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meredith_3339
Participant
January 29, 2026
Question

InDesign 21.1: export to PDF - corrupt

  • January 29, 2026
  • 1 reply
  • 0 views

Originally posted this on Jan 21 and post has disappeared likely due to the migration:

I have the latest update 21.1 and ever since I have been having issues converting pages to PDF from a file I am creating using InDesign. When I try to convert certain pages to PDF, it either will create the PDF but it is corrupt and when I try to create the PDF again, it says there is a background task running and that task is preventing me from doing anything else. Ultimately, I have to End Task and restart the program. It will work for a bit then I will have the same issue again. This is happening daily. I have not been able to pinpoint which background task is causing the problem. 

Running on PC, Windows 11 v23H2

**NEW** Since my post last week, I found the issue but have no control over it. I always use File > Export within the same document when I export pages to PDF. Sometimes the Export to Interactive PDF window shows up and the export works properly. However, sometimes the Export to Adobe PDF window shows up and the exported file is damages. How do I stop this from happening?

    1 reply

    Ged_Traynor
    Community Expert
    Community Expert
    January 29, 2026

    @meredith_3339 you’d be better off posting on the InDesign forum

    meredith_3339
    Participant
    January 29, 2026

    Sorry, thought I was! Will do.