"Cannot use adobe reader to view pdf in your web browser" error in Windows 7 and Acrobat pro 8.1.7

[Bob TMT]

I get the error "Cannot use adobe reader to view pdf in your web browser.  Reader will now exit.  Please exit your browser and try again" in Windows 7 x32 and Windows 7 x64 with Acrobat pro 8.1.7.  This happens when trying to open  a PDF file in Internet explorer 8.0.760 or when I open a PDF in Quickbooks 2008.  If I answer ok or cancel the file opens normally.  If I open acrobat 8 first then the pdf files open as expected.  I also tried a copy of Acrobat reader with no difference in the outcome.  Since this happens on two different computers one fresh copy of windows 7 x64 the other an upgrade to windows 7 x32 and they used to work before the change to windows 7, I assume there is some kind of incompatibility with windows 7 and acrobat.  Is this a known issue and will it be fixed in an update to acrobat in the near future?

[Guest]

I take a MS Publisher File and create a PDF File (Publisher->File->Publish as PDF or XPS).

Recently, I started seeing this error message mentioned in this thread.

To get around - I installed PDF Creator (free at SourceForge.net)... and installed "printed the PDF file - to a file".

I no longer receive the error message when trying to view the PDF file.

Obviously, this only addresses the files I create... but it also indicates their is something different in the lastest versions of Adobe Acrobat to Reader.

Also - I cannot positively confirmed this yet - and I may completely wrong... but recently I noticed a Macrovision process starting up when I tried to open a PDF File - created in MS Publisher. The Macrovision process does not start when I open a file created in PDF Creator. If other people are not using MS Publisher to create the file... this might be an indicator coming for Adobe.

[Guest]

Ok here is the fix. Acrobat 8.1.7 obviously has a glitch on Windows 7. I am running Windows 7 Ultimate x64.

1. Intall acrobat reader 9.3 (or latest version).

2. Open Internet Explorer.

• 2a. From the "Tools" menu select "Manage-Add-ons". Add-on types selected should be "Toolbars and Extensions".
• 2b. Disable "Adobe PDF" extensions with a version of 8.x and make sure the ones with a version of 9.x are enabled.
• 2c. I don't use the conversion toolbar. I print everything using bullzip pdf printer. You shouldn't need to disable that one.
• 2d. Close all open internet explorer instances and then try it again.

3. I also changed my local .pdf file association to use Reader 9.3. This should be an optional step.

Cheers,

SM

[tampabb]

I am running Windows 7 32-bit and Acrobat 8 Standard and having the same issue.

I had to install Reader 9 and edit the reg key to point IE to Reader instead of Standard to make the error go away (editing the file associations in Control Panel did not work).

- bb

[oolaindigo]

I've been having this problem forever.

I've tried several different solutions on several different sites - and here is the simple one that worked for me:

In Firefox:

Go to Tools.

Go to Options.

In the Applications tab, where it says Adobe Acrobat Document, change it to "always ask"

For whatever reason, it doesn't ask, but it opens.

Go figure.

Hope this helps someone else before they go downloading or copying and pasting .dll files

[MischaGSP]

Working on Windows 7 64 bit I couldn't get newly installed Acrobat 9 to open any PDFs within any browsers so I went back to 8 versions, and files would open but only AFTER displaying this error message. I tried one of the fixes mentioned above (disable "Allow fast web view” in preferences) and this seems to be working so far.

I am amazed at lack of assistance from Adobe on Windows 7 64 bit issues.., call their help line and half the tech people will tell you that CS4, Acrobat 9 etc are not tested on W7 64 bit, despite plenty of documents on website saying they are. Tech help notes they send you are often useless as they only carry XP and Vista solutions.

About time they caught up with supporting their products on the predominant OS!

[biz_kid1]

This is what worked for me, too:

In Firefox, go to Tools > Options > in the Applications tab, reassociate all PDF options to your current version of Acrobat by navigating to the program itself (i.e., C:\Program Files (x86)\Adobe\Acrobat 8.0\Acrobat\Acrobat.exe).

