Adobe PDF's missing from "Recent Items" in outlook

[davidm98010882]

If you open PDF files from within the Adobe internal file explorer the files will not show up under “recent files” when you try to attach in Outlook.   In outlook when you click “insert”, “Attach File” then look under “Recent Items” the list shows all recently opened items EXCEPT pdf’s.   (All PDF’s are missing)   This issue was a problem a couple of years ago but this seems to be a very recent change or issue. 

Cause (as I’ve identified it)

If you open the PDF using windows explorer instead the files do appear in the recent file list.  (see below)

After opening from Windows Explorer the file shows up in recent items list

[radzmar]

Well, Outlook refers to the Windows explorer and doesn't know anything of that one that also lives in Acrobat, so this is expected.

[dan_6201]

Here is the deal, it used to work that way. I could open a .pdf attachment from out look in adobe reader . I would then add a text biox and signature. Save it to downloads and then go back into outlook , create a message, go to attach it file and it would be there. That was two days ago. Now I cannot and not sure why all of a sudden its not working that way.

[Tariq Ahmad]

Hi @dan_6201, 

Thanks for reaching out. 

When you open a PDF file in Reader, you can add text and a signature and save the file to a location on your local machine. And when you create a new draft in Outlook, you browse for the PDF from the same location, and the file is not visible? Is that correct?

And if you manually go to the location, do you see the file available? 

This seems to be more of an MS Outlook issue than an Adobe Reader issue to me. Is it possible you can share a video recording of your workflow? 

Best regards,
Tariq | Adobe Community Team | Meet Acrobat Studio

[dan_6201]

yes that is exactly it. I think your right the more i dig into it the more its seems to point to is being an Outlook thing and not an adobe thing.

[Leslie2480580841ym]

Hi @Tariq Ahmad 

This same problem just started with me as well. Since version 25.001.20630 last week.

ERP System creates PDF's and sends to viewer or email. These pdf files are opened and saved to File Explorer.

I then go into Outlook, start a mail and attach a file. These newly saved PDF files are there in the Recent Files. This is how it worked until this new version. Now, the Recent Files only contain Office Doc's and pictures. It does not show any PDF's as recent.

I could not find an install file for an earlier 2025 release. From an older post I did find a 2022 install. I installed this older version and immediately the issue was resolved.

Clearly this is not the perfect solution from a security standpoint but I have not found any other solutions. (I did reindex my whole PC but that did not help.

Thanks, Leslie

[Tariq Ahmad]

Hi @Leslie2480580841ym, 

Thanks for reaching out, and for the detailed description and your findings about it. 

Given the details you have shared, I am feeling compelled to discuss internally with the product engineering team.

And before I do that, please help me with the following details:

1. The current version of Acrobat is installed, which resolved the issue.

2. OS name and version

3. Outlook version. 

Will be waiting for your response.

Best regards,
Tariq | Adobe Community Team

[Leslie2480580841ym]

Hi @Tariq Ahmad ,

Thank you for getting back to me on this.

Details:

• Adobe 22.3.20310.0
• Win 10 Pro 22H2 6/12/2020 19045.6093
• MS Outlook for MS 365 MSO  Version 2507 Build 16.0.19029.20136 64-bit

Unfotunately, when I logged in this morning my Adobe had been updated to the 25.001.20630. I am no longer seeing PDF's in recent files in Outlook.

Before I reinstall the 22 version and attempt to stop all auto updating I am hoping a resolution can be found for the current 25 Reader version.

Thank you, Leslie

[Tariq Ahmad]

Thanks for the quick response, @Leslie2480580841ym. 
I have escalated this issue internally to the product engineering team. If we need more information or need help diagnosing this issue at your end, we will reach out. 

Thank you for your patience and continued support.

Best regards,
Tariq | Adobe Community Team

[Kiley24690771qn1c]

Interested in this as the issue as recently began for me last week as well and is creating a lot of time lost!

What we did find was that:

1- If I open an attachment out of Outlook and instead of double clicking the attachment but instead do the drop down and save as, then save the file, it will populate in my recent files as an attachment option for Outlook.

2- If I double click the attachment and then do a file save as, it will not populate as a recentl file attachment option in my Outlook.

3- If I open that file from the saved location and then close it, that causes it to populate in my recent files attachment options in Outlook.

