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T
tycook
Participant
May 22, 2025
Question

whitelist DFS UNC network paths so we can save a password encrypted PDF

  • May 22, 2025
  • 1 reply
  • 1339 views

Greetings, 

We are on Win11 PCs joined to an Active Directory enterprise environment running Adobe Acrobat DC  2025.0011.20474 64 bit.  Opening a PDF on a windows 2019 server shared folder won't let us "save" that same PDF with the same filename after setting an encrypted password. 

 

It will say the above error: "The document could not be saved.  Cannot save to this filename. Please save the document with a different name or in a different folder." 

 

Then the PDF will change to a tmp file inside local drive appdata folder 

until you specify a new name and "save as" it to the original network location. Then the user has to remember to delete the prior version to be able to rename the file back to what it should be.

It happened when using a \\servername\share or a \\DFSname\Share.  It didn't happen when the PDF was on a local drive.  But our PDFs are on the network share so they are backed up consistently, so we need to get them saveable there without the error.

This issue stopped when I disabled "protected mode".  But we need that protected mode to be on so we aren't running against best practice for security.   

How do I "whitelist" or "safelist" or "trust" the network share location so the user will just have to click "save" and not go down this path of risking duplicated files and dealing with an error every time they encrypt a PDF? 

I've tried putting the \\servername\path and the \\dfsname\path in the trusted zone in the Internet Options, but the issue still occurs. 

  

I've added the folder path to the "priviledged locations", but the issue still occurs.  I've of course rebooted and tried it with different users on different PCs.  It is not a unique user or windows file permissions issue.  Please, we need the "save" button to simply work  when it's on a network share after the change, like it does when the file is on a local drive or when protected mode is disabled.

Thank you for your time,

Ty

    1 reply

    S_S
    Community Manager
    S_SCommunity Manager
    Community Manager
    May 23, 2025

    Hi @tycook,

     

    Thank you for reaching out and for providing detailed information about the issue you're encountering when saving password-protected PDFs to DFS (Distributed File System) UNC (Universal Naming Convention) network paths.

     

    When attempting to save a password-encrypted PDF directly to a DFS UNC path, you might experience errors or unexpected behavior. This is often due to the enhanced security features in Adobe Acrobat that are designed to protect your documents and system.

     

    Since the steps above didn’t resolve the issue, here are a few additional steps you can try:

    Check Acrobat's Enhanced Security Settings

    Even with the trusted location added, some features like Protected Mode and Enhanced Security might still block file access, especially on complex network paths.

    What to try:

    • Go to Edit > Preferences > Security (Enhanced)

    • Temporarily disable “Enable Protected Mode at startup” and “Enable Enhanced Security”

    • Restart Acrobat and test saving the PDF again

    Important: Re-enable these settings once testing is complete to maintain your system's protection.

    Adobe Help Reference: Enhanced security settings

    Map the DFS UNC Path to a Network Drive

    Some underlying Windows permissions may behave differently when using UNC paths vs. mapped drives. Mapping the DFS path to a network drive may resolve the issue.

    How to do it:

    • In Windows Explorer, right-click This PC > Map network drive

    • Choose a drive letter and enter the UNC path (e.g., \\domain.local\data\share)

    • Try saving the encrypted PDF to this mapped drive in Acrobat

    Windows Guide: Map a network drive

    Ensure Write Permissions and Offline Files Are Disabled

    Some DFS setups cache files or apply read-only permissions inconsistently, especially when offline files are enabled.

    Check:

    • Right-click the DFS folder > Properties > Security tab: Ensure the user has Full Control

    • In Sync Center, turn off offline file caching for the DFS path if it's enabled

    Microsoft Help: Disable Offline Files

     

     

    Hope this helps.


    Regards,
    Souvik.

    T
    tycookAuthor
    Participant
    May 28, 2025

    Greetings Souvik,

    Thank you for the reply back.  I have tried each of the suggestions and ended with the results below:

    1. When I disable the security settings, I am able to save to the DFS path successfully. But we need to keep these protections active and hopefully figure out a way to properly set our internal network paths as "safe" to save to.

    2.  I've mapped the drive to the path and confirmed I have full control permissions.  I can create, edit and delete a text file for example.  But the acrobat PDF still acts the same way with the same error when I attempt to save to the same mapped drive folder with the same name. 

     

    3. I confirmed the testing account has full control to the path and offline file caching is disabled.

     

    Is there some place I can safelist the server name, or DFS path, or mapped drive so that Adobe Acrobat will know the is a safe place to save files?

    Thank you for your assistance,

    Ty

     

     

    S_S
    Community Manager
    S_SCommunity Manager
    Community Manager
    July 11, 2025

    Hi @tycook,

     

    Hope you are doing well. Sorry for the delayed response.

     

    In case you are still looking for a solution, here are a few steps I suggest you try:

    In the registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Adobe\Acrobat Reader\<version>\FeatureLockDown, create a DWORD named bUseWhitelistConfigFile with a value of 1.

     

    Next, create the whitelist text file:
    1. Named: ProtectedModeWhitelistConfig.txt
    2. Content example:
    ; Files Section
    FILES_ALLOW_ANY = \\YourFileServer\*
    3. This tells Acrobat that it’s allowed to trust files on that UNC server—note: use server name, not DFS path

     

    Now, deploy the text file into C:\Program Files \Adobe\<version>\Reader.

     

    Once done, restart Acrobat and test the workflow again.

     

    If it works, you can roll out the changes to the rest of the devices.

     

    Let us know if this helps.


    Regards,
    Souvik.

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