AdobeARM keeps asking for admin access when opening Adobe Acrobat

Report · May 15, 2025

I have a Windows 11 pro computer and I am having an issue with Adobe asking for a password to access AdobeARM.exe every time I open Adobe Acrobat.

I have tried repairing Adobe Acrobat and Creative Cloud. I have uninstalled Adobe Acrobat and Creative Cloud. I ran the Adobe uninstall tool and Adobe CC Cleaner. I reinstalled it and still got the same error message.

I tried giving the user read and write permissions for the user to the C:\Program Files\Common Files\Adobe\ARM\1.0\AdobeARM.exe and still get asked for the admin credentials.

I tried disabling the Adobe update service.

In the multiple times I have reinstalled Adobe I did try removing Adobe folders from the computer and still get the error message.

I also tried creating a new deployment package from the Admin Console and installing it as well and I get the same request for admin credentials.

The computer is a domain environment and all users are setup as standard user rights. None of the other Adobe users are having this issue.

Anything else I can try?

Report · May 15, 2025

Hi @Kevin S. Peterson,

Thanks for reporting this!

The prompt for admin access when launching Acrobat usually points to AdobeARM.exe being set to run with elevated privileges.

To fix it:

Go to: C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\Adobe\ARM\1.0\AdobeARM.exe
Right-click > Properties > Compatibility.
Make sure “Run this program as administrator” is unchecked.

Also, you may want to repair Acrobat via Help > Repair Installation to ensure no corruption is causing the issue.

Let us know if the prompt still appears afterward — we’re here to dig deeper if needed!

Also, let us know the processor make and model.

~Tariq

Report · May 15, 2025

Hi Tariq,

I looked at the compatibilty settings for the AdobeARM.exe and the run as administrator box is unchecked.

I also have done a repair of Adobe and of Creative Cloud and I get the same error message.

Thanks

Report · May 20, 2025

Any ideas of anything else I can try.

Report · Jun 13, 2025

Hello @Kevin S. Peterson!

I hope you are doing well, and we are sorry for the delayed response.

This issue appears to be isolated to a specific machine or image, as other users in the same domain are unaffected. That suggests a local configuration or corruption rather than a systemic deployment issue.

Double-check Compatibility Settings. Even if you've already reviewed this:

Navigate to: C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\Adobe\ARM\1.0\AdobeARM.exe
Right-click > Properties > Compatibility tab
Ensure “Run this program as administrator” is unchecked. Also, check the Security tab to confirm that standard users have Read & Execute permissions.

Disable AdobeARM Scheduled Task. Open Task Scheduler
Navigate to: Task Scheduler Library > Adobe Acrobat Update Task
Disable or delete the task if it’s configured to run with elevated privileges.

If you're deploying via Admin Console, use the Adobe Customization Wizard to create a deployment package that disables automatic updates and AdobeARM.
Under Online Services and Features, disable “Enable Acrobat Update Service.” Repackage and redeploy.

Registry Permissions Audit, Check the following registry key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Adobe\ARM\1.0

Ensure standard users have read access. If the key is missing or corrupted, it may cause AdobeARM to attempt repair on launch.

Group Policy Review: Ensure no GPO is enforcing elevation for AdobeARM.exe or restricting the execution of update services. You can use: gpresult /h report.html to generate a report and inspect applied policies.

Try creating a new local test profile and testing the behaviors. If the issue still continues, please provide the following information: the current version of the operating system on your device, the current version of Acrobat, and the logs from the affected machine. To collect the logs, download and run the Log Collector tool. Make sure to select all log options and attempt to reproduce the issue. After that, close the Log Collector tool; it will generate the logs along with a log ID. Please share this log ID with us for further investigation.

Thanks,

Anand Sri.