The Photoshop “scratch disk full” error usually presents itself when your hard disk is low on storage space.
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Below are some suggestions that might help resolve the issue.
Check your current project
The first thing to check is your current project. For example, if you are working on something that is 1000 inches by 1000 inches, it may be too much for the laptop to handle. If you project is reasonable, try the following suggestions.
Clear files from the Mac
You can free up disk space on your Mac by removing duplicate files, unneeded video files, clearing browser cache, and emptying the Trash.
Clear your Photoshop cache
By deleting Photoshop cache, you’re essentially clearing the scratch disk. This should resolve the “scratch disk is full” error and get Photoshop working again.
A downside of clearing the app’s cache is that previous versions of your projects will be removed from your Mac. Before you proceed, make sure you save current projects so you don’t lose recent changes.
To clear Photoshop cache:
Launch Photoshop and open a project.
From the menu, go to Edit > Purge > All. This will clear all the various Photoshop caches.
Click OK on the confirmation prompt.
Repeat these steps for other projects, and check if that resolves the ‘scratch disk is full’ error.
There are five options when it comes to Photoshop caches. Here’s what these cache categories contain:
- Clipboard: This is a record of things (files, elements, images, etc.) that you copy. You won’t be able to paste that data after clearing this cache.
- Histories: This temporary file holds the previous version(s) of your project. Deleting this cache file means you’ll no longer have access to changes made to your project.
- All: This option deletes all Photoshop’s cache files.
- Video Cache: Holds changes made to a video file or project. You can’t restore changes made to a video project when you delete this cache.
Note: If an item/category is greyed out, that signifies that the cache has already been cleared.