Now, my theory for why this is occuring is that there was an update to Acrobat that did not reflect in the browser plug in (so I also agree about the others who say it's something with the browser plug in and Acrobat as well).  The reason I think this is because when I attempted to reassociate my files, only Acrobat 8.1 was listed and I know I had updated to 8.2.

I am running Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit, Acrobat 8.2.2, Adobe Reader 9.3.2 and Firefox 3.6.3.  It might be useful is others added this information to their posts as well.

Edited to add: This only temporarily solved my issue.  The error has returned.  Maybe someday Adobe will figure it out and enlighten the users who support their products, too!

[das90901]

Hi all.

This is a solution to your problem.

OS: Windows 7 -32bit

CS 3 -Acrobat 8 Pro already installed- this causes the above described pop-up

After spending quite some time on this issue I realized that the best way to go about it was to install Adobe Reader 9.0, and then upgrade to 9.2 and 9.3.

Following are the steps that I followed and it worked.

Download and Install Adobe Reader 9.0

a.       Install the software

b.      When asked which program you would like to use to read pdf files, choose Adobe Reader 9

c.       Restart

d.      Use internet explorer and browse to an online pdf file and open it.

e.       Restart

f.       Use internet explorer and browse to an online pdf file and open it.

g.       Now you will not be able to open it anymore, and will receive a blank pop up window error.

h.      Open up Adobe 9.0

i.        Upgrade to 9.2

j.        Restart

k.      Use internet explorer and browse to an online pdf file and open it.

l.        You should now be able to read pdf files inside your browser.

Perform the rest of the updates and make sure you can read pdf files after each update

This worked for me 100%

p.s. if you happen to update acrobat 8 and the you end up not being able to read pds online anymore, go to Help-> Repaid Adobe Reader Installation, and that will fix Adobe Reader 9.

Good luck!

[elongp]

Our agency is at Adobe Acrobat 8.22 and Adobe Reader 8.22. We do not plan on upgrading to 9 anytime soon. So unfortunately, that is not an option. Thanks anyway.

>>> das90901 <forums@adobe.com> 6/7/2010 11:49 AM >>>

Hi all.

This is a solution to your problem.

OS: Windows 7 -32bit

CS 3 -Acrobat 8 Pro already installed- this causes the above described pop-up

After spending quite some time on this issue I realized that the best way to go about it was to install Adobe Reader 9.0, and then upgrade to 9.2 and 9.3.

Following are the steps that I followed and it worked.

Download and Install Adobe Reader 9.0

a. Install the software

b. When asked which program you would like to use to read pdf files, choose Adobe Reader 9

c. Restart

d. Use internet explorer and browse to an online pdf file and open it.

e. Restart

f. Use internet explorer and browse to an online pdf file and open it.

g. Now you will not be able to open it anymore, and will receive a blank pop up window error.

h. Open up Adobe 9.0

i. Upgrade to 9.2

j. Restart

k. Use internet explorer and browse to an online pdf file and open it.

l. You should now be able to read pdf files inside your browser.

Perform the rest of the updates and make sure you can read pdf files after each update

This worked for me 100%

[Guest]

I'm not sure if my solution will work for others

OS: Windows 7 64bit

Adobe Acrobat 8 Professional

Right click on Acrobat icon on start menu and select properties

Select Compatibility Tab

Check run this program in compatibility mode for tab and highlight windows xp service pack 3

Check run as administrator

Select ok.

It worked for me.

Hope this helps.

[geovie]

Thank you. Well, I happened to click similar problem in the forum and found out also the solution. I went to the tool bar under options and defaulted to Adobe Reader 9.3. Problem solve.

[Neo719]

This may be a siple solution for some.

I have Acrobat professional 8.x installed on windows 7. I was getting this very error message, but PDF's were opening about half the time anyway.

I was having the problem in both IE8 and FF 3.6

In IE, I found that I had 4 Adobe addons 2 of which were both called Adobe PDF. I disabled one. In doing so, it told me it would disable 2 others including the second Adobe PDF and offerred to disable the third.

