XLIFF Files Have Disappeared from Files View - Error Message: Error processing command line arguments. An error occurred when trying to determine the version

Question

Hi Paul and everyone, 
 I am currently dealing with a project with 30 XLIFF files. 
 Over the last two weeks when I've worked on this project I've always gone straight to the Files view. This afternoon the files have now disappeared. The work I've done over the last two weeks is there as all files are still on the C drive showing when i last worked on them. I cannot access them either from the Files view or File Explorer. 
 The project file, which would normally open the project in File Explorer if needed is a .sdlproj. If I click on it in File Explorer, I get the following message: 
 Error processing command line arguments. An error occurred when trying to determine the version. 
 This is a scroll-down menu giving various status messages for each file. 
 If I try to access it from Trados, the error message is: An error occurred whilst trying to determine the file version. 
 I appreciate it is the weekend, but does anyone have any suggestions please? 
 Thank you very much for any help. 
 Best wishes, 
 Robert Calkin

RWS Community AI · Accepted Answer

Probability score: 0.8 
 Question improvement suggestion: Include any specific error messages you encounter when trying to access the files or project, as well as any recent changes made to your system or software. 
 In the meantime, based on the information you have provided, here is a suggested answer to your question: 
 Hello Robert, 
 Thank you for providing the version of Trados Studio you are using. Since you are running Trados Studio 2024 Freelance, let's go through some steps to help you resolve the issue with your XLIFF files disappearing from the Files view: 
 **Step 1:** **Restart Trados Studio** 
 - Save your current progress and close Trados Studio completely. 
 - Reopen Trados Studio to see if the files reappear. This can often resolve temporary glitches. 
 **Step 2:** **Check Project File** 
 - Ensure that the project file (.sdlproj) is not corrupted. If you receive any error messages when trying to open it, please note them down as they can provide valuable information for troubleshooting. 
 **Step 3:** **Recreate the Project** 
 - If the issue persists, consider recreating the project: 
 1. Go to the Projects view and create a new local project. 
 2. Use the same source file as in the original project. 
 3. Add the translation memory (TM) used in the original project during the Translation Resources step. 
 4. Click Finish to create the project. 
 5. During the batch task pre-translate step, the saved segments in the TM will be used to translate the original source file. 
 **Step 4:** **Antivirus/Firewall Settings** 
 - To prevent future occurrences, add file extension exceptions for the following to your antivirus/firewall list: 
 - *.sdlppx 
 - *.sdlproj 
 - *.sdlrpx 
 - *.sdlxliff 
 **Step 5:** **Check for Updates** 
 - Ensure that you are using the latest version of Trados Studio. Sometimes, updates can resolve underlying issues. 
 If you follow these steps and still encounter issues, please provide any specific error messages you receive and any recent changes made to your system or software. This information will help in diagnosing the problem further. 
 I hope this answer addressed your question. If not, please reject the answer, add the question improvement suggestion information, and click the RWS Community AI checkbox on the right to try again. 
 RWS Community AI

Paul · Answer

Robert Calkin 
 Robert Calkin said: At this stage, I'm not sure how reliable the AI technology is so please can you advise. I tend to prefer liaising with Support. 
 In that case you should consider a support contract unless you have one already... in which case log a case. This forum offers support from people willing to assist, but it's not technical support. I am not a support engineer. 
 On the AI reliability... it's not bad. Which of the suggestions have you attempted to try already? It's a bit hard to give the correct answer every time because it can literally only respond to what you tell it... no mind reading capabilities that our support teams do have ;-) 
 Have you tried searching the KB? I put your message in there and the answer is remarkably like the AI: 
 https://gateway.rws.com/csm?id=kb_article_view&sysparm_article=KB0036858 
 Robert Calkin said: If I click on it in File Explorer, 
 What happens when you try to open the project by selecting the sdlproj using Open Project in Trados Studio? 
 Where is your project stored? Is it on a OneDrive path for example where the files might not actually be there... you might only have a footprint because OneDrive moved them to the cloud for example.

Paul · Answer

Robert Calkin 
 Just a thought on this: 
 Robert Calkin said: I always store all my projects on the hard drive rather than OneDrive 
 You can, of course, store your projects on your hard drive. However, many users don&rsquo;t realise that Windows increasingly defaults to saving files under the OneDrive path... even though it appears to be on your hard drive. I'm sure you already know this, but sometimes it's good to explain again as others can benefit from this when they have unexpected problems resulting from an interaction with OneDrive. 
 For example, when Studio creates a new project, it might be saved in a location like this: 
 c:\Users\pfilkin\OneDrive - RWS\Documents\Studio 2024\Projects\ 
 This folder is on your hard drive, but it&rsquo;s managed by OneDrive. By default, Windows may silently move files to the cloud to free up local storage. You&rsquo;ll still see what looks like the file in File Explorer, but it may actually be a placeholder. When you open the file, Windows will fetch the real file from OneDrive. 
 This tends to work well with Microsoft Office files, as Office applications are tightly integrated with OneDrive and can transparently handle downloading files on demand. However, other software... like Trados Studio or many non-Microsoft applications... expects files to be available instantly and locally. These applications don&rsquo;t have the same hooks into OneDrive&rsquo;s file availability system, so if the file hasn&rsquo;t been downloaded yet, or if the download fails or takes too long, the application may report an error or behave unpredictably. 
 This isn&rsquo;t necessarily a fault with the software... it&rsquo;s a reflection of how OneDrive&rsquo;s &ldquo;Files On-Demand&rdquo; feature works, and the fact that many desktop applications are built on the assumption that local files are truly local. 
 If your priority is security, it&rsquo;s worth considering that Trados Cloud is available to all users with a Trados licence... so you already have it. This offers a more robust and purpose-built environment for managing projects securely in the cloud, with versioning, access control, and collaboration features that go far beyond what OneDrive provides for traditional desktop workflows. 
 Just saying ;-)

ChandraShekhar Paraste · Answer

**Hi Robert , ** 
 my self Chandra Shekhar 
 From what you&rsquo;ve described, it sounds like Trados Studio is having trouble reading the project file version, which can happen if:

The project file (.sdlproj) is corrupted &mdash; possibly due to a crash or incomplete save.

Trados Studio version mismatch &mdash; the project may have been created or last opened in a different version than the one you are currently using.

Temporary file issues &mdash; sometimes the Studio cache or temporary files can cause the project to disappear from the Files view.

**Here are some steps you can try: as mine point you definitely reach your Gol **

Check your Trados Studio version

Make sure you are opening the project in the same or newer version of Studio that created it.

Go to Help &rarr; About Trados Studio to confirm your version.

Open the XLIFF files directly

Navigate to your C:\ drive location where the XLIFF files are saved.

Instead of opening the .sdlproj file, try opening one XLIFF file directly in Trados ( File &rarr; Open Document ).

Recreate the project

Create a new project in Trados Studio.

Add all the XLIFF files from your C drive into this new project.

This bypasses the corrupted project file.

Clear the Trados cache

Close Trados Studio.

Go to: C:\Users\[YourUserName]\AppData\Roaming\SDL\SDL Trados Studio\[VersionNumber] and rename the folder (e.g., add _old to its name).

Reopen Trados &mdash; it will rebuild the settings and may restore file visibility.

Check for updates/repair installation

Use SDL Trados Studio&rsquo;s installer to repair the program.

Or check if an update is available for your current version.

If the issue persists, it may require SDL Support to recover the project file, but you should still be able to work directly with the XLIFF files by recreating the project. 
 Best regards, [Chandra Shekhar ]

ChandraShekhar Paraste · Answer