Score Disappeared
Yesterday I installed the new muse score update. I have been working on a score for the pasts few months and saving it frequently. Yesterday when the update installed I had saved the score and the file was open. When the update completed the score had disappeared. I searched my computer for any mscx. files but the most recent one was from months ago. Please help me recover it as i’m working under deadline and don’t have time to rewrite the score. Thank you.
Comments
You're saving it as .mscx rather than the default .mscz? If you looked through your entire disk drive correctly then you should look for a backup, see https://musescore.org/en/node/52116
In reply to You're saving it as .mscx… by mike320
I meant to say .mscz. I searched spotlight search on my mac for any file with mscz but only a few super old version came up.
In reply to I meant to say .mscz. I… by iknutsen2021
When the file has been saved, and the disk doesn't have a defect, it is still where you saved id, no MuseScore update would ever delete your scores
In reply to When the file has been saved… by Jojo-Schmitz
So how could I locate it?
In reply to So how could I locate it? by iknutsen2021
Be sure when using your OS's search facility, you tell it to search the entire hard drive - including hidden folders, OS folders, etc. Without knowing what folder you think you had saved it to or why it was actually saved somewhere other than that, it's hard to guess what might have happened - perhaps you had been working on a crash recovery file rather than a "real" score - but if you saved it at all, it's a file in a folder somewhere on that drive, and any file finding tools should have options to do a more thorough search than what its default is (probably just looking in your own users, home. or documents folder).
In reply to Be sure when using your OS's… by Marc Sabatella
Okay thanks so much
In reply to Ah I see thanks so much, i'm… by iknutsen2021
Hi I'm not sure how I can do a more advanced search--i'm locating mscz files but they are all empty scores.
In reply to Hi I'm not sure how I can do… by iknutsen2021
which directory/folder are they in?
In reply to which directory/folder are… by mike320
They're not in any specific folder they just turn up as documents on my computer
In reply to They're not in any specific… by iknutsen2021
Every single file exists in a folder, that's how drives are organized. What is the exact pathname of the folder you believe you saved the score to? If you aren't fully familiar with these terms - and why I say that every file must live in a folder somewhere - then I also suggest maybe first you do some reading up on how files and folders work, it will make the searching go better to have a better understanding of these things.
In reply to Hi I'm not sure how I can do… by iknutsen2021
As I said, probably it’s not looking across your entire drive by default. You would have to consult the documentation for the tool you are using - or do a web search for more info - on how to use that tool. I am pretty sure the tools but into macOS have this capability somewhere, but if not, a web search would probably also turn up third party tools.
In reply to As I said, probably it’s not… by Marc Sabatella
Yeah I just did a web search and followed the instructions--still no recent version of my score.
Have you found any autosaved files?
They have a alpha-numeric name beginning with "sc"
See:
https://musescore.org/en/node/52116#2.-Autosaved-version
In reply to Have you found any autosaved… by Jm6stringer
Hi, I hadn't used MuseScore since November 2024. Today, I installed version 4.4.4. After I opened the program and looked for my scores, MuseScore did not display any. So, I searched my drive for any .mscz files and I found them in the C:\Users\gsedl\OneDrive\Documents\MuseScore4\Scores directory. That's a directory on my OneDrive, See attached screen shot.
I opened two scores by double clicking on them. Then, exited MuseScore. When I opened MuseScore again, it only displayed the last two scores that I opened. Attached is another screen shot.
Because I know how to get to my scores use File Explorer, I'm not really concerned. I can find what i need. I'm just annoyed having to go through the extra steps - now that I'm over the initial panic of not seeing my scores.
In reply to Hi, I hadn't used MuseScore… by gsedlock
The new version is likely only listing the scores that have been opened with it. The originals will still be wherever you saved them. Either open them in you OneDrive and save them to your hard disk (if you want to see them when you open the program) or just copy them from your OneDrive to your scores directory. If your files are nowhere to be found then it is not a MuseScore issue since MuseScore does not have the code needed to delete files.
I have only used OneDrive when at work and found it a PITA when I work from home and the connection to the work server is less than perfect.
In reply to The new version is likely… by underquark
Re "Either open them in your OneDrive and save them to your hard disk".
OneDrive files are typically saved in a C:\Users... folder so they are already stored on the local hard disk. This means that there is no internet dependency on using them. An internet connection is only required to sync the files to the cloud. This sync works in the background so shouldn't affect MS performance.
Of course the key to making this work is to set the OneDrive folder to be synced, i.e. don't use the cloud-only storage option. (Saving them to your hard disk manually, when already using sync, would be generating a duplicate for each score.)
All my scores are in OneDrive synced folders and I have set the C:\Users... OneDrive location in my MuseScore preferences so that Musescore knows where to look for them.
In reply to Hi, I hadn't used MuseScore… by gsedlock
Assuming it's the same computer you were using previously and you are logged in as the same user, your recent scores list would normally remain. Merely updating from an earlier MuseScore 4 release to 4.4.4 would not the recent scores list at all. But if you accidentally cleared that list via the command in the File menu, or reverted to factory settings for whatever reason in the Help menu, or if for whatever reason the folder containing the files was temporarily inaccessible when MuseScore started up, then from that point the list starts over and starts building itself up gradually.
In any case, it's just a list of recent scores and whether it shows a score or not is not really important. The score continues to live in the folder you saved it to, and nothing ever changes that except you explicitly moving or deleting it. You don't need file explorer, just open your scores normally from the File menu in MuseScore. And as you do so, they'll start to repopulate the recent list also.
You can find and change your saved files in General -> Preferences -> Folders. Also, you can start a MuseScore score automatically by clicking the folder icon and select where the score is inside General -> Program Start -> Start with score. To get to both dialog boxes, simply click on the Edit menu item, then the same for Preferences.
I thought this resource might help you:
MuseScore 4 Preferences
https://musescore.org/en/handbook/4/preferences#general
Also, depending on your operating system, here is where you can access your recently accessed files:
How to See Recently Opened Files on Windows
https://www.makeuseof.com/windows-see-recently-opened-files/#:~:text=Yo….
How to quickly access recently viewed files and folders in MacOS
https://www.zdnet.com/article/how-to-quickly-access-recently-viewed-fil…
Find Files That Have Been Modified Recently in Linux
https://www.baeldung.com/linux/recently-changed-files