TLDR: the elements folders for my layers are now entirely empty, and I can’t find a way to recover my artwork. I’m desperate for help. This happened ever since I changed my default application for Harmony files from Harmony Advanced to Harmony Premium (since I no longer use Advanced). For more detailed info, read below. Please, any help is appreciated.
A while back, I upgraded from Harmony Advanced to Premium. Since then, whenever I create Harmony files in Premium, they were saved to my computer as Advanced files (meaning that their default application to open with is Harmony Advanced). This hasn’t been an issue in the past, as I would always just open Harmony Premium, then select my file to open, and it would open with ease. However, if I ever wanted to open a file from Finder, double-clicking on it, it always opens in Advanced (again, since its default application is Harmony Advanced).
Well, I got tired of this happening, so today I changed the file type’s default application to Harmony Premium. You do this on MacOS by selecting the file, pressing CMD+I to “get info,” and then you can change the default application from Advanced to Premium. That way, in the future, if I don’t have Harmony Premium already open, I could double-click the Harmony file from a Finder window, and it would open in Premium (instead of Advanced).
The good news is that, upon double-clicking the Harmony file in Finder, it opened in Premium as expected. The EXTREMELY bad news is that ALL of my drawings disappeared. I looked back to Finder to see if there was anything stowed in the Elements folders, but nothing was there either. Are my drawings gone for good? Is there a way to recover them? Any help at all is much appreciated.
It sounds like a very stressful situation, especially if you’ve lost artwork that you’ve spent a lot of time on. Here are a few steps you can take that might help recover your drawings:
Check the Backup Folder: Harmony automatically creates backup files at regular intervals. Look for a folder named “backup” inside your scene’s folder. If you find any backup files, try opening them in Harmony Premium.
Revert File Association: Try reverting the file association back to Harmony Advanced and see if your drawings reappear. If they do, you can then try to properly migrate your files from Advanced to Premium.
Search for Lost Drawings: Use the macOS search feature in Finder to look for any files with the .tvg extension, which is the format for individual drawings in Harmony. They might be located in a different folder.
Check the Trash: Sometimes files can accidentally get moved to the Trash. Make sure to check there for any Harmony-related files.
Use Data Recovery Software: If the files were deleted, you might be able to recover them using data recovery software. There are several options available that can scan your drive for “deleted” files and allow you to recover them.
Contact Toon Boom Support: Reach out to Toon Boom’s support team. They might have additional solutions or be able to help you recover your files.