalid/ corrupt message come through when I tried to open a project I have been working on. Thanks for the post Muhammed, the restore trick worked perfectly.
I am glad the community is here otherwise I would have had to start again. I hope that this will not be an ongoing problem.
I have been consistently getting the error with story files that have videos embedded. The restore has been working but I fear that there may be a bug. Any ideas.
Thanks for sharing the additional information here on how you've been able to restore your file. As a reminder, you'll want to ensure you're following along with the guidelines here for working on project files.
Importing into a new file is also a good way to resolve some odd behavior and you'll want to follow the steps outlined here.
137 Replies
Hi Chris and welcome to Heroes!
I'm sorry to hear about the difficulty you're having with your file. First you'll want to check the following which could have caused file corruption:
I'd also try opening a new Storyline project and import this older one into the blank project.
Hello, I'm having the same problem. I tried importing the old one into a blank project as you suggested, and I got the following message (please note, I chose to import Storyline, and browsed to the location of the corrupt Storyline project):
Any help is appreciated!!
Hi David,
Normally when we we see the "powerpoint exception" error, I would ask you to follow the troubleshooting steps here, but these are specific to Powerpoint files. Since you're getting this message when working on importing a Storyline file into a Storyline file, can you share the problematic Storyline file with us? If you'd prefer not to share in the forums, I can send directions on how to send to me privately.
I produced a large eLearning piece about a year ago using the previous version of Storyline. I updated to the latest version about a month ago I have just had a client request to republish one of the original courses into a stand alone version. Whenever I publish any projects written using the previous version of Storyline all my text formatting appears corrupted - different sizes, text not fitting on the screen. I don't get any error messages but the content is unusable.
I need to get this file off to the client ASAP - any suggestions? Should I try and re-install the previous version of Storyline and, if so, where do I find it?
Thanks
Hi there Jeremy,
First, I would double check your DPI, just to be safe.
If that doesn't make a difference, I recommend creating a new project file with the new version. Import the slides from your previous project(s) into the new file. Publish and test the content on a web server or LMS. Does the same thing happen?
If you still have trouble with this, you're welcome to share one of your .STORY files here. We'd be happy to take a look and see what's happening.
Thanks!
Hello,
Can someone please help? I created a project which now doesnt open giving me the following error message: "
This project is invalid or corrupt and cannot be opened. It may have been created in an earlier version of Storyline"
Can someone please help ASAP - I have a deadline and I hope someone can provide a solution.
Hi Ashwini and welcome to E-Learning Heroes!
Did you try the solution that Ashley shared above?
I'd also try opening a new Storyline project and import this older one into the blank project.
Hello, Yes!
1> Yes, I am working on my local drive
2> My file is saved in the default C:\Users\apalekar\Documents\My Articulate Projects
3> My file name is navigation.story
I had started creating this file in the trial version of Storyline 2, then I purchased Storyline 2- I upgraded the file and it worked well until today!
Can I share this file with you to see if you can resolve this? Please let me know your email address as I have tried every other option and I am terrified at the thought of having to recreate because of software issues.
You are welcome to share the .story file here in the forums via the paperclip icon. If you cannot share here, please submit your file here.
Here you go Leslie!
Hi Ashwini!
Thank you for sharing your file with me. Unfortunately, I am unable to open as well and it will not even allow me to use the slides in another project. Looks like this file is corrupt.
Unfortunately, once a *.story file becomes unusable, it's no longer recoverable.
Hi Everyone, I had the same issue this morning and after reading the posts here, I was very disappointed as I lost almost 2 days of work.
However, the good news is that I have found a way to recover some of the work if you still have the original files. I am using Windows 7 and there is a recovery mode of windows 7 itself.
Right click the file and check properties -> from the top tabs, select "Previous versions" and if you were lucky enough then the windows may have saved the last saved version of your file. All you need to do is to select the most latest one and click "Restore". Beware, the file will be replaced and you will no longer have the original file so make sure you create a backup before making any changes.
Good luck and Hope it will be helpful :)
Cheers,
Muhammad
Thanks for sharing Muhammad :)
Has anyone figured out a solution for this. I have had a help ticket open for a month, all kinds of advice and none of it works. I have tried everything here and still can't open the files. I have shared the files, nobody at articulate has been able to figure it out either. We are down to reloading windows is the new suggestion. Huge risk and work--has anyone else tried that and did it work?
Does this seem to be a widespread problem? If/when our organization does the upgrade to Storyline 2, what precautions should we take to avoid this type of issue. While I want to recommend the upgrade to SL2 with our Organization, it is becoming increasingly hard to do so with reports from users like these, and there seem to be a lot of them.
We will not risk losing money and time by having our courses created in SL1 get corrupted once we upgrade to SL2. I guess what I am asking is, when is the update fix coming that will assure us all that these types of things will no longer happen?
Hi David!
We have a handful of users that have been affected and our Engineers and QA Teams are working to try to understand the root cause.
I would not call it widespread, but we have not solved this yet.
Muhammad you have saved me the night before Thanksgiving on a project that is due December 1st. Utilizing your solution after trying everything under the sun for an entire day has saved me.
Thank you!
Dear Zakia, I am glad that it worked for you :)
Cheers,
Muhammad
Awesome, thanks for assisting here Muhammad and thanks for the update Zakia!
Hi,
i had the same issue, with some hard moment.
Then I solved by:
Hope this will help someone of you also..
Cheers,
Gabriele
Hi there
I had the invalid/ corrupt message come through when I tried to open a project I have been working on. Thanks for the post Muhammed, the restore trick worked perfectly.
I am glad the community is here otherwise I would have had to start again. I hope that this will not be an ongoing problem.
Ren
I have been consistently getting the error with story files that have videos embedded. The restore has been working but I fear that there may be a bug. Any ideas.
Hi all,
Thanks for sharing the additional information here on how you've been able to restore your file. As a reminder, you'll want to ensure you're following along with the guidelines here for working on project files.
Importing into a new file is also a good way to resolve some odd behavior and you'll want to follow the steps outlined here.
Hi,
I also just got the same error 'This project is invalid or currupt and cannot be opened. It may have been created in earlier version of Storyline.'
Tried all the above options: import, directory path - Nothing is helping me.
Can somebody suggest how can I get my course scenes back, have a deadline and don't want to re-do it all over again. Please help...