R code file 0 kb after saving with previous version of R

RStudio IDE
1

Hello Team,

I have a similar problem as mentioned in R Code file is becoming 0 KB after saving

Unfortunately, the solutions offered in that post don't work for me (downloading the previous version of R 4.1.3., a new version of Rstudio and I have also tried changing the encoding settings of R).

The problem is specific to a file I made last May. In May, I worked on this file and saved it on my laptop. At the end of the day, I emailed this file to myself as a back-up. The next day I continued working on the file that was saved on my laptop and the code was there. Now I want to check something in that piece of code but the file is empty and it also says 0 kb. What's odd is that the attachment of the email that I sent to myself is also empty while I did continue working on that file that was saved on my laptop the next day. Otherwise I would have noticed an empty file in May already. Previous versions of the code that I saved on my laptop (and also backed-up via email) are also empty. I have the feeling there is something in that file that is not compatible anymore with R or Rstudio but unfortunately downloading previous versions of R does not help.

It would be great if anyone can help.

Thanks,
Hester

2

Hi @Hester1,
Welcome to the RStudio Community Forum.

Try opening the old R script file in a simple text editor (E.g. Notepad on Windows). From there you can cut-and-paste the commands into a new, clean script file in RStudio. Do not use word-processing software for this (E.g. Microsoft Word) as it will introduce invalid characters (E.g. smart-quotes).

Not an ideal solution but it may work.

3

Hi DavoWW,
Thank you for the quick reply and for your suggestion. Unfortunately, if I open the file in Notepad it also empty. If you have any other thoughts, I am happy to hear them. Thank you for thinking along!

4

Hi @Hester1,
See if there is a .Rhistory file in your working directory. Its contents should appear in the History pane in RStudio. It contains commands that have previously been run - they can be highlighted in RStudio and copied via the "send too console" button.

5

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