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Preflight asks me to choose a coated stock, how do I run an analysis-only check in Acrobat Pro?

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Acrobat Pro doesn't let me run a preflight without me having to choose a coated category, which doesn't apply to my printing.

I need to run Preflight in Acrobat Pro on aPDF but it asks me to chose a type of coated stock to work with. I just need it to analyze the formatting as it did in the past to know if it’s compliant or not.

Anand Sri BhattacharyaCorrect answer

Community Manager

Thanks Jonathan, that detail pins it down. Could you share the exact Acrobat build from Acrobat > About Acrobat, plus the full name of the selected Preflight profile and the title of the output-condition dialog? The build identifies whether you’re using the Continuous or Classic track.

The FOGRA39/"coated" prompt is the giveaway that your path is landing on a Convert to PDF/X-1a profile. Those profiles actually rewrite the file to be PDF/X-1a, and PDF/X compliance requires a destination output intent (a CMYK ICC profile such as Coated FOGRA39, GRACoL, SWOP, or Japan Color), so Acrobat has to make you choose one.

That is the colour it would tag the file for. It is not a bug, just a different profile from the one you used before.

The simple "Analyze / Analyze and Fix" screen you remember is the Verify profile, and it never asks for a coated format. Here is how to get to it on your Mac:

Open the PDF, then All tools > Use print production > Preflight (classic UI: Tools > Print Production > Preflight; shortcut Cmd+Shift+X).
In the Preflight window, change the Libraries menu at the top from Essentials to PDF Standards.
On the Profiles tab, expand PDF/X compliance and select Verify compliance with PDF/X-1a (not one of the "Convert to PDF/X-1a (…)" profiles).
Click Analyze. If the file happens to have no output intent, that just shows up as a finding in the results, it will not force you to pick one.

Also, do you only need to verify PDF/X-1a compliance (use Verify, above), or do you actually need to produce/convert a PDF/X-1a file to hand off? If it is the latter, you will use a "Convert to PDF/X-1a (…)" profile and will need to choose the output intent that matches your press and paper, FOGRA39 is the common European coated condition, GRACoL/SWOP are the US coated ones, so it is worth confirming with your printer which they expect.

Current documented workflow

Open All tools > Use print production > Preflight.
Choose PDF Standards from the Libraries menu and select Profiles.
For an inspection only, select an appropriate PDF/X validation profile/check and choose Analyze.
To convert the file, select the PDF/X-1a conversion profile and choose Analyze and Fix.
If Specify Variable Value appears, select the output condition required for the intended printing process, then save the converted PDF.

A profile showing a gray wrench includes fixups; Analyze reports issues without correcting them, while Analyze and Fix performs the conversion/fixups.

I hope this helps.

Regards,

Anand Sri.

J

jonathan_6638Author

Participant

Thanks to all. I’m away for a few days and can follow up after that.

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Anand Sri Bhattacharya

Community Manager

@jonathan_6638 Sure, we will wait for your response.

Thanks,

Anand Sri.

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J

jonathan_6638Author

Participant

I don’t know how to answer what you’re asking, but my software is classic.

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BaniVerma

Community Manager

Hi jonathan_6638,

No worries, let's simplify this. The Classic vs Continuous detail isn't critical right now, so let's set that aside and focus on getting you to the screen you're actually looking for.

The coated-stock prompt appears because you're currently on a "Convert to PDF/X-1a" profile, which rewrites the file and requires an output condition. What you want instead is a "Verify" profile, which only analyzes the file and never asks for a coated stock.

Here's the shortest path to it:

Open your PDF, then go to All tools > Use print production > Preflight.
At the top of the Preflight window, change the Libraries dropdown from Essentials to PDF Standards.
Expand PDF/X compliance in the list.
Select Verify compliance with PDF/X-1a (not one of the "Convert to PDF/X-1a" options).
Click Analyze.

That should give you the simple pass/fail check you remember, with no need to select coated stock.

One more thing that would help: please share the exact Acrobat build number from Acrobat > About Acrobat.

Also, please send us the email address (Adobe ID) you're signed in with in the desktop app via a private message. That would help us confirm everything lines up on our end. You can send a private message by clicking on our profile icon and selecting "Send message."

Let us know how it goes, or if you get stuck on any of those steps.

