How to Fix “Cannot Copy Necessary Linked Files” in InDesign?

cannot copy necessary linked files

InDesign cannot copy necessary linked files is one of the most irritating errors encountered by the users. A wide range of Adobe Indesign users reported about cannot copy necessary linked files error in InDesign.

When the error message “Cannot copy necessary linked files” appears the InDesign file would start behaving in a weird way. And it may take a lot of time in figuring out the reason behind it.

And many users are found reporting about the problem on the forum threads.

I created a publication based on a previous one. It’s in a new folder with the default [fonts] and [lins] subfolders. Preflight shows no linking errors. Since there are numerous unused graphics in the link folder (from the old version), I wish to create a new package before sending it to production. I get the above error with no explanation. How do I do this without manually copying every link (70) and font (46)?

This is CS3 on Vista Home Premium.

Originally Posted in Adobe Community.

Well, there are many reasons responsible for the InDesign cannot copy necessary linked files. This error generally occurs if you have used any special characters such as forward slash, dot, comma, asterisk, underscore, or backward slash, in the folder or in a file name and the other reasons if the links that are used for linking is very long.

Apart from that, you should also make a note that whether the problem that you are facing is with one particular file or if InDesign causes trouble with any other file.

For example, if the file name has forward slashes in it, then Adobe occasionally fails to identify those and the exact file location could not be traced. For example, if the name of the file is Jan/Feb Menu.psd, then Adobe will find the file Feb Menu.psd in folder Jan that does not exist. Thus by avoiding the use of forwarding slash and by mentioning the proper file location along with special characters will help you to overcome this error.

How to Fix InDesign Cannot Copy Necessary Linked Files Error?

Well, no official fix are yet released by the Adobe community to resolve cannot copy necessary linked files error in InDesign.

But there are some possible solutions that are worth giving a try. So below check them out and try to fix the error.

Solution 1 – Replace the Broken Links

Check if on your links panel the links are broken then this might be causing cannot copy necessary linked files error in InDesign.

So, here it is suggested to check and replace the broken links.

Solution 2 – Try Resaving the Links in a different location.

It might happen the location where you saved the links are corrupted, so try to resave the links in a different location.

Solution 3 – Remove Special Characters from the File Name

If the file you are trying the copy has special characters in the filename like i.e. ~!@#$%^&*()-=+[{]}\|;:’”/?.>,<  then this is what causing the error InDesign could not package the document cannot copy necessary linked files.

The special characters reserve someplace in the Operating Systems’ coding. And you will start getting the error message if any of the characters is used somewhere in the file name.

So check the filename and remove the special characters from the filename. Also, make sure not to use the words like a or in the name, also make the filename short.

Solution 4 – Check if the document is very big in size

Many users confirmed they are getting the error InDesign could not package the document cannot copy necessary linked files, because the document was very big.

So, to prevent the error try to split the document into half sections and try again.

Hope this works for you to fix the error.

How Adobe InDesign Files are Deleted/Lost?

Generally creating an InDesign file is time-consuming and it requires lots of effort and in such situations, data loss of InDesign can be common and it may be very much frustrating. However, some of the common causes of InDesign data to be lost are given below:

  • Sometimes the InDesign files get deleted because of malware or virus attack
  • Removing important Adobe InDesign files by incorrectly by using “Shift + Delete” keys
  • Sometimes formatting the hard disk partition or storage device that consists of essential Adobe InDesign files
  • Sometimes because of apprehensive third-party apps malfunction on the system may lead to file deletion of InDesign
  • Some other reasons for data loss are operating system corruption, improper system shutdown, hard drive crash, inappropriate file system conversion

Common Error messages of InDesign file

Generally, the InDesign file gets corrupted due to several reasons and after that, it displays several error messages. Some of the common error messages which come in the InDesign file are mentioned below:

  • InDesign file damaged error code 4
  • InDesign file damaged error code 5
  • InDesign PDF export error
  • InDesign CS4 error code5
  • InDesign error “failed to export the pdf file”
  • InDesign export to PDF doesn’t work
  • The file is incompatible with InDesign (Error code 14)
  • Cannot open InDesign file, error code 4
  • The file is damaged, error code 1

Essential Tips to Avoid InDesign Package Error:

INDD files are used to design magazines, brochures, newspapers, banners, books, and flyers and generally used by graphic designers and artists. These files are created with lots of patience, times, and creativity.  And for that, this is prone to corruption and if the INDD file gets corrupted then all your time, creativity and patience get waste. So, it is good to follow some of the best essential tips to avoid further corruption of INDD files.

  • Take a valid backup of important Adobe Photoshop files
  • Delete the Adobe files after checking it twice or thrice.
  • Be sure to scan your PC with the authorized antivirus software and examine the computer hard drive.
  • Take necessary backup InDesign files on external storage devices.
  •  Keep your Windows program updated.
  • Avoid using virus-infected third party programs like downloading free software, audios, videos, etc.

Conclusion

So, this is all about the InDesign cannot copy necessary linked files error. Well, this is really a very frustrating issue, but there luckily there are fixes that worked for many users to fix the error.

Here I tried my best to list down the best solutions. Follow the solutions given one by one and hopefully, you are able to fix cannot copy necessary linked files.

It is estimated the article works for you, but if there is anything that I missed out then feel free to share with us.

Good Luck..!

Leave a Comment