PDF links change when file is copied

Question

Hello,I'm having issues when creating links in a PDF file with Adobe Acrobat (Pro) (Continuous Release | Version 2025.001.21288 |64-Bit). When I create the link to another PDF while the original PDF is in location A (a network location, that is addressed with the absolute location: \netServer
etFolder\fileName.pdf), the link works fine and the linked file is opened in Adobe Reader displayed.This is how the link is created (German version):> Verknüpfungseigenschaften > Aktionen > Aktion hinzufügen > Aktion auswählen > Artikel lesenAktionen > Datei öffnen > FileEnglish should look like this:> Link Properties > Actions tab > Select Action dropdown > Open a file > Select... (to choose the target file) However, when I copy the original PDF containing those links, paste it into a different location (location B, e.g. to the Windows Desktop), those links appear to be broken and the linked PDF does not display on click.Upon further investigation, it appears that the links are appending part of the path of the new location (location B) to the beginning of the path in the link, effectively breaking the link when the PDF is moved (C:\Users\myUser\Desktop
etFolder\fileName.pdf).So the original absolute path somehow seems to be converted to a relative one, breaking the link.I have already checked that max. path length is short enough for not causing issues.Any help would be appreciated.

try67 · Answer

While links that were created in Acrobat appear to point to an absolute file-path, they are often relative. Only if the target file is located on a different drive are they created with an absolute path. I’m not 100% sure how it would work if they are on a network drive, but I think it’s probably the same.
The problem is you can’t see that in Acrobat. You need to examine the file with an external tool to know the exact path used in them, but if the links change when you move the file from one folder to another, or to another drive or computer, then they are relative.

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