LDMartin1959

Q: Alias can't be opened?

Although it is not a common occurance, too often I will search in finder, double click on a alias icon to open an item and then get a message that reads: "the alias <name> can't be opened because the original item can't be found." Yet, if I right click on the alias icon and select "Open enclosing folder", there it is, all nice and happy.

 

What is causing this and how do I solve it?

 

Thanks.

iMac, Mac OS X (10.6.7)

Posted on Jun 27, 2011 11:15 AM

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Q: Alias can't be opened?

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  • by William Boyd, Jr.,

    William Boyd, Jr. William Boyd, Jr. Jun 30, 2011 8:54 AM in response to LDMartin1959
    Level 6 (10,524 points)
    Jun 30, 2011 8:54 AM in response to LDMartin1959

    What you're seeing in the "enclosing folder" sounds like the alias itself, not the thing the alias is supposed to point to, which is what the message says can't be found.  Do a Finder File > Get Info on the alias.  Does the item identifies as "Original" actually exist?

  • by LDMartin1959,

    LDMartin1959 LDMartin1959 Jun 30, 2011 11:36 AM in response to William Boyd, Jr.
    Level 1 (5 points)
    Jun 30, 2011 11:36 AM in response to William Boyd, Jr.

    No, when I right click, select "show in enclosing folder" Finder opens up a new window for the "enclosing folder" and what I am seeing is in fact the original which supposedly doesn't exist. In fact, when I do the search, the results I am getting (and which are causing the problem) are not even aliases in the traditional sense (they are not "right-click, create alias"-type aliases); they are (I suppose) "temporary aliases" generated on the fly by the search function.

  • by William Boyd, Jr.,

    William Boyd, Jr. William Boyd, Jr. Jun 30, 2011 6:21 PM in response to LDMartin1959
    Level 6 (10,524 points)
    Jun 30, 2011 6:21 PM in response to LDMartin1959

    I tried to reproduce the results you describe but was unable.  Please describe in detail the exact steps you performed to see that result.

  • by LDMartin1959,

    LDMartin1959 LDMartin1959 Jun 30, 2011 6:37 PM in response to William Boyd, Jr.
    Level 1 (5 points)
    Jun 30, 2011 6:37 PM in response to William Boyd, Jr.

    Please recall that I indicated that it is not a common occurrence. It does not happen every time. But the steps are pretty basic:

     

    Do a search.

     

    Double click on an item (not an identifiable and intentionally created alias but a real object).

     

    The error may or may not occur, but when it does, the error message reads:

     

    "the alias <name> can't be opened because the original item can't be found." with the option to fix, cancel or (something else. I can't cause it to happen right now either...   )

  • by William Boyd, Jr.,

    William Boyd, Jr. William Boyd, Jr. Jun 30, 2011 6:59 PM in response to LDMartin1959
    Level 6 (10,524 points)
    Jun 30, 2011 6:59 PM in response to LDMartin1959

    LDMartin1959 wrote:

     

    Do a search.

    I was serious when I asked for details, as there are several ways to "do a search".  Did you invoke the Finder's menu option File > Find?  If so, in that find window, did you type some or all the file name in the search field in the upper right?  What options were selected below the tool bar?

     

    What I can't reproduce is what you describe when you do a right-click on the alias in a search window and selected "Open Enclosing Folder".  When I do that, the folder that opens is the one that holds the alias, not the folder holding the original file.

  • by LDMartin1959,

    LDMartin1959 LDMartin1959 Jun 30, 2011 9:38 PM in response to William Boyd, Jr.
    Level 1 (5 points)
    Jun 30, 2011 9:38 PM in response to William Boyd, Jr.

    Okay, I didn't realize what all you were looking for in details.

     

    When I am doing one of these searches, I just enter the search word(s) in the search field at the upper right of the finder window. The search is generally over the entire computer or a directory with a lot of subfolders; the search terms could have been either contents or file name, but I don't recall the specifics on that aspect.

     

    "right-click on the alias in a search window and selected "Open Enclosing Folder".  When I do that, the folder that opens is the one that holds the alias, not the folder holding the original file."

     

    You are correct and I mis-wrote that. But the significant point is that the target shows in the "enclosing folder" although the icon in the finder search results window says that it isn't there.

  • by William Boyd, Jr.,

    William Boyd, Jr. William Boyd, Jr. Jul 1, 2011 11:22 AM in response to LDMartin1959
    Level 6 (10,524 points)
    Jul 1, 2011 11:22 AM in response to LDMartin1959

    LDMartin1959 wrote:

     

    the target shows in the "enclosing folder" although the icon in the finder search results window says that it isn't there.

    I don't follow you.  For me the alias shows in the "enclosing folder", not the "target".

  • by LDMartin1959,

    LDMartin1959 LDMartin1959 Jul 1, 2011 7:16 PM in response to William Boyd, Jr.
    Level 1 (5 points)
    Jul 1, 2011 7:16 PM in response to William Boyd, Jr.

    In my situation the only "alias" is what Finder generates on the fly during the search; The icon in the Finder search results points to an actual file (or folder, or whatever the target object is). Double-clicking on the search result does not always launch or open the target file, but instead generates an error message indicating the the search result "alias" can't be opened because  the original item can not be found. But if I right click and select to open the containing folder, the original item is there despite the error message. I don't know how to explain it any other way.

  • by William Boyd, Jr.,

    William Boyd, Jr. William Boyd, Jr. Jul 1, 2011 7:46 PM in response to LDMartin1959
    Level 6 (10,524 points)
    Jul 1, 2011 7:46 PM in response to LDMartin1959

    LDMartin1959 wrote:

     

    In my situation the only "alias" is what Finder generates on the fly during the search;

    That wasn't clear to me at all from your earlier descriptions.  I thought you meant an alias that you had created yourself.

     

    I've never had that problem, so I'm unable to advise you on it.