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Participant
August 25, 2021
Question

Why are Adobe fonts so horrific to attempt to activate?

  • August 25, 2021
  • 4 replies
  • 1594 views

First off, I am not new to tech or design. I build my own computer systems and typically have no difficulty troubleshooting software/hardware issues.

Yet no matter what I do I cannot get any of my Adobe fonts to activate.

Yes, I have gone through every single common suggestion for what to do to activate them.

I have signed out, restarted the computer, toggled fonts on and off, gone into the Windows 10 group policy and registry editor to make sure that the "block untrusted fonts" feature is not on. I have added Creative Cloud and the necessary domains to be allowed through the firewall.

Not only can I not activate any new fonts, all of my previously active fonts are both deactivated and have completely disappeared from even my previously activated fonts list!

What an absolute nightmare and time suck.

Adobe, I love a lot of your products, but your Adobe fonts "service" is not a service at all, it is just a massive time suck and so full of bugs that it makes Cyberpunk 2077 look like a fully polished AAA game released in perfect working order.

4 replies

Participant
January 20, 2024

Same issue. Incredibly tech savy here and for the life of me cannot figure out how to download and Adobe's fonts. What a complete waste of a service Adobe is offereing their fully paid subscribers snd a complete waste of my time. I'd love to know what percentage of users are also having great difficulty figuring this out. Adobe - time to change this and offer a more user friendly service. 

 

Tarun Saini
Community Manager
Community Manager
February 2, 2024

Hi 

@Meghan34914870o8ou

,

 

We're sorry to hear about this. Please try uninstalling the Creative Cloud Desktop app by using the Creative Cloud cleaner tool restart your device and then reinstall the Creative Cloud Desktop app using this link.

 

Let us know if that helps.

 

Regards,

Tarun

Participant
February 26, 2025

Are you guys for real? Your solution is "restart your computer" "its you not us"... 

Participant
July 14, 2023

I find it amazing that after however many years it has been Adobe STILL hasn't figured this out. What, 40 years? Can they truly not figure out a way to get Gotham to work? Can they not figure out auto-activation of fonts IN THEIR OWN CLOUD. I mean really, it has to be embarassing. I work in an environment of up to 30 remote designers and when I contemplate the amount of money that my company wastes on font activation issues it's simply galling. When will this EVER work?

c.pfaffenbichler
Community Expert
Community Expert
July 15, 2023

Did you check »Auto-Activate Adobe Fonts« in the involved Adobe programs that feature it in their Preferences? 

Which applications are involved? 

Participant
July 15, 2023

Of course.

Participating Frequently
April 10, 2022

Did you ever find a solution? Having the same problem also on Windows 10 and the "block untrusted fonts" feature is not on. If I ever start my computer offline and try to work on a doc which uses an activated font, I essentially can't work on it.

c.pfaffenbichler
Community Expert
Community Expert
August 25, 2021
Whit.Bee
Inspiring
September 29, 2021

Maybe I'm missing something but isn't this posted in the Fonts forum?

 

I agree, Franklyn. All the "fixes" that we've been given are the standard "have you turned it off and back on again" responses that may or may not work, temporarily. I've literally had fonts deactivate WHILE working in the file, editing the text, right in front of my eyes. Several times the only fix was time, and sometimes I don't have time! I had projects going to print, all I needed to do was open the indesign file and add the tracking code to the back of the document that our company uses. Printer waiting on the files, bugging me every 5 minutes, and I literally had to wait 24 hours before I could get the fonts to reactivate so that I could export the file as a print ready pdf. 

 

 

The biggest piece of evidence to me anyway, that this is a bug on their end and has nothing to do with system or user error, is that it isn't just a certain font or fonts, it isn't just happening in one Adobe program, sometimes they show up in the Creative Cloud panel as activated, sometimes they don't. Sometimes just clicking on to deactivate and reactivate on the website works, other times it doesn't. It's so sporadic that there isn't anyway to really nail down why this happens.

 

With that said, Adobe, this issue is affecting our bottom line in major ways. When businesses start missing print deadlines because they cannot export print ready pdf's, we will begin looking for another solution outside adobe and creative cloud products.

c.pfaffenbichler
Community Expert
Community Expert
September 30, 2021

@Whit.Bee wrote:

Maybe I'm missing something but isn't this posted in the Fonts forum?


Because an administrator has moved the thread to this Forum since I posted.