cannot delete acr------.tmp files on desktop

Question

Level 1

9 points

cannot delete acr------.tmp files on desktop

Hello,

I just got a new iMac that runs Lion and recently installed CS3 on it.

When I use Adobe Acrobat, I frequently get a file on my desktop called acr------.tmp (where ------ is a series of seemingly random numbers). I'm unable to delete it. I googled about this a little and have found several posts where people mention that Acrobat generates thousands of these files and takes up lots of extra room on hard drives... When I shut down my computer the file disappears (at least until I use Acrobat again) and when I have tried searching in the finder for "acr" or "tmp" files nothing really comes up... Should I worry about these files taking up unnecessary room on my computer? I am worried that there is a folder somewhere full of them but can't seem to be able to find it... Any suggestions? Do you think that my CS3 software is just too old to work with Lion?

Thanks in advance for any advice anyone can offer...

pb_bklyn

iMac, Mac OS X (10.7.1)

Posted on Oct 17, 2011 3:11 PM

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Answer 1

Apr 8, 2012 10:18 AM in response to WarrenO

Ways to quit the Finder:

Log out and log in (or restart)
Press Option-Command-Escape, select the Finder and click "Relaunch"
Press Option, right-click the Finder icon in the Dock, and choose "Relaunch"
Open Activity Monitor, locate and select the Finder process, and click Quit
Open the Terminal and type "killall Finder"

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Answer 2

Hoka Hey

Level 1

20 points

Oct 21, 2011 9:34 AM in response to pb_bklyn

My assistant is having the same problem with her desktop. Acr----------.tmp files appear and cannot be deleted. She shuts her machine down, and they are gone when it reboots. We are using Adobe Acrobat Pro.

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Answer 3

pb_bklyn Author

Level 1

9 points

Oct 24, 2011 8:40 AM in response to macjack

I'm not sure what specific task causes them to appear...

Whenever they've shown up for me, it was while I was marking up a PDF with editing comments (using the drawing and insert text tools)...

I'm just worried that they are accumulating in some hidden folder and taking up space on my hard drive...

But when I searched for either "acr" or ".tmp" in the finder, no such files came up in the results -- even though I could see with my own eyes a file called acr-------.tmp on sitting on my desktop!

Does anyone have any ideas about this or should I just not worry??

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Answer 4

leroydouglas

Level 10

199,338 points

Oct 24, 2011 8:45 AM in response to pb_bklyn

pb_bklyn wrote:

When I shut down my computer the file disappears

Does anyone have any ideas about this or should I just not worry??

.tmp file by definition. I do not think it is anything to worry about.

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Answer 5

Hoka Hey

Level 1

20 points

Oct 24, 2011 8:58 AM in response to pb_bklyn

They will not show up in Finder.

If you are concerened about how much space they are taking, you can download File Find for free at http://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/30073/find-file. It is a very simple program that you can use to find all the .tmp files for you and tell you how much space they are taking up.

They are probably not a problem, just annoying.

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Answer 6

WarrenO

Level 1

72 points

Feb 7, 2012 2:11 PM in response to pb_bklyn

I get those periodically as well, when I'm using Acrobat Pro. typically they show up if I'm running Preflight on a PDF, and doing an 'analyze and fix' check for compliance with prepress standards.

My guess is that these .tmp files are created by Acrobat when it performs its preflight modifications on the files, and under normal circumstances they're deleted when the 'analyze and fix'-ed file has been saved.

The file itself is a temp file and can safely be ignored; they do disappear on reboot. They're just a bit irksome. I was hoping someone had knowledge of a way to actually remove them from my desktop without having to reboot. Ah well.

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Answer 7

WarrenO

Level 1

72 points

Feb 7, 2012 2:19 PM in response to pb_bklyn

...and I found the solution. You don't actually have to reboot your Mac; you can just open a Terminal window and enter this command (copy and paste for best results):

osascript -e 'tell app "Finder" to quit'

What this does is use an AppleScript call (through the terminal) that tells Finder to quit. If you then click the Finder icon in your Dock, Finder will reload, and the .tmp files will be gone. Think of it as a 'soft reboot'.

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Answer 8

Apr 8, 2012 10:12 AM in response to WarrenO

WarrenO wrote:

...and I found the solution. You don't actually have to reboot your Mac; you can just open a Terminal window and enter this command (copy and paste for best results):
osascript -e 'tell app "Finder" to quit'
What this does is use an AppleScript call (through the terminal) that tells Finder to quit. If you then click the Finder icon in your Dock, Finder will reload, and the .tmp files will be gone. Think of it as a 'soft reboot'.

Even easier, CMD+OPT+ESC. Select "Finder" and then click the "Relaunch" button.

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