Unable to print some PDF's from adobe, but other programs work fine.

[Tim36138400sdl2]

Hi All,

Have a bit of a weid one, I have experineced this multiple times with different printers, (All Fuji tho). I try print a PDF from Adobe Acrobat and it will fail at the printer. The most recent error I have gotten on the printer is Error (016-799) where looking up the code it tells me "The specified print parameter is abnormal"

The odd part is if I take the same file and print from chrome or edge it will print just fine. No printer settings have been changed.
This makes me belive that something in Acrobat is being added that the printer can not handel, but it doesnt happen to all jobs.

Any ideas?

[Amal.]

Hi @Tim36138400sdl2 

Hope you are doing well and sorry to hear that

Is this an issue with a particular PDF file or with all the PDFs? Please try with a different PDF file and check. If the file is stored on a shared network/drive please download it to your computer locally and then try again.

Please check for any pending/missing updates for the printer driver and firmaware and try upating it. You may also try to remove the printer driver from the computer, reboot the machine and reinstall it from the manufacturers website and see if that helps.

Also go through the help page: https://helpx.adobe.com/acrobat/kb/troubleshoot-pdf-printing-acrobat-reader.html and check.

What is the version of the Acrobat DC you are using? To check the version go to Help > About Acrobat and make sure you have the recent version 24.01.20604 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

Let us know how it goes.

~Amal

Got your issue resolved? Please label the response as 'Correct Answer' to help your fellow community members find a solution to similar problems.

[Tim36138400sdl2]

Its only some PDF files most work fine.

The files have always been on the device, not on a network share

Print drivers are updated. And I have tried reinstalling the printer.

I have checked and we are on the latest adobe verstion.

ITs weird as its not all PDFs and the PDFs that dont print in adobe print fine in other programs.

[Amal.]

Hi there

We are sorry to hear that.

Would you mind sharing the PDF file in question, so we can check it at our end?

~Amal

[Tim36138400sdl2]

Hi unfortunaly the document we are having issues with currently has Sensitive information so we are unable to pass it on. Was hoping this would be a more common issue, but clearly not.

[fredrika_8427]

I Have the same issue! Sometimes only the first page is printed, sometimes nothing prints. I have to convert my pdf into jpeg and print every page separately. That works. VERY annoying, I was hoping this was fixed by the Adobe team by now... It happens with all my PDF files.

[default6srv01yiwn5z]

Exact same issue printing uni readings from Acrobat to my Brother printer, first page or nothing prints, have to export as jpeg - so frustrating 
 

[Merpobot]

Ok, I'm absolutely shocked that this issue still exists after 20 years. For 30 years I was a technician at a large college and it was very common that HP laser printers refused to print PDFs. I was reminded of this issue because I got a new HP laser yesterday and couldn't print a pdf. It's not file corruption, or compression or print as image. The problem is the Postscript driver. As I had to do with over 800 computers in 2000's, you have to install the PCL driver to print ALL pdfs without issue. I tried your suggestions and none worked. When I downloaded the PCL driver from HP it fixed my problem. Again. After 20 years. 

[Camila x3449083863rt]

Here are a few tricks that you can try:

1. Try to disable the protected mode in the adobe.

2. Check all the cables connected.

3. Update the software to it's latest version.

4. Restart your printer.

[Marketing377092676c5j]

I am having the same issue, but I have a workaround (albeit annoying). It appears to be with files that were originally created from some other type of software. For example, our pest control company sends us two pdf files each month. One file is the invoice, the other file is a copy of the service report with my signature. The invoice prints no problem, however the service report is a paperless document that I sign digitally on a tablet each time they come. This document will not print from the pdf file they send. I suspect that it may be caused by the document being condensed down to fit a normal print parameter, however even changing the print parameters will not allow it to print. Here's my workaround: Convert the pdf to a word document and then convert it back to a pdf from Word (yes it's annoying). You can print it from Word as well, we just require pdf file types when saving and attaching documents so I always convert it back. The pdf I create from Word prints with no issues. Hope this helps you and I hope they fix this soon!

[deborahs84271095]

Having same issues. The workaround trick worked by converting to word, but not ideal.  Any update on this repair? It just happened the last few months, so it must be an update issue.

[Amal.]

Hi there,

Would you mind sharing the PDF file in question so we can check it at our end. Also collect and share the print logs https://helpx.adobe.com/acrobat/kb/collect-print-logs-for-acrobat.html for further investigation.

~Amal

[gillian_1319]

Good afternoon, 

Any update on this yet? We have a PDF generated from our government that no matter what we cannot get to print. It doesn't give an error or any explanation it just refuses to print. My workaround is to open in Word and print from there but depending on the document the formatting doesn't always look correct. 

Would really appreciate if this had been updated...

Thank you! 

[Morten5FD0]

I had the same issue.

I set "Page Sizing & Handling" to FIT, and "Print in grayscale" - and then all of a sudden it would print.

Now, i can change the settings to anything, at it still seems to be willing to print - so a bit head-scratchy, but let me know if this works for you?

