Forum Discussion
ERROR: Being used by another process
My files every now and they pop up with the error:
"the file XXXX' is being used by another process or you do not have the proper security permissions to access this resource"
Our IT Dept spent and hour last time trying to figure out how to open it and still that wasnt an ideal solution. Anyone know how to hard reset Storyline?
- BarbOHearnCommunity Member
Hello. I am so glad to hear its not just me. It is very bothersome and I have copied the files over to a local drive and I am still getting the error message. I am not clear on the fix....???
Hi Barb!
If you're making copies of your project, then you'll want to make sure they have different names. One way that I avoid this error message is to add the date to the file name whenever I make a change to it. For instance, TestCourse 1.13.2020.
Do you have multiple versions of the same file on your computer, or are you backing up the courses to another disk? If so, you'll want to make sure you're making edits to the file on your local drive.
- JakeMunnCommunity Member
Lauren,
Is storyline's stance on this issue is to simply make a copy of a project each time we want to save it? That is complete absurdity. We are constranctly working on projects. This is a must have basic functionality of any program. To be able to save the file.
You need to fix this issue now. We have been dealing with this for over 8 months now.
Fix it. - HloseCLAIRCommunity Member
Hi,
I've also have the same issue each time I want to open a SL file ""the file XXXX' is being used by another process or you do not have the proper security permissions to access this resource"
I try again and again and around the sixth time it will open. My files are not stored on my C but on our network.
Could you help me please.
many thanks
Héloïse
Hello Héloïse!
I've seen this message appear when working from a network drive due to latency. Let's try Lauren's advice first: Move the file to a local drive and then try to open the Storyline file from there.
➥ Note: You can place a copy of the project on your network drive for backup purposes, but avoid reopening the file until you've moved it back to your local hard drive.
- AprilBoydCommunity Member
I still have the issue at times but have found that if I first launch the Storyline program and THEN open my file from within the program, I don't typically run into the issue. In fact, if I attempt to open the file directly from my desktop or the file folder and get the error, I can usually close the error and go about opening the file by launching Storyline first. Hope that helps.
Hi April!
Thanks for coming back with what works for you: Launch Storyline and then open the .story file from there.
I'm sorry this error is persistent, but we appreciate you sharing this tip with others!
- KaterinaKmetCommunity Member
Thank you for this way around it. It has been frustrating have copy and rename the file every time I close and re-open it.
- mkudrnaCommunity Member
When I copy and rename the file it says "The project is invalid or corrupt and cannot be opened. It may have been created in an earlier version of Storyline."
- mkudrnaCommunity Member
I decided to revert to an earlier version on the course and that seems to do the trick.
- SaraCardielCommunity Member
I see that this thread goes a couple of years back, and unfortunately I am finding it because I am having this issue- constantly! Has there been a fix for this? I never had this issue in Storyline 2, but with Storyline 3 it is constant. Yes, I just copy over the file and rename it but when it happens constantly it becomes an obstacle for efficiency.
Hello Sara!
I've seen this error frequently appear when backing up projects to a shared drive like OneDrive or Dropbox. You should be able to stop the sync when saving the project, which would eliminate the error message.
Let me know if this is a possibility!
- MariaCSStaff
Hi, Wendy.
Thank you for sharing the details of what you're experiencing! I wanted to share an article that might be helpful for your specific scenario, as we don't recommend working with .story files on a network drive:
I understand how this affects your workflow, especially when working with multiple people on the same project. I’ll continue to share your frustrations with our team as we evaluate how files are saved.
- ShyamPanickerCommunity Member
Hi Calamity Jane,
I faced the same error today and tried various options mentioned in the comments, however, none of them worked for me.
At last I figured that my windows security is playing a role in this error. There is an option in windows security to keep your folders safe from being any changes made which is called Controlled folder access option. Please disable it and try, it should work for you!