What to Do When You Can’t Move Layers in GIMP This is usually done by accidentally masking all of the layers instead of just the intended ones, typically due to clicking the incorrect button in the layers panel. That would mean that any time something is clicked, the mask would be selected instead of the layer. Is There a Mask Applied?Īdditionally, a layer mask might have been applied to that layer. In the dialogue there will be extra icons that can lock, unlock, and edit layers so be sure that none of those are attached to that layer. It can lock Alpha Channel, make it unable to be touched, or link it to another layer. GIMP has a number of different locks it can put on a layer. This can be done through color tags and folders with ease, but folders also sometimes love to try and move the whole thing like in a link without being carefully watched. A good way to get around this from happening too frequently is to make sure all layers are descriptively named and organized well. It’s a silly mistake to make, but thankfully one that is easily rectified. One of the most common reasons why a layer isn’t moving is that the wrong layer is selected. It also is rather easy to move off of it when doing all sorts of different selection types. Sometimes it’s easy to get clicked off of the correct tool, especially if a different program is what is used to. The Move Tool (M by default) is what it takes for GIMP to move layers around. It feels silly to need to go through them sometimes, but they are where the most common mistakes tend to be.

It’s like when the tech support guy asks if the power is on or if the device is charged. Whenever trying to diagnose an issue in any program, it’s good to go through a checklist of the basics. Keep reading to find out what to do when those pesky layers don’t want to be moved in GIMP. Thankfully, most of the time it’s a simple fix. It might be user error, or it could be a bug. Suddenly everything is different, something that should be happening isn’t, and now it’s off to figure out what it’s doing now.īefore rage quitting the project, be sure to try out some diagnostics. GIMP is one of those programs that seems to mysteriously go wrong at the slightest tap and misclick.

Gimp move selection