acrobat fill-in forms crashing

[BHR5FEC]

I have a user experiencing a odd problem. They have Adobe Acrobat (the free version) & are using fill-in forms. The forms work fine on other computers. Recently after their latest OS (Win 10) & application updates, they started having this problem.

When they click on any field in the form (any fill-in form), it opens. But as soon as they click into a field, the form crashes. They get the standard "Acrobat quit unexpectedly. Click 'Learn more' for possible fixes." message.

However, when they open Acrobat directly, then go to File & open the pdf that way, the problem does not occur.

This happens regardless of who is logged into the computer, so it isn't user or profile dependent.

I've uninstall all of the OS updates (that were un-installable) that happened right before the problem started occurring.

I've completely uninstalled acrobat, ran the cleaner tool, then reinstalled after downloading the latest version.

I've unchecked the preview checkbox in the settings.

I've tried adjusting countless security options.

[Abambo]

What is the exact version of Acrobat and the OS? (latest is not an exact version number)

[BHR5FEC]

23.8.20421.0

[James23895162k2w6]

So yesterday I was doing some testing for another issue and I had to install Adobe. And I used this link https://get.adobe.com/reader/enterprise/ that I was told to use from Adobe. It looks like they turned off the new UI and there's no way to go back to it.  I checked the version and it was 2023.008.20470. Just the old UI an of course it doesn't crash anymore.  My ticket has been open since 1/16/24. I'm hoping a fix will happen soon.

[James23895162k2w6]

I'm having the pretty much the same issue do this for me ...take one of the forms that crashes every time make sure it's not on someone who has an account (AKA not Signed in)  there's a pop on the lower left side that comes up and says  "Convert, edit and e-sign PDF forms & agreements Free 7-day trial" if you wait until message comes up it works EVERY time. I have ticket open up for 15 days. Support is saying that I should modify the reg keys and disable the "New Interface" I'm 100% able to recreate this issue it looks like it was working all the way up to Version 2023.006.20380 and when 2023.008.20470 came out it broke it

Let me know what happens  

[David35163760r4wt]

I experienced this issue with both the licenced version of Adobe Acrobat and the free version.  For me the fix seems to be disabling the "new" Adobe Acrobat experience.  To disable, click Menu>Disable new Acrobat Reader.

[James23895162k2w6]

Right on that's what Adobe is NOW (after day 13 or 14) telling me the work around is.. not really (and no offense to you :)) that's not a fix it's a work around. 

I'm just glad I'm not going crazy, and it's not just my enviroment  

[Jesse5C70]

Is there a registry key we can add/edit that will do this for all the users on the computer?

[Brett389106734jfa]

This fix worked for me.

Thanks

[James23895162k2w6]

So after 29 days of the Case being opened I asked for an update. There is a bug ADC-4451823.  Hopefully they will address this soon. 

[jeffreyk18800467]

DId this ever get resolved?  I am still having this same issue.

[James23895162k2w6]

Not yet I have been told that it was scheduled to be fixed in an April release.  I will post back once I find out if it works 

[Jesse5C70]

We're having a very similar issue, however we find that if you just wait a bit the form will work correctly. A good indicator is if you wait until the "Free 7-day trial" button shows up. Once that button shows up we're able to use the PDF like normal - without it crashing.

@James23895162k2w6 Any word if there is an update to address this issue?

[James23895162k2w6]

Not yet in looking at the update cycle (listed here)   https://www.adobe.com/devnet-docs/acrobatetk/tools/ReleaseNotesDC/index.html  there was an update on 4/2/24. I was told by Adobe that I would be updated in my ticket when they were going to release the update that is susposed to fix this issue.  @Jesse5C70  it looks like you are having the same issue that @BHR5FEC reported and I'm seeing. I tried downloading the newest version and it reverts back to the old interface. This is what Adobe told me to do (or use a GPO to push a Reg key) to change all of my users back to the old interface. I told them that's not accpetable. Also to answer your question above about a reg key this is what they told me to try. To be honest I don't remeber if it worked or not since Adobe took away the new interface and you can't even enable it 

Path: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Adobe\[Product name]\DC\FeatureLockDown DWord 32-bit: bEnableAV2Enterprise Value: 0

[James23895162k2w6 · Accepted solution]

I was called today by Adobe and they said they updated my ticket yesterday and said there's a patch that was released 4/12/24.  I couldn't get to install for the life of me. So what I've done (and yes I did report that back to them) I just had one of my co-workers here remove and reinstall "reader" and it worked just tested it out on one of the original reporters of the problem and it appears to have fixed it. Oddly when I close it out it still acts like it wants them to sign in. Good luck everyone 

[Amal.]

Hi there

We are glad to hear that the issue got fixed for you. Feel free to contact us for any assistance required in the future.

Marking a reply or response “Correct” will help future users with the same issue quickly identify the correct answer.

~Amal

[James23895162k2w6]

Correct 

[Kiano38681187f12o · Accepted solution]

Hey, 

The solution is - 

Delete the following 3 files:

%appdata%\Adobe\Acrobat\DC\Security\acrobat_fss_signature_initials

%appdata%\Adobe\Acrobat\DC\Security\acrobat_fss_signature_initialsi

%appdata%\Adobe\Acrobat\DC\Security\acrobat_fss_signature_initialsk

[Roosevelt32162596zu4t]

You are my hero.

[j.elder]

Tried this on Mac, still having this issue. Just started this morning in the middle of editing a fillable PDF.

It only crashes if I try to edit a single field, all other fields work fine. The idea of having to re-create the PDF from scratch is immensely frustrating.

[AnandSri]

Hello @j.elder!

I hope you are doing well. Thanks for reaching out. Are you using the Acrobat app or the freeware Acrobat Reader desktop app?

Please ensure you have the latest version of Acrobat/Reader installed on the machine: 25.001.20521 Planned update, Jun 02, 2025. Check for any pending updates from the Menu > help > check for updates, install the updates, restart the app and the machine, and try again.

If you are using Acrobat, use Prepare Form to Delete and Recreate Just That Field
Open the file in Acrobat Pro.

Go to All Tools > Prepare Form.

Find the specific field that crashes when editing.

Delete only that field.

Save and reopen the PDF.

Recreate the field manually (you can copy properties from similar fields).

This often clears the corruption without rebuilding the whole form.

Export/Import Form Data (Backup First)

If the document has many filled fields:

• Go to More > Export Data from the Prepare Form tool before making changes.

• After recreating the faulty field, you can reimport the saved data.

Try deleting the Signature Cache Files: 

~/Library/Application Support/Adobe/Acrobat/DC/Security/acrobat_fss_signature_initials
~/Library/Application Support/Adobe/Acrobat/DC/Security/acrobat_fss_signature_initialsi
~/Library/Application Support/Adobe/Acrobat/DC/Security/acrobat_fss_signature_initialsk

You can access this folder via Finder by pressing Cmd + Shift + G and pasting the path. Then delete the files and restart Acrobat.

Let us know how it goes.

Thanks,

Anand Sri.