4- If I do a print to pdf from a web browser, that file will populate in my recent files in Outlook.

5- If it is a download attachment option from a web browser, that file will NOT populate in my recent files in Outlook.

6- If I open the file from it's saved location and close, it will now populate in my recent files.

My adobe version as of today is Continuous Release Version 2025.001.20643 and I we use Microsoft 365, I run the Outlook classic version. Would be very grateful for a speedy fix on this one.

[Mitchell38605607chv3]

Has a fix been found for this one?

I have a affected staff member

[DeadProgram]

@Tariq Ahmad  Thanks for excalating this. is it acknowledged engineering team ?

[Tariq Ahmad · Accepted solution]

Hello, 

Yes, this has been acknowledged by the product engineering team. Hence, a bug has been logged.
The issue is still being triaged. There is no update yet for the fix. 

I will keep you updated if you need more information or require your assistance in collecting logs or information from your end. 

Thank you for your continued support and patience. 

Best regards,
Tariq | Adobe Community Team | Meet Acrobat Studio

[intuitive_monkey1618]

This is great news becuase I have an executive vice president with the same issue starting on August 22 and its impacting his productivity.  Others are not impacted, so its been very frustrating.  

[Mitchell38605607chv3]

It's always the most important staff with the weirdest bugs 😂

[defaultukggaafi36vz]

This is also affecting several users in my organization. ETA on a fix yet?

[wardprobrady]

Thank you, Tariq!

Adding my vote for a quick fix so I'm alerted when a it's ready.

I use the Attach File list dozens of times a day.

Much appreciated.

[M_A_K_]

Thanks to everyone who is giving this item the attention it deserves.
Leaving a comment just to get notified of the further progress and hopefully an earliest solution.

[anu_0351]

I too face the same issue from 9/5/2025

[S. S]

Hi All, 

The team has worked on the issue.

While we cannot commit on the exact date for the release, this should be live soon.

Meanwhile, please update the app to the latest version (25.1.20xx) for the best experience.

To do so, go to Menu > Help > Check for Updates.

Regards,
Souvik.

[EDITMICRO]

Thank you for the info - updated an on the latest version 

[Ihor_6159]

Hello dear Adobe team,

We are experiencing the same bug in our company and getting a lot of complains from the users.
We would greatly appreciate it if you could share a roadmap or bug tracking link so we can better understand when this issue is expected to be resolved.

[Jordan39050363zaje]

Hello Adobe Team. I'm happy to see you've acknowledged and are working on this bug. I have a very similar bug that I believe is likely related. Maybe this information can assist with your troubleshooting.

I typically scan multiple invoices at once and download them as PDFs. I open them in Adobe Acrobat DC and extract each invoice from the PDF. I save the invoices to various folders on my computer. Until about 3 weeks ago, the files I extracted and saved would show up in my recent files in quick access in file explorer. This was very convenient, because I could select multiple invoices and drag them into a single email to our accounts payable department without needing to navigate to each folder where the invoices were saved. This stopped working abruptly, but it only seems to be on Adobe. Not on Word or Excel. I don't use Outlook, so I can't speak to the Outlook issue. The only workaround I have been able to find so far is to use the "print to PDF" function instead of the "save as" function when saving the pages that I extract from the original document that I scanned. This is not ideal, since "print to PDF" takes extra processing time and sometimes locks up my computer. It seems that using "print to PDF" forces file explorer to recognize the new file, but "save as" does not. Also, if I open a PDF from anywhere outside of Adobe, the file does appear in my recent files under quick access in my file explorer.

My company's IT department has already tried everything they could on my computer. We have updated Windows, updated Adobe, run a repair on Adobe, checked for and repaired corrupted files, uninstalled and reinstalled Adobe, and triple checked all settings and preferences for Adobe, Windows, and our Security systems.

We eagerly await a fix for this bug, as it really does impact our workflow.

Thank you!

[Emily_Atkins4922]

I have actually had this same issue at work. I send a ton of emails daily and this has made work productivity very slow. I can still look up the pdf from my files by searching this PC but other than that, the recent pdf files no longer exist on the drop down menu for attaching a file on Outlook. It seems it has been since the Adobe update, I manually updated Adobe and ever since this issue has persisted with no changes as of 9-3-25. 

[Becky334494209ioj]

My productivity has definitely taken a hit as well.  Hope they find a fix soon!