Dreamweaver 8 for Windows loses FTP login settings

Last updated on Apr 27, 2021

Issue

Some Windows users are reporting that their FTP usernames and passwords in their Dreamweaver site definitions are deleted when they close and re-open Dreamweaver 8 or when they reboot their machine. This issue does not occur in earlier versions of Dreamweaver. (Ref. 205051, 210466)

Reason

There are two known causes for this issue:

The most common cause is that Internet Explorer 7 (IE 7) is installed on the same machine as Dreamweaver 8.
A less likely cause is that the following registry key is missing or is empty:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ Explorer\User Shell Folders\AppData

Solution

If you have Internet Explorer 7 installed

If you have Internet Explorer 7 installed, then installing theDreamweaver 8.0.2 Updater should resolve this issue. Before installing the Dreamweaver 8.0.2 Updater, it is recommended to check the Dreamweaver 8 Emerging Issues TechNote for changes that may affect your workflow, particularly if you create server-side pages (ASP, PHP, ColdFusion, etc.) or insert Flash content.

Note: After you install the Dreamweaver 8.0.2 Updater, verify that the updater successfully installed. Some users think they have installed 8.0.2, when in fact the updater installation didn't take. In Dreamweaver, go to Help > About Dreamweaver > and click the scrolling text to reveal the version number. It should say Dreamweaver 8.0.2. If it still says Dreamweaver 8.0 or 8.0.1, please see Can't install Dreamweaver 8 updaters for Windows after canceling updater installer (TechNote 785362aa).

Note: Internet Explorer 7 was released after Dreamweaver 8 and therefore was not tested with Dreamweaver 8 and earlier.

If you do not have Internet Explorer 7 installed or if the Dreamweaver 8.0.2 Updater doesn't solve the problem

If you didn't have Internet Explorer 7 at the time this problem occurred, then install the Dreamweaver 8.0.2 Updater as described above, and then perform the following steps if you are comfortable editing the Windows Registry.

Warning: Editing the Windows Registry incorrectly can cause serious problems that may require reinstalling your operating system. Adobe does not guarantee that problems caused by editing the registry incorrectly can be resolved. Edit the registry at your own risk.

Launch the Registry Editor by clicking the Start button, choose Run, then type "regedit". In the Registry Editor, navigate to this folder:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ Explorer\User Shell Folders\
See if there is a key called AppData, as shown in the screen shot below:

Check for an AppData key
Backup the Users Shell Folders registry branch as follows:
1. Right-click the Users Shell Folders folder and select "Export".
2. In the "Export range" section, choose "Selected branch".
3. Save the .reg file to the desktop.
4. If problems occur after editing the registry, double-clicking the .reg file will re-install that registry branch.
If the AppData key is missing, then perform the following steps. If the AppData key exists, then skip to Step 5.
1. On the right side of the Registry Editor explorer pane, right-click in a blank area anywhere under the last key in the list. You should get a context menu that says "New" with a flyout menu.
2. In the flyout menu, select "Expandable String Value" and name the new key AppData.
Right-click the new AppData key (or the existing one if it was already there), select Modify, and enter the following in the Value Data field: %USERPROFILE%\Application Data. If the values for the other keys in your User Shell Folders directory don't start with %USERPROFILE%, then use the value that your other keys use. For example, if your Local Settings key has a value of u:\Local Settings, then try usingu:\Application Data.
Open Dreamweaver, re-enter the FTP login information for one of your sites, and see if the FTP login is now saved when you close and re-open Dreamweaver.

If the solutions above don't solve the problem, then please contact Adobe Technical Support or submit a bug report and specify that you are experiencing the issue described in TechNote 3491671c.

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