Thanks,
^BS

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J

jonathan_6638Author

Participant

Thanks for buzzing in. I’m working on a Mac OS Tahoe 26.6.2. I have Acrobat Pro and need to do a Preflight for PDF/X1a. Through print production it takes me to the usual screen to choose the PDF/X then to 1a it wants me to choose a “coated” format such as FOGRA39 to use. It used to open to a simple screen to analyze or analyze and fix but that doesn’t happen without a choice. My actobat is current and updated yesterday.

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Anand Sri Bhattacharya

Correct answer

Community Manager

Thanks Jonathan, that detail pins it down. Could you share the exact Acrobat build from Acrobat > About Acrobat, plus the full name of the selected Preflight profile and the title of the output-condition dialog? The build identifies whether you’re using the Continuous or Classic track.

The FOGRA39/"coated" prompt is the giveaway that your path is landing on a Convert to PDF/X-1a profile. Those profiles actually rewrite the file to be PDF/X-1a, and PDF/X compliance requires a destination output intent (a CMYK ICC profile such as Coated FOGRA39, GRACoL, SWOP, or Japan Color), so Acrobat has to make you choose one.

That is the colour it would tag the file for. It is not a bug, just a different profile from the one you used before.

The simple "Analyze / Analyze and Fix" screen you remember is the Verify profile, and it never asks for a coated format. Here is how to get to it on your Mac:

Open the PDF, then All tools > Use print production > Preflight (classic UI: Tools > Print Production > Preflight; shortcut Cmd+Shift+X).
In the Preflight window, change the Libraries menu at the top from Essentials to PDF Standards.
On the Profiles tab, expand PDF/X compliance and select Verify compliance with PDF/X-1a (not one of the "Convert to PDF/X-1a (…)" profiles).
Click Analyze. If the file happens to have no output intent, that just shows up as a finding in the results, it will not force you to pick one.

Also, do you only need to verify PDF/X-1a compliance (use Verify, above), or do you actually need to produce/convert a PDF/X-1a file to hand off? If it is the latter, you will use a "Convert to PDF/X-1a (…)" profile and will need to choose the output intent that matches your press and paper, FOGRA39 is the common European coated condition, GRACoL/SWOP are the US coated ones, so it is worth confirming with your printer which they expect.

Current documented workflow

Open All tools > Use print production > Preflight.
Choose PDF Standards from the Libraries menu and select Profiles.
For an inspection only, select an appropriate PDF/X validation profile/check and choose Analyze.
To convert the file, select the PDF/X-1a conversion profile and choose Analyze and Fix.
If Specify Variable Value appears, select the output condition required for the intended printing process, then save the converted PDF.

A profile showing a gray wrench includes fixups; Analyze reports issues without correcting them, while Analyze and Fix performs the conversion/fixups.

I hope this helps.

Regards,

Anand Sri.

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Anand Sri Bhattacharya

Community Manager

Hello @jonathan_6638,

I hope you are doing well, and thanks for reaching out. We're sorry for the trouble you had.

Could you please share more details about the issue?

Which compliance check are they trying to run? A) PDF/X, B) PDF/A, C) Print production/prepress check, D) Not sure.
Is Acrobat prompting for the coated stock selection when they run: A) a PDF/X conversion/fixup, B) a validation profile, or C) every Preflight profile?
Are you on a Mac or Windows machine, and what is the version of the OS installed?

Suggestions:

Open the PDF and choose All tools > Use print production > Preflight.
In the Preflight dialogue, select the Profiles tab and choose an appropriate analysis/checking profile from a group such as PDF Analysis, Prepress, or the required compliance group. Adobe separates profiles into checks, fixups, or a combination of both; profiles showing a filled gray wrench include fixups that can change the PDF.
Check this article for more details: https://adobe.ly/4iOmHGi

Select Analyze, not Analyze and Fix.
Analyze inspects the PDF and reports mismatches without correcting them. Analyze and Fix applies the profile’s corrections and can permanently change the document. If you need to check only a particular property, such as embedded fonts, image resolution, color spaces, or transparency, select Single Checks, choose the required check, and select Analyze.

To learn more, please check these articles: https://adobe.ly/4qWSc3m

https://adobe.ly/3VadCOj

https://adobe.ly/3Uz0KBd

Also, ensure that you have the latest version of Acrobat installed on the machine: 26.002.21869, Planned update, Aug 31, 2026. Check for any pending updates from Menu >Help > Check for updates, install any pending updates, restart the app, and the computer.

I hope this helps, and please reach out if you have any questions or need any assistance.

Regards,

Anand Sri.

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