Forum Discussion
This project is invalid or corrupt......
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...
Despite saving my project yesterday in multiple versions with different file names every 10 minutes, and despite verifying each version as functional by opening and being able to use the files before again saving the newest file version, today I went to work on my project and found that NONE of the version copies on my hard disc would open. Yet again each copy is now called invalid/corrupted, despite being able to open the files yesterday. I was able to go online to DropBox and download their cloud copy of one earlier to my desktop and then open that .story copy, but the more recent fie versions held on DropBox also will not open after being copied to my hard disc. This again means hours of work lost - with no clear reason. This problem seems to be universal and reported for months. Is there a fix in the works?
Hi Davoren,
I'm really sorry to hear that you're continually experiencing this issue. I did want to share a few reminders in regards to causes of file corruption and you mentioned you sent along a file to our team so they'll continue to investigate. If you'd like to share the case number here with us I'm happy to follow along.
File corruption is unpredictable, and there's no straightforward way to determine what causes it. Common causes are environmental (disk errors, power outages, improper shutdowns), viruses, failed Windows updates, and even file size (i.e., very large files have a higher risk of corrupting).
Consider these preventative measures to protect your project files:
1) Save and publish projects on your local hard drive. Working on a network drive or external USB drive can cause erratic behavior due to latency.
2) Save incrementally. If your app has an AutoRecovery feature, take advantage of it. If not, save a new version of your project every hour or so with a new file name each time. If a file becomes corrupt, you'll still have a working version available.
3) Install Dropbox. Snapshots of changes in your local Dropbox folder are kept for 30 days. If a file is damaged or deleted, you can restore a previous snapshot: https://www.dropbox.com/help/11/en.
4) Don't leave the app open and unattended for long periods of time. Some users have reported file corruption after leaving their apps open overnight. It's possible that a malware scan or disk backup could run because the machine is idle, making your app vulnerable to crashing.
