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jessicam20520896
Participant
May 18, 2020
Question

Fillable PDF with data in OneDrive shows up blank in Acrobat on PC

  • May 18, 2020
  • 2 replies
  • 6028 views

Hello! I'm hoping someone can assist with an issue we've been having with fillable PDFs, OneDrive, and Acrobat. Our company uses fillable PDF forms in OneDrive for our employees to fill out directly in the OneDrive app on their iPhones or iPads. Sometimes, when we open these filled-out forms in Acrobat on our computers, the forms show up completely blank. When we view them in the OneDrive app, the information is there.

 

The forms will appear to be filled out when you "preview" them in File Explorer, and when you go to File>Print in Adobe, the information shows up in the Print Preview. We can also right-click the file and open it with a web browser like Google Chrome and the information shows up there. How do we get the information to show up when open these files in Acrobat on our computers?

 

What is also strange is that some of our employees will fill out the information in the OneDrive app, and the information DOES show up when open them in Acrobat, but when other employees fill out the information it shows up blank everytime. I've attached two files so you can see firsthand what I'm talking about. The file labeled "5 Friday.pdf" shows up blank in Adobe unless you preview it or open it in a Web Browser. The file labeled "4 Thursday.pdf" shows the information filled out when you open it in Adobe. Both of these were filled out in OneDrive on an iPad or iPhone.

 

I greatly appreciate any help you can provide me with so we can resolve this issue as soon as possible. Thank you!

2 replies

A
ARB1234
Participant
November 19, 2020

I am struggling with having the fields show up when you open a fillable PDF document in OneDrive.  My employees need to add their digital signatures and the fields are NOT there when you open  straight out of OneDrive.  Am I missing something?

Thom Parker
Community Expert
Thom ParkerCommunity Expert
Community Expert
November 20, 2020

It's all about the PDF viewer being used. Are they opening these PDFs in Acrobat/Reader? 

Thom Parker - Software Developer at PDFScriptingUse the Acrobat JavaScript Reference early and often
Thom Parker
Community Expert
Thom ParkerCommunity Expert
Community Expert
May 19, 2020

The OneDrive PDF viewer has destroyed the form field structure inside the PDF. This is apparently a very destructive PDF viewer, I would suggest not using it. Use the Official Adobe Reader app or Readdle's PDF Expert. These are the only two reliable mobile apps that I personally know work correctly.   

Thom Parker - Software Developer at PDFScriptingUse the Acrobat JavaScript Reference early and often
    J
    jessicam20520896Author
    Participant
    May 19, 2020

    Thank you for your answer. Would it be possible that there's a setting on the iPhone or iPad that might be affecting this? After some of our employees fill out the forms in OneDrive, we can actually see the information they filled out when we open the file in Acrobat. It's been very consistent on which forms display the data and which ones don't, and it's based on the employee that filled them out. That's what leads me to believe it could be a setting on the device they use.

     

    At one point we used Creative Cloud app and the Adobe Reader app in the way we use OneDrive (a shared collection of folders and files for everyone to access, mark-up or fill out). After an update, the Adobe Reader app only gives you access to the Document Cloud, not the Creative Cloud, and the downside of this is that you can't share a folder from the Document Cloud and give access to every file within that folder, you can only share individual files - our employees need their files organized within folders. The Creative Cloud app alone doesn't let you make changes to a PDF within the app, you can only view it. 

     

    Do you know of another file-sharing app with a built-in PDF viewer that works fine with Adobe's software?

    Thom Parker
    Community Expert
    Thom ParkerCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    May 19, 2020

    Have you tried dropbox? I use that with Mobile Reader on the iPad, and it allows you to share folders. 

    Have you looked at PDF Expert from Readdle? It's a great PDF viewer, and it works with a variety of shared storage services.

     

    Thom Parker - Software Developer at PDFScriptingUse the Acrobat JavaScript Reference early and often
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