Since updating to Sketchup Version 21.0.392, my files often open as Read Only. I’m not doing anything differently than I ever have been, and I’ve never seen this before so it seems like something buggy about this version of sketchup. It looks like no one else has been having this problem for a few years… any ideas of how I can reduce or stop this from happening?
Where are your .skp files saved? Generally when you get the Read Only message it indicates that SketchUp won’t be able to save back to it. For example you’ll get the message if you open a SketchUp file directly from a ZIP file.
I use Backup and Sync, so I’m opening my files from a finder window (mac), but they’re pulling/syncing from the internet. I’ve had issues like this in the past when using a server at a large company but haven’t had this issue here before.
Best practice is to bring the files to your local drive and work on them from there. Save locally and then sync to the cloud. Working on files saved in the cloud is a recipe for disaster.
The obvious implication is that something else has locked the file when SketchUp tries to open it. So, the investigation needs to try to track down the offender. For example, I get tis message if I attempt to open a file that was sent as an email attachment unless I first save the attachment. As DaveR pointed out, sync and remote servers often lock files so that the contents cant change while the sync is taking place. In that case it is a timing issue: the lock would have to be held at the precise moment you try to open using SketchUp. You could go for years without hitting the exact timing required!
Can you elaborate? It has never been a problem for me.
It is a very common source of damaged files that can’t then be recovered.
1 Like
If the sync ideas don’t help, check to see if you have the file open in another SketchUp that is running. On Windows you can get the read only message a lot, because some of the ways of opening a file in Windows lead to additional instances of SketchUp opening. On Mac you should only see the read only message if you have two SketchUps running, and one already has that file open.
It’s good that it hasn’t been a problem for you, yet. We’ve seen lots of reports of corrupted SketchUp model files because the users have been working on and saving directly to web based storage. It only takes the loss of a few packets during a save to wreck hours of work.
Fair. Tough but fair. Change is inconvenient but being stuck in our ways is worse. I will start saving to my desktop.
I would keep a folder somewhere on your computer for the files you are working on. When you are finished working on a file for the day, save it and then back it up in your cloud storage. It’s safer to think of the cloud as your backup and not your working storage. Also keep in mind this isn’t specifically a SketchUp thing. It can apply to any files you might work with.
Unfortunately there are too many places between your computer and the server that hosts your cloud storage where things can go pear-shaped. Think about when you are talking on your mobile phone. Often words in the conversation get dropped. That’s similar to what can happen with data transfer to the web. But in the case of your phone call, you can use your prior knowledge and the context of the conversation to fill in the blanks. Unfortunately that doesn’t happen with most of the data in a file. If it gets dropped it’s just gone.
2 Likes
I was having the same issue so I tried opening with Control+Clic > Open and it worked for me. I’m syncing my files with iCloud Drive.
As discussed earlier, saving to any remote drive may work some of the time - almost all of the time in some cases - but it is a gamble. A tiny random error in the network can trash the entire SketchUp file! Saving to a local drive and syncing later avoids the risk.
2 Likes