Photoshop is one of Adobe’s successful photo editing software. The best thing about Photoshop is that it allows you to edit the photo on the optimum level. However, Photoshop is a great user-friendly platform where a person with a piece of basic knowledge can use Photoshop for use, it’s that easy. Else, you can refer to the Photoshop editing tutorials on YouTube. Many users are experiencing an issue with the software which is Photoshop’s “Scratch disks are full”​ error.

The error prevents you from doing further or pending photo editing work. Photoshop’s “Scratch disks are full”​ error is related to the storage and disk drive. No doubt that this error can make you annoying, as it will freeze Photoshop every now and then, resulting in a supermassive time waste.

But don’t you worry, as we got you all covered up!

In this article, we will show you how to fix Photoshop’s “Scratch disks are full”​ error. So, make sure to read the article till the end. Without further ado, let’s get started.

What Scratch disks are full Error in Photoshop means?

Before moving ahead on the main topic, let’s get to know what scratch disk error actually means in Photoshop.

Photoshop uses the scratch disks and uses it as storage when you do heavy or lite editing work, and that’s how Photoshop works. However, when Photoshop wants to store temporary data or a file it uses a scratch disk when an editor is currently doing some work.

When you do heavy editing work, or a large project the software demands for more storage. When the request is not complete it shows a “Scratch disks are full”​ error in Photoshop.

What causes the “Scratch disks are full”​ error to occur in Photoshop?

As mentioned, Photoshop needs a temporary space to use as storage. So, the reasons are related to the storage and disks, here are some valid causes that make scratch disk error to occur.

Full allocated disk: Photoshop occupies and needs the specific disk to allocate when other files allocate and make the disk full, it results in a scratch error. In order to resolve this, we need to unfragmented space, as Photoshop works when the drive is defragmented.

Disk on the Low Space: When there’s no sufficient amount of space left in the drive, it evokes the scratch disk error. So, we need to make the disk free for more storage.

Troubleshoot to Fix Photoshop’s “Scratch Disk Are Full”​ Error

Follow the troubleshooting methods mentioned below to fix scratch disk errors.

Delete Photoshop’s Temporary Files

Photoshop needs storage to store temporary files, deleting the unwanted temporary file can resolve the scratch disk error.

Step 1: Press Windows + R key to open Run.

Step 2: Now type “​%temp%“​ and press OK.

Step 3: Multiple files will open in the Temp window, Photoshop stores these files as “PST”.

Step 4: Delete all files, and also delete those from the Recycle Bin to make it empty.

Mac users can use Spotlight in order to find those temporary files and delete them.

//While you are in the temp folder, just delete all the files present in the folder as they are all are unwanted files.//

Make sure to have enough space on your PC

Full storage will not allow you to install or work on any other apps, so it’s important to check your storage. Here’s how to do that:

For Windows 10 users

Step 1: Press the Windows key and go to Settings.

Step 2: Go to System, and select Storage.

Step 3: Next screen will show your system’s storage and media that occupies space.

For Mac users

Step 1: Do a click on the Apple logo located at the top-left corner, and select About This Mac.

Step 2: Select Storage from the upper menu bar.

Step 3: Now, you will get to see your system space.

Delete Photoshop Cache Files

Photoshop stores cache every time when you do some editing work. This cache gathers together resulting in occupying more memory Here’s how to do delete it.

Step 1: Open Photoshop.

Step 2: Click on Edit from the upper menu.

Step 3: Select Purge and choose All.

All the Photoshop cache files will be deleted.

Turn Off Auto Recovery Feature in Photoshop

Sometimes Photoshop saves files automatically, it continues the project from where you left it. You can turn it off if the feature is not necessary as it consumes memory.

Step 1: Open Photoshop.

Step 2: Click in Photoshop and select Preferences, and then click on File Handling…

Step 3: In the next window, untick Automatically Save Recovery Information Every.

Allow Photoshop to use more RAM

Sometimes, Photoshop crashes, it happens when there’s not enough memory left to run Photoshop.

Step 1: Open Photoshop.

Step 2: Click on Photoshop, select Preferences, and click on Performance…

Step 3: In the next window, click select the amount of RAM size you want to allow Photoshop to use from the Last Photoshop Use option.

Reset Photoshop Preferences

Here we will be setting Photoshop Preferences back to default, this should fix the issue.

Step 1: Open Photoshop.

Step 2: For Windows (Press Shift + Ctrl+ Alt) and For Mac (Press Shift + Command + Option) and then open Photoshop.

Step 3: A small window will appear asking you to delete Adobe Photoshop Settings Files? and click Yes.

Change The Scratch Disk on Startup

You can switch between the scratch disks in Photoshop if you use multiple scratch disks, switching the scratch disk will resolve the error.

For Windows: Open Photoshop and press and hold Ctrl and Alt key simultaneously.

For Mac: Open Photoshop, press and hold the Command and Option key simultaneously.

Scratch Disk Preferences window will pop up, select Startup, and click on OK.

Defragment and Optimize your Drive

Performing defragment on your Drive often resolves the issue and will provide you more memory to fix scratch disk errors in Photoshop.

Step 1: Do a click on the Windows icon.

Step 2: in the Window’s search bar, type “Defragment and Optimize Drives“​.

Step 3: Now you will disk partitions on the Optimize Drive window. Here, you need to select the scratch disk and click on Optimize button.

Use Crop Tool

The crop tool will help you resize the image. When you use any random image, it will not get optimized and consumes more space. So, use a crop tool whenever possible.

Make a Photoshop Scratch Disk

You can also make your own Photoshop scratch disk. This will allow Photoshop to use more space and give more chances to use temporary files. Here’s how to simply create a scratch disk for Photoshop.

Step 1: From the Edit menu, select Preferences.

Step 2: Select “Scratch Disks”​.

Step 3: In the preferences window, select or deselect the drive that you want to use.

Step 4: Click on OK to apply changes.

Consider Buying a new SSD

SSD (solid-state drive) is somewhere faster than regular hard drives. SSD will not only save your time, but it will also allow you to open and access Photoshop more efficiently. Most of the users prefer to use and store Photoshop in the SSD.

We recommend you to buy a new SSD and make it a scratch drive. This should definitely fix the issue. If you already have SSD then make it as a scratch drive. Any SSD will work like a charm for Photoshop but quality depends.

What if Nothing Works?

All the troubleshooting methods mentioned above are valid fixes. At this point Photoshop’s “Scratch disks are full”​ error should get resolved. In the worst-case scenario, if the error is still bothering you.

You can delete Photoshop and free up your system storage, and re-install Photoshop again.

That’s it for now, hope this helps! If you have queries, you can mention them in the comment section below.