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N
Nicholas Avallone
Inspiring
September 14, 2010
Question

PDF Distiller Error: Invalid Font

  • September 14, 2010
  • 2 replies
  • 19900 views

I've been getting the following error every time I try to create a PDF using Distiller (either as Word plugin or as a printer from any program, including Firefox, Illustrator, and even Acrobat itself):

%%[ Error: invalidfont; OffendingCommand: findfont ]%%

Stack:
/Font
/Courier
/courier


%%[ Flushing: rest of job (to end-of-file) will be ignored ]%%
%%[ Warning: PostScript error. No PDF file produced. ] %%

I've tried disallowing font embedding, resetting my font directories in Distiller, and a few other things. But considering Courier is a Windows system font, it seems unlikely that it's font rights management issue or a missing font issue. Moreover, the error appears when trying to create a PDF with no fonts at all (e.g. open a JPG in Acrobat then try to print).

Could this be the result of a bad update? My Distiller version is 9.3.3177.

    2 replies

    active_day15C2
    active_day15C2
    Participant
    September 24, 2024

    Turn of this checkbox in your printer context to prevent using system fonts only. After that it works for me.

     

    Creative Things
    S_S
    Community Manager
    S_SCommunity Manager
    Community Manager
    February 6, 2025

    Hi @daleenmedia,

     

    Hope you are doing well. Sorry for the trouble, and the delayed response.

     

    The team was aware of the issue and fixed it with subsequent releases. Would you mind updating the app to the latest version (2024.005.20xxx) and letting us know if the issue is fixed?

    Root Cause:

    • The issue occurs because the font is not included in the PostScript (PS) file.
    • When the distiller tries to convert the file to PDF, it looks for the font in the system folder.
    • However, cloud fonts, which are specific to Microsoft 365, are not available for other applications, leading to the problem.

    Workaround:

    • The current workaround is to instruct the print system to embed the fonts directly into the PostScript file.

    Hope this clarifies your question.


    -Souvik

    N
    Nicholas AvalloneAuthor
    Inspiring
    April 7, 2011

    I'm posting the solution I finally found after months of intermittent searching.


    Acrobat Distiller no longer has access to the base font Courier  which is part of a standard installation. This means none of its font  locations directs it to Acrobat's own font folder anymore.

    Start Acrobat Distiller and select "Font locations" within its "Settings" menu. Remove  all the font folders listed there, except for the one that points to a subfolder  called "/Resource/Font" within the Acrobat application folder. Acrobat Distiller will then search your hard disk for all  font locations. Close the dialog and restart Acrobat Distiller. Now the error should no longer appear.

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