One of the most frequently asked questions we receive at the Finale technical support is “I cannot save a file, what to do?”.
▼ [Finale] Unable to save file (EnigmaTemp, Error -2)
(*Image is for illustrative purposes only and may differ from the actual product.)
File save errors seem to occur with various types of software, if you search for something like "(product name) cannot save," you'll find that similar problems occur with more common software such as Microsoft Excel.
▼ [Excel] Troubleshooting why Excel won't save changes
Comparing the two articles above, it seems there is something in common in the mechanism of the file save errors between Finale and Excel; errors can most likely occur when the final version of the file is determined from the temporary files that are automatically generated during work.
--- (The following are quotes from each article above) ---
[Finale]
"Finale family products remove and clean up temporarily saved information when you save a file, but this can sometimes result in file save errors."
[Excel]
"When you work on a workbook, Microsoft Excel automatically saves the file. Gives the file a temporary file name and places the file in the same folder as the original version. When you manually save the workbook, The original file will be deleted and a temporary file will be assigned the original file name. If this process is interrupted, the workbook may not save correctly."
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The measures to be taken when a file save error occurs are generally the same in Excel and Finale, and the main remedies seem to be to migrate the work to another file, or to save it under a different name or in a different format.
At least with Finale, there is no direct way to recover a file that has a save error, and if the file in question has been closed, it is no longer recoverable.
Therefore, it seems better to focus on prevention rather than reactive measures when dealing with file save errors.
Regarding this, there is a statement in the Finale article mentioned above that I think is very important, so I’d like to quote it below in its original text.
"There appears to be a correlation between the amount of time Finale is open on your computer and the incidence of this error. Restarting your computer at least once a week can help prevent this problem. "
"We also recommend that you save your work in progress and close Finale if you will be away from your computer until it goes to sleep."
(*Text color changes are by the author.)
In fact, I myself had the bitter experience of running into a similar problem when working with an accounting software and losing several hours' worth of work. Thinking back on it now, this may have been due to the fact that my computers were basically only put to sleep without being turned off, and it was common for files to remain open for over a week at that time.
When it comes to file saving problems, you could blame your computer or software but you won't get your lost works back. So it's important to protect yourself. In the next article, I would like to write about various know-how related to saving files.