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Bug Alert: ArcGIS Pro Automatically Restores Deleted Project Folders

lorenzo_crecco

ArcGIS Pro version: 3.2

Hi, I have encountered a persistent bug where ArcGIS Pro automatically restores project folders that have been deleted.

Despite repeated attempts to delete these folders, they reappear upon restarting the software or my windows machine. The folders are not sync with my OneDrive (or other similar services) and my Recycle Bin works fine.

I do not know what I should do to solve the issue. If I uninstall ArcGIS pro these projects folders stop reappearing but I need to use the software so it is not a solution 😅.

I hope someone can help me!

All the bests,

Lorenzo

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Brooks_Andrews_CSRS

I turned off indexing and my folders are still reappearing hours later. We are using ArcGIS Pro 3.4.2. and Box for the folders.

Ellie-Anne_Jones

Hiya,

I was wondering if anyone had any movements on resolving this issue?

Thanks

Muhammad_Elbagoury

Hi All,
After upgrading my ArcGIS Pro to 3.3, I found that this problem is solved.
Try to upgrade ArcGIS Pro to 3.3 and delete the folders manually and you will never find these folders again.

MichaelaMcDonough

Same 😞

SaraMGarcía

Hi, clai. Just turn off indexing for ArcGIS Pro.

Project Tab -> Options-> Indexing

clai

Same problem with automatic restoring folders. How to fix the bug?

Bud

@SimiBasu I didn't get an email notification when @isohel replied to my comment.

I also didn't get a notification in my Notification feed. I only got a notification about the kudo. But if my comment hadn't been kudoed, then I wouldn't have known about @isohel's reply.

Is that expected?

Dankotaru

I've dealt with this by turning off indexing in the ArcGIS Pro Options menu. No more zombie folders.

isohel

Excellent suggestion. I am not an "Authorized Caller" for my organization so I would have to go through my Administrator. This bug is primarily a nuisance and doesn't seem urgent. I would take my own time to report it, but I think the admin probably have bigger issues on their plate, so I'm not going to pursue it personally. If anyone knows of a way to report bugs that is open to all users, please share.

Edited to clarify that the bug is a nuisance, not calling tech support.

ZbigniewTru

Same issue: folders on desktop are auto-restoring. There's a folder_index with three subfolders: Connections, Thumbnails, and Project Folder. However, every folder is empty.

RemWilson

I'm adding onto this thread as I also have the same issue persisting. It seems to be related to a 3.2.x patch as it doesn't appear to happen now that I've reverted to 3.2.0, but I've also noticed I can't modify my indexing setting under the application group in the applications settings, which I thought would be used to control this issue.

Hopefully this gets resolved soon! I manage 3 organizations, and create new projects everyday for various clients. My project folders are getting very long with folders that keep popping up and have nothing but the empty index folder in them.

This issue persists on both local storage and cloud storage drives. I have a network storage that I believe it would occur on too, but the network storage acts as a backup for projects and doesn't have entire projects moving off it very often.

CANC-RebeccaFerkovichGISS

I have this problem as well on 3.2.0, not just on my desktop. It does indeed apear to be related to the index process running.

Dankotaru

Same problem. Empty project folders on my desktop and in my Documents folder on the C drive keep getting restored after they have been deleted. Repeatedly, for weeks now. Looking at the time stamps when these folders get restored and my system logs, it's clear the deleted folders keep getting restored when the Task Scheduler launches ArcGIS Pro Indexing:

"Task Scheduler launched action "C:\Program Files\ArcGIS\Pro\bin\ArcGISIndexingServer.exe". And then the deleted project folders reappear.

This has become very annoying.

Bud

Have you reported this issue to Esri Support?

LanQingZhao

Same problem here. Is anyone able to fix this?

isohel

Version 3.2.2 here, too.

Muhammad_Elbagoury

I also have the same problem (Empty Folders). (I am on version 3.2.2)

DRicotta

I have the exact same problem as well. It seems to have started when I upgraded to v3.2.2.

repeb

I have the same problem.

And since I am working with students projects, I open really a lot of them. Open, look, grade, delete.

And they just keep on appearing and appearing.

It is truly annoying.

isohel

Same here, but it is not only project folders on the desktop. I have a geospatial project folder in my C drive and if I delete a project folder, it is restored the next time I restart the computer, with the same 3 empty folders described above.

OllyD

Hi,

Just to say that I also get a similar bug, except that it only seems to happens to folders that were saved on my desktop.

From what I can see it restores the project folder and then generates a "index" folder.

I've attached an some example images, you can see the restored folder only has "123456_abcdef_bng_index" inside, in turn that has 3 folders, all of which are empty.

This happens every time i turn on my computer now, this never used to happen.

example1.png

example2.png

brewerjy

I am receiving the same error and would really appreciate some follow up on how to work around/avoid it!

-Jeff

lorenzo_crecco

Hi!
When you start an arcgis pro project, you need to create also a folder (project folder). I do not know why, but when I delete these project folders they reappear on my desktop (empty, after a couple of days).

I do not know how else I can explain this bug.

Hope it helps..

Thank you.

MicZatorsky_AEC

What do you mean it 'restores folders'?
What created the folders originally, and what deleted them?
Can you screenshot the workflow and provide steps to reproduce this?

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