20965 patch not installing, error 1603

[ExhaustedTech]

Patch not installing properly on about 10% of devices. We just reinstalled Acrobat across the org because of the broken April update and again, we're having issues patching. It doesn't install automatically when users run it and when I try to push the patch with /qn, it gives error 1603. Logging in directly on the PC and running the patch works on some but we can't keep having to do this each month on 100+ devices. What can we do to fix this so we can install remotely via powershell, SCCM, etc without the constant errors? If there was something wrong with how we're running it, it wouldn't work on the rest of devices so it tells me there is something else Adobe doesn't agree with. 

LogCollector shows:

New file object: AcrobatDCx64Upd2400220965.msp

MVF259

Newer version ARM update is not available

NtReadVirtualMemory read_peb failed, error: -2147483635

NtQueryInformationProcess failed, error: -1073741790

NtReadVirtualMemory read_peb failed, error: -1073741790

NtQueryInformationProcess failed, error: -1073741790

ARM returns ERROR_SUCCESS

[S. S]

Hi @ExhaustedTech,

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

Sharing some troubleshooting steps in case you experience similar issues in the future.

The steps can be found here: Error 1603: A fatal error occurred during Adobe Creative Suite installation

-Souvik

[ExhaustedTech]

For anyone who finds this later, the only real resolution is to do a complete uninstall/reinstall with a cleanup. Since the built-in uninstaller doesn't clean everything, you need to uninstall, run the cleaner, find and delete all additional Adobe reg keys that the cleaner doesn't remove and then reinstall. 

Adobe will send all kinds of useless information of things to look at but never actually resolves the core issue. The ending result is months wasted, just to end up uninstalling/reinstalling. Given this is an ongoing issue for decades, it's best to set the expectation of uninstalling/reinstalling Adobe quarterly in your environment, if you plan on keeping it updated.