According to Statcounter, Google Chrome is a daily driver for almost 65% of the world’s internet users. We use it for our day-to-day activities at home, work, school, and everywhere that we need to browse or access information online.
We also interact with different file types across the system and the internet to download, upload, save, edit, etc., as part of the activity. But there have been a few issues around the Chrome browser that limit or, I can say, block the users from uploading and downloading activity. The issue mostly happens in the Chrome browser running on the Mac computer. It looks something like this below:
The Chrome browser is not allowed to open files or save the file on macOS and often encounters the error stating ‘the file operation failed to connect to the open and save panel service.’ with an OK button to close the alert. After this error, the Chrome browser becomes unresponsive for a few seconds.
It also reported that the error with file operation failure is irregular, it works on someday, and other days are blue.
We have checked and done research to identify a few of the working troubleshooting methods that are mentioned below, which can help you overcome the error.
Verify the File Type
The first thing that you need to verify is the file type or extension that is being uploaded is acceptable. I know it’s a basic instinct to choose the correct format, but we can mistakenly upload the incorrect file type.
For example, if you are trying to upload an .MP4 file format as a profile picture, then it will reject the open and save operation. Hence, it’s important to ensure that the correct file type is uploaded.
Few websites even restrict the different formats of image extensions like .webp, .GIF, etc., which are image file types but restricted in most sites and apps. Similarly, .mkv format is not widely accepted as a video format due to its file encoding.
Enable Full Disk Access to Chrome
The web browser does have permission to interact with the machine File System. However, there may be some unfortunate misconfiguration that can restrict Chrome or any other browser from accessing or saving the files into the local drive.
We can ensure that proper permission is given to the Chrome browser from the System settings on macOS:
- Click on the Apple and select System settings from the menu bar.
- Switch to the Privacy & Security tab and select the Files and Folders menu.
- Within the Files and Folders panel, expand Google Chrome and ensure the Downloads Folder access toggle is enabled.
- Navigate back to Privacy & Security settings page, and select the Full Disk Access menu.
- Click on the command and select the Google Chrome app from the Finder.
- Ensure the toggle is enabled for Full Disk Access to Chrome app.
It will ensure that the Chrome browser is not restricted by File System but has full disk access to make all changes, including the Open and Save action. Now check for the site and action that you were performing earlier to see open or save file operating is failing.
Reset the Browser Settings
There is a good chance that browser permissions and settings can be conflicting with File System API causing the issue with the open and save service. Hence, resetting the browser to system default or factory settings can help resolve the issue. Here are the steps to reset Chrome settings:
- Launch the Chrome browser on the computer.
- Click on the More
menu for options, and select the Settings menu from the list.
- Switch to the Reset settings tab in the sidebar and select Restore settings to their original defaults option.
- Hit the command button to continue the browser reset.
After the reset is completed, you can check on the upload or open action for which you had a problem for resolution.
Restart the System
After making all the required changes in the browser and macOS file system, it is recommended to restart the system. It will ensure that all the changes are committed and reflected across the files systems and browser settings to iron out any unwanted issues.
- Click on the Apple menu from the menubar.
- Select the Restart command.
After rebooting the system, check for the upload and download actions on the Chrom browser.
Bottom Line
I believe granting complete access and resetting the browser to default should resolve the issue. If the problem still exists, then there is no way you can fix it rather than sending feedback to the Chrome developer about the issue. You can send feedback and report to Chrome with the screenshots and issues that you’ve encountered while performing the actions that resulting the service failure.
If it’s a widespread issue, then you may expect the resolution in an upcoming browser update. Hence, you should regularly check and update the Chrome browser for the latest releases.
Lastly, if you've any thoughts or feedback on How to Fix Open or Save File Operations Failed in Chrome, then feel free to drop in below comment box. You can also report the outdated information.