I unchecked all the boxes so hat it only disabled the one PDF addon. The problem went away an both browsers.

I can't explain. I can only share the experience.

[geovie]

Thanks for this information. I was able to resolve my ordeal by selecting the tools under option, application and defaulted it to Acrobat adobe 9. Now, I can view any PDF files.

[Guest]

This TechNote addresses this issue:

http://kb2.adobe.com/cps/405/kb405461.html

[gkaiseril]

You might want to check Adobe product operating system compatibility and follow the link for Reader and check the system requirements for each version. Windows 7 is only listed under version 9.3.3.

Adobe Reader 9.3.3 system requirements

Windows

• Intel Pentium® III or equivalent processor
• Microsoft® Windows® 2000 with Service Pack 4; Windows Server® 2003 (32-bit or 64-bit editions) with Service Pack 1; Windows XP® Professional, Home, Tablet PC(32-bit or 64-bit editions) with Service Pack 2 or 3(32-bit or 64-bit editions); or Windows Vista® Home Basic, Home Premium, Ultimate, Business, or Enterprise with Service Pack 1 or 2 (32-bit or 64-bit editions)

Adobe Reader 8.2 system requirements

Windows

• Intel Pentium® III or equivalent processor
• Microsoft® Windows® 2000 with Service Pack 4; Windows Server® 2003 (32-bit or 64-bit editions) with Service Pack 1; Windows XP® Professional, Home, Tablet PC(32-bit or 64-bit editions) with Service Pack 2 or 3(32-bit or 64-bit editions); or Windows Vista® Home Basic, Home Premium, Ultimate, Business, or Enterprise with Service Pack 1 or 2 (32-bit or 64-bit editions)

And for Acrobat:

Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Reader, and Microsoft Windows 7

Do Adobe Acrobat 9 and Adobe Reader 9 support Windows 7?

Yes. Adobe will support Windows 7 with Acrobat 9 and Adobe Reader 9. Adobe has tested Acrobat 9 and Adobe Reader 9 software on Windows 7 and found the solutions perform to our high standards of quality and performance.* Earlier versions of Acrobat and Adobe Reader may run on Windows 7. However, Adobe does not support Acrobat 8, Adobe Reader 8, or earlier versions on Windows 7 and does not plan to release updates to those versions for Windows 7 compatibility. Enterprise customers with a Gold or Platinum support plan can contact Customer Support for Windows 7 migration planning tips, best practices, and advice. Visit the support page for the latest product support information.

*Adobe is confident that Acrobat 9.2, Adobe Reader 9.2, Adobe Connect™, Adobe Presenter, Adobe LiveCycle Designer, and Adobe 3D Reviewer will perform as expected. While we have performed expansive testing on Windows 7, there may be unexpected issues that were not discovered during our testing efforts.

Do Adobe Acrobat 9 and Adobe Reader 9 require updates to be compatible with Windows 7?

Yes. Acrobat 9.2 and Adobe Reader 9.2 are required for compatibility with Windows 7. Acrobat 9 and Adobe Reader 9 users will automatically receive this free update if their preferences are set to check for updates. The updates can also be downloaded from Adobe Product Updates at http://www.adobe.com/downloads/updates or by selecting "Check for Updates" from the Help menu of Acrobat or Adobe Reader.

What about older versions of Acrobat and Windows 7?

If you own Acrobat 6, Acrobat 7, or Acrobat 8 software, you are eligible for an upgrade to Acrobat 9. An Acrobat 9 upgrade can be purchased through your Adobe reseller or the Adobe Store. Upgrading to Acrobat 9 will ensure compatibility with Windows 7 and access to the latest product enhancements such as the ability to build PDF Portfolios, to create and track PDF forms, and to manage team collaboration working with additional services available with a free Acrobat.com services account. Acrobat 9 can be used to create high-quality PDF files from virtually any application and delivers one-click functionality from popular business applications such as Microsoft Office 2007, Microsoft Internet Explorer, Microsoft Project, Microsoft Visio, and Lotus Notes. More information about upgrading to Acrobat 9 is available from upgrade page. Enterprise customers with a Gold

[andrew.in.boston]

I'm also having the same problem on my end, using Windows 7 64 bit professional, using Adobe 8.1.3.  Waiting for a fix!

