Participant

Answered

Adobe Acrobat Pro DC failing to launch - A running instance of Acrobat has caused an error.

Forum|Forum|2 years ago
December 4, 2023
7 replies
19854 views

We are seeing a recurring issue where users will try to open a PDF in Acrobat Pro or try to launch Adobe Acrobat Pro DC and it will not respond.

After several minutes, the following message appears:
A running instance of Acrobat has caused an error.

Task manager shows a suspended Acrobat background process.
We get users back up and running via killing the process, then repairing the install and having the user sign out and back in with their Adobe ID; but the issue recurrs without rhyme or reason.

I feel like we are spinning our tires with Adobe Support. Our ticket has been escalated multiple times and is sitting with Adobe Engineering, but they have been very slow to respond and we need a resolution.

Has anyone here run into this issue? Any ideas on resolution?

Correct answer BeKind2YourNeighbor

Hello,

I had similar issues and tried the steps in the following thread which seemed to have helped.

https://community.adobe.com/t5/acrobat-discussions/adobe-acrobat-freezing-constantly/td-p/14308117

E

ed_6491

Participant

Same problem,

S

shuang_1473

Participant

Same problem too and defalt fix from Acrobat https://helpx.adobe.com/acrobat/kb/failed-to-connect-to-dde-server.html?x-product=Helpx%2F1.0.0&x-product-location=Search%3AForums%3Alink%2F3.6.6 not working

L

levi_7831

Participant

After fighting this for about a week, this method finally worked for me

Someone posted in this threadHow to reset Acrobat Preference settings to defaul... - Adobe Community - 4792082

S

SW @ solargik

Participating Frequently

I spent ages with Adobe support to "solve" the problem, including clearing certificates, registry and something else that I have forgotten. And this morning the problem is back!

After over 6 months since the problem first appeared, I expect better!

V

Vratislav39042083e8xk

Participant

I have a same problem. Tried everything mentioned here, but nothing helps. Solution is to switch to some acrobat alternative.

J

Jacob Bozdas

Participant

I am having the same issue. I've tried everything and have wasted way too much time trying your suggestions!

Has Adobe found a permanent solution yet??

Amal.

Community Manager

Hi there

Please go through the help page https://helpx.adobe.com/acrobat/kb/failed-to-connect-to-dde-server.html and see if that works.

~Amal

M

Mary36090633nndg

Participant

Did you find a solution for 'A running instance of Acrobat has caused an error' issue?

Z

ZakiyaO1959

Participant

Sorry, there is no solution here but I have the same problem and have gone through the same troubleshooting methods. I haven't contacted support, but I see from your experience that it would be a waste of time.

Amal.

Community Manager

Hi there

What is the version of the OS and the Acrobat DC you are using? To check the version go to Help > About Acrobat and make sure you have the recent version 24.02.20759 installed. Go to Help > Check for updates and reboot the computer once.

Also try to repair the installation from the help menu (Win Only) and see if that works.

Please try to reset the Acrobat preferences as described here https://community.adobe.com/t5/acrobat-discussions/how-to-reset-acrobat-preference-settings-to-default/td-p/4792082

You may also try to create a new test user profile with full admin rights in Win or enable the root account in MAC and try using the application there and check.

~Amal

BeKind2YourNeighborCorrect answer

Participant

Hello,

I had similar issues and tried the steps in the following thread which seemed to have helped.

https://community.adobe.com/t5/acrobat-discussions/adobe-acrobat-freezing-constantly/td-p/14308117

R

reid_6446

Participant

the "Correct answer by Jared35141547qmz3" in the referenced thread worked.

S

SW @ solargik

Participating Frequently

Everything I tried failed. Everything Adobe support tried failed. Obviously ending the running Acrobat instances, uninstall, deep uninstall, and Clearing registry included.

What eventually solved it was resetting my PC - a clean install of the OS. Extremely painful way to solve a problem.

Get Outlook for Android<>

Amal.

Community Manager

Hi there

Hope you are doing well and thanks for reaching out.

The error occurs when an already launched instance of Acrobat is busy or in a hang state and you try to perform some operation from outside Acrobat, for example, opening a PDF file by double-clicking.

Please check out the steps shared in the help page https://helpx.adobe.com/acrobat/kb/failed-to-connect-to-dde-server.html and see if that works for you.

~Amal

SiegePerilous612Author

Participant

All of those steps have been attempted. They do not resolve the issue.

S

Shar W

Participant

Same ... no help

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