My Adobe Illustrator program will not let me save files as .ai (Illustrator) files. I get an “unknown error” message every time that I try to save that way. Help?

When it comes to software and hardware problems I always try to find a short-term action and a long-term strategy.

Short-term Action

What you describe indicates it is most likely a preferences problem.

Somehow, over a period of time, the preferences file has been corrupted and you will need to either delete/recreate the preferences folder or reset the preferences.

This situation can also occur with other Adobe CS products.

The reset option will help those programs too.

The options below cover the reset/delete preferences process for both Mac and Windows OS.

There can be small differences between CS2, CS3 and CS4, but the basics are the same.

If this does not solve the problem, uninstalling and reinstalling the program might work.

On rare occasions, the non-save function and error message you received can be attributed to pirated or incompatible fonts. Swapping out fonts you know are legal and dependable might also solve the problem.

For the Mac

Option 1

1. Save and close Illustrator.
2. Open the Finder and then go to Go > Home > Preferences.
3. Look for a folder named Adobe Illustrator CS2, CS3 or CS4 settings.
4. Look in this folder for the Adobe Illustrator Prefs file. Trash this file.
5. Empty the trash
6. Restart Illustrator. Reset any custom preferences and close Illustrator. The preferences file should be recreated.

Option 2

1. Hold down Shift + Command + Option + Control when opening the program.
2. If you get a dialog asking if you want to delete the settings folder, select, “yes.”
3. Restart Illustrator. Reset any custom preferences and close Illustrator. The preferences file should be recreated.

Option 3

1. In some versions of Illustrator, choosing a custom workspace you have saved under Window>Workspace will reset the program preferences. In other versions you can select Default or Basic. Sometimes, just saving a new workspace will reset the preferences.

For Windows XP

Option 1

1. Save your work and close Illustrator. Double click on My Computer on your desktop and open C:>Documents and Settings > User >Application Data > Adobe > Adobe Illustrator CS2, CS3 or CS4 Settings. In this folder trash the file named AIPrefs. Empty the trash.
2. Restart Illustrator. Reset any custom preferences and close Illustrator. The preferences file should be recreated.

Option 2

1. Hold down Shift + Control + Alt when opening the program.
2. If you get a dialog asking if you want to delete the settings folder, select, “yes.”
3. Restart Illustrator. Reset any custom preferences and close Illustrator. The preferences file should be recreated.

Option 3

1. In some versions of Illustrator, choosing a custom workspace you have saved under Window>Workspace will reset the program preferences. In some versions you can select Default or Basic. Even saving a new Workspace will reset the preferences.

Important note for Windows users

If you have problems finding the AIPrefs file, do an Advanced Options search for AIPrefs with the “Search hidden files and folders” option checked. Trash the AIPrefs it locates.

Long-term strategy

It’s also important to develop a long-term strategy to deal with software issues. See Broc’s related blog post on that topic.