Invalid ICC profile stops Photoshop opening

[Rufus]

As you may know from another thread, I have had to reinstall Windows 10 and Photoshop.

I installed Photoshop, but did not open it to test it at that stage. I then attempted to re-calibrate my screen with my Spyder3 Pro but it failed to work as it has in the past. It did not complete its operation and I think it (or I) may have saved an incomplete profile. I guess it is time to use a more up to date calibration device.

Meanwhile, I have tried opening Photoshop and an error message appeared:

“could not intialise Photoshop because the ICC profile is invalid”.

I have used the monitor’s menus to reset it to factory settings and opted to save them and exit. I have updated the driver (it seems to be a generic PnP driver, although the screen is an HP) and I restarted the PC but I still get the same message when I start Photoshop.

I cannot find a setting in Windows 10 that would allow me to search for or select a standard default ICC profile.

I have run out ideas… so I am hoping that someone may be able to suggest another approach with a view to achieving a baseline/standard/default ICC that Photoshop will accept.

[pschlute]

Try this

type "color management" into the win10 search bar and select the colour management control panel.

click ADD and select a standard sRGB IEC61966.2.1 profile make it default and remove any ones your profiler created.

I would suggest trying to open PS now and if that works then try and create a new profile.

[Polar01]

Windows>system 32>spool>drivers>color is where the ICC profiles are stored.

Cheers: Allan

[DanK]

I googled that message, and Peter's suggestion was the first thing that popped up.

If this works, you would then need to recalibrate your monitor and add ICC profiles for the papers you use if you print.

[pschlute]

If what I suggested does not work then uninstall PS , manually remove any left-over folders, re boot and re-install PS.

i would suggest not to recalibrate until you can get PS open normally.

[Manfred M]

The first thing I would try is to have Photoshop do a clean start. Hold down the <Ctrl><Alt><Del> keys and then click on Photoshop to start. You should get a Windows message that asks if you want Windows to make changes to the application. Click the Okay button and let windows load with the default settings and profiles.

If it loads, great and then try to re-calibrate / reprofile your machine, if not, you might have to clear out the old profile as others have suggested.

[pschlute]

When I was a boy I used to wAtch a science program in England called Tomorrow’s World. They talked about the “information superhighway” (future internet) and I had absolutely no concept of what they meant. They also told us that in the future computers would free us from work and we would have so much more free time to ourselves. They forgot to mention that we would use most of that time fiddling with our computers to get them to work 😀

[proseak]

This might interest you Peter - James Burke on R4 tonight;

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0006zlw

[pschlute]

This might interest you Peter - James Burke on R4 tonight;

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0006zlw

Oh for sure. He was the younger presenter on TW !!

[Rufus]

Try this

type "color management" into the win10 search bar and select the colour management control panel.

click ADD and select a standard sRGB IEC61966.2.1 profile make it default and remove any ones your profiler created.

I would suggest trying to open PS now and if that works then try and create a new profile.

I have been out all day and just come back to this.

Thank you everybody for your suggestions and information; and special thanks to Peter.

I did try Manfred's suggestion of using the task manager as a preliminary approach but could not get Photoshop to start that way, so perhaps I misunderstood.

I went on to your suggestion, Peter, and lo and behold it worked! It was easy to find the default profile you mentioned and to remove the other, random one.

With this knowledge of how to recover the situation, I can search again for compatible Spyder software and try another calibration.

Thank you once again.

[Manfred M]

I did try Manfred's suggestion of using the task manager as a preliminary approach but could not get Photoshop to start that way, so perhaps I misunderstood

You appear to have misunderstood.

The method I laid out has you pressing those three keys (Control, Alt, Delete) and holding them down. Click on Photoshop to start while still pressing those three keys. The task manager will NOT come up, but you will by pass the startup preferences in Photoshop.

Once you have a clean start, you can fix up your preferences.

[Rufus]

You appear to have misunderstood.

The method I laid out has you pressing those three keys (Control, Alt, Delete) and holding them down. Click on Photoshop to start while still pressing those three keys. The task manager will NOT come up, but you will by pass the startup preferences in Photoshop.

Once you have a clean start, you can fix up your preferences.

As soon as I press Control, Alt, Delete it goes straight to the Task Manager in full screen and the icon to start Photoshop disappears, so I am still not understanding. Sorry to be a bit dim on this.

[Manfred M]

My bad David. It's the Control, Alt and Shift keys you should be pressing.


https://lancelhoff.com/how-to-reset-...ault-settings/

[Rufus]

My bad David. It's the Control, Alt and Shift keys you should be pressing.


https://lancelhoff.com/how-to-reset-...ault-settings/

Yes that works, and it is physically possible to do with just two hands

[Manfred M]

Yes that works, and it is physically possible to do with just two hands

Were you able to start up Photoshop?

[pschlute]

I went on to your suggestion, Peter, and lo and behold it worked! It was easy to find the default profile you mentioned and to remove the other, random one.

Jolly good.

[Rufus]

Were you able to start up Photoshop?

Yes, but it opened a grey screen with just the menu ribbon showing. I could select the menu options Edit/Preferences but made no changes and closed Photoshop to see if it would start with more than the menu ribbon.

I could not then open PS for a minute or so as it was busy. When I opened it again it dispalyed a "Welcome Back to Photoshop" screen, and I am ready to go.

I had not been able to set any Preferences following the reinstall of PS due to the Invalid ICC profile error, so Peter's solution appears to be a more direct one, and one which would retain my preferences should the issue arise in the future.

Presumably there is a file somewhere that I could back up in order to protect my preference settings.