Cannot Load 3ds Max Scene from Dropbox
Encountering an issue where you can’t directly load a 3ds Max scene from your Dropbox folder? Whether you’re trying to open it within 3ds Max itself through File > Open or by double-clicking the .MAX file in Dropbox, you might see the following message:
Error Message
File C:Users <username>Dropbox… <3dsmax.max> not found, or it is not a valid 3ds Max file.
Please verify that the correct file name was given.
Affected Environment
- 3ds Max.
- Dropbox.
Possible Causes
This error can be caused by several factors, including:
- Network issues (not connected to your Dropbox folder or logged out of your Dropbox account, particularly when attempting to load a .MAX file from the File > Recent Files menu).
- A previously opened file that has been moved, renamed, or is no longer accessible via the Files > Recent menu.
- A corrupted 3ds Max file.
- Extremely long folder and file path names that exceed the Windows 256-character limit.
Troubleshooting Steps
It’s generally not recommended to work directly with assets saved in cloud storage services like Dropbox or on network devices that sync with cloud storage. This can sometimes lead to instability.
To resolve the issue, consider these steps:
- If 3ds Max can’t load the file from Dropbox, manually navigate to the file within your Dropbox folder using Windows Explorer.
- Confirm you have access to the file and that the .MAX file is present.
- If the file exists in the correct location, try copying it to a local folder on your computer and then opening it from there.
2. If the file still won’t open after copying it to your local machine, refer to this article for scene data recovery: How to troubleshoot and fix corrupted files in 3ds Max.
3. Carefully check the Dropbox folder and filename path that 3ds Max is attempting to use when loading the file.
- If the path exceeds the Windows 256-character limit, copy the file to your local PC and rename it, or shorten and rename the Dropbox folder and file paths.
- Ensure that the folder and filenames conform to standard Windows naming conventions and avoid using problematic or illegal characters.
- You might also need to learn How to change the default 256 character path limitation in Windows 10 (MAX_PATH).
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