[lisette3adobe]

thanks- I was having the same problem some pdf files printed with no issues and some didn't print. Changing to grayscale worked!

[ericah34432616]

This worked for me too

[Justwondering...]

Hi, I'm having the same problem!!

Some PDFs, notably those created in Canva but not solely, just won't print. Whereas some PDFs are fine. 

It's not a size thing because if i convert the PDF to a jpeg which is larger in size it prints fine. 

Any other suggestions (I've done all of the standard things, checked drivers, updated everything, removed then added printer etc..)

[barbara_7730]

I've had the same problem. The work around I use is to print -> save to .pdf -> and then re-open the new .pdf file.  Not sure if it strips something off the file during the saving process, but it works for me.

[corrineh82842387]

I am having the same problem. I just bought a new printer - Brother Color Inkjet. When I installed it, all my other programs printed fine, but not my PDFs. I've tried printing in greyscale, resaving it as a PDF, even saving it as an image. None of it works. I copied and pasted a page into Word and that printed fine. But I can't do that for all my documents!

Please help figure this out!

[Catch-The-Ghost]

Same issue here! I even made my image a PDF in Adobe Photoshop! (Why tiling isn't an option in in photoshop is another ridiculous question) But it seems no amount of setting changes will get this to print on Acrobat. It will print from literally everywhere else with the exact same printer, so it's clearly not a printer or PC issue.

[halime.]

Hi All,

I had the same issues with printing a file (word as well as pdf format). I suspect the problem was that the manuscript contained graphs with high resolution (and I had switched off compression of image files in word, too). After saving the pdf file in a compressed version, printing was no problem any longer. 

hope that helps

cheers,

H

[NudeCruzer]

I still have the old acrobat enabled, because it simply is better. When I use thunderbird to print an email I save as a PDF in the Apple Print dialog box, as a legal sized page. Then I use acrobat to crop out the email part at the top and make the page letter sized. Then I attempt to print, the result is no printing, but the print dialog pops up as if it had printed but nothing comes out of the printer. I open the same document (that has been cropped and saved as a letter size) in Apple preview and print with no problems... Very strange. In the past I think there was a setting that allowed it to print properly in acrobat, but whatever it was, it no longer works.

[AnandSri]

Hello!

I hope you are doing well, and thanks for reaching out. 

Could you please share more details about the issue? Is it happening with all the PDFs, or is it specific to one? What is the version of the Mac os installed? What is the make and model of the printer you are using?

Please ensure you have the latest version of Acrobat installed on the machine: 25.001.20529 (Mac), planned update June 10, 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. You can also try the suggestions from this article: https://adobe.ly/43P284Y

Use “Print as Image” in Acrobat

• Go to File > Print
• Click Advanced
• Check “Print as Image”
• This forces Acrobat to rasterize the page before printing, which often resolves rendering issues

Flatten the PDF Before Printing

• Open the cropped PDF
• Go to File > Print > Save as PDF (instead of printing directly)
• Then open the new file and try printing again
• This can help embed the crop and remove hidden layers or metadata that may confuse the printer

Use “Preflight” to Apply the Crop Permanently (Acrobat Pro only)

• Go to All Tools > Print Production > Preflight
• Search for “Fix page size” or “Set crop box”
• Apply the fix and save the file before printing.

Ensure that you have the latest version of the printer driver and the firmware installed from the printer's official website.

When you crop a PDF in Acrobat, the content outside the crop box is not deleted — it's simply hidden from view. Depending on the printer and Acrobat's print settings, Acrobat may still treat the full original page size (e.g., legal) as the print area, resulting in:

• Misalignment with letter-size paper

• The printer receives an invalid print command or blank page

• No physical output at all

Apple Preview, on the other hand, truly renders only the visible cropped area, which is why printing from there works. 

Use "Print → Fit" or "Shrink Oversized Pages."

In Acrobat’s Print dialog:

• Select your printer

• Set Page Sizing & Handling to:

  • Fit or

  • Shrink Oversized Pages

• Also, set Paper Size to Letter

• Ensure Auto Rotate and Center is checked

These options help Acrobat align the cropped content to the printable area of your current paper size.

Let us know how it goes.

Thanks,

Anand Sri.

[NudeCruzer]

This is a PDF that was created when printing an email from thunderbird, using the system dialogue box. When printing from acrobat the option to print as image is grayed out. I don't have time now, But when I get back next week This issue is easy to reproduce. And I will give you more details. In the meantime, the Apple preview app Prints fine. 

[AnandSri]

Hello!

Thank you for shairng the details, and I will wait for the additional information.

Note: Thunderbird’s system print dialog often uses the OS print subsystem, which doesn’t handle fonts properly. Try recreating the PDF from the email using the Acrobat app. If you have Acrobat Pro, Open the PDF. Go to Acrobat > Save As Other > Optimized PDF. Under Fonts, uncheck problematic fonts or flatten the file. Save and try printing again

Regards,

Anand Sri.