[Bill12]

If you have Reader, upgrade to AR9. If you have Acrobat, update to the latest version (AA8.2.3). If the latter does not do the job, it is likely just the fact that AA8 is not compatible with Win7 as stated by Adobe. Adobe is not a product, but a company.

[jz2010]

Files in the Adobe AppData folder, both Roaming and Local, seem to be part of the solution.  At least when I delete them, the error comes back up.  Maybe there's something related in the registry too.

c:\Users\%USERNAME%\AppData\Local\Adobe\Acrobat\8.0\

c:\Users\%USERNAME%\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\Acrobat\8.0\

c:\Users\%USERNAME%\AppData\Temp\Acr*.tmp  (maybe)

I'm trying to track down what changes with sysinternals procmon, but it's not working yet.

I'm hesitant to go to Acrobat Reader 9, since we still have Adobe CS3 with Acrobat 8, and we can't afford an upgrade.

It seems to work anyway.  All Adobe would have to do is hide the error message.  I'm in windows 7 64 bit.

If you don't need the plugin, this works (no it doesn't):

reg load HKU\ntuser.dat c:\users\default\ntuser.dat
reg add "HKU\ntuser.dat\Software\Adobe\Acrobat Reader\8.0\Originals" /f /v bBrowserIntegration /d 0 /t REG_DWORD
reg unload HKU\ntuser.dat

[Julie_Mcmurray]

Window 7 is still pretty new. And it will take some time for the adobe deveopler to do something about it. I don't expect this to get resolve too soon.

Better to stick to the older OS if possible and wait for some time before upgrading  to newer OS. That's what I think.

[Chris_HSV]

I changed the file association for pdfxml to Acrobat 8.1 (it was Reader 9), and this fixed my problem.  I also have Win 7 and IE 8.

[Neo719]

How did you do that. I do not have an association for pdfxml that I can find. A registry search for pdfxml comes up empty.

Acrobat Pro 8.2.5 Windows 7

[Chris_HSV]

IE8 ->Tools -> Options -> Programs -> Set Programs -> Associate a file by extension

There's probably a shorter route through control panel.

[jz2010]

I don't see any '.pdfxml' either.  Then again I don't have adobe reader 9 installed.

[RandomReado]

I was told to upgrade to Acrobat 9 to fix the issue. By the way, we use software that we've spent ££££ on previously that was designed for Windows 95; and it WORKS 100% with Windows 7 without the need to spend money. This makes Adobe software look crap.

We had no choice but to look elsewhere - I found NitroPDF who told me they were overwhelmed with sales from people in the same position as me. So we purchased NitroPDF Pro for the entire business, saved £££ in the process, and it works better than Acrobat did. It also works with Windows 7.

I'd urge anyone else to consider doing the same.

[gchq_3]

"We had no choice but to look elsewhere - I found NitroPDF who told me they were overwhelmed with sales from people in the same position as me. "

I checked out their site - and they have no way of contacting them (unless you want to buy 11 or more licences)!

To be fair to Adobe they can be contacted (email, phone and instant message) very easily! I'm hoping, from a personal point of view, that the next version (10) due out in a week will resolve all the issues with 64 bit browsers (in particular desktop apps that use WebBrowser and fall over in 64 bit mode, but fail in 32 bit mode if the user has 64 bit Office installed) - as well as the very annoying 'cannot use adobe reader to view pdf in your web browser..' issue

[ItsOkayNow]

This was previously posted and it worked for me in Reader 9.4

Easy fix:

1. Open Acrobat 8**

2. Go to Edit > Preferences > Documents

4. Look at the "Save Settings" area

3. Uncheck "Save as optimizes for fast web view"

Relax and enjoy the raise the boss will now give you.