Adobe Reader iOS app with Intune MAM-WE policy issue "This seems to be taking longer than usual"

[Ed Collins]

I manage our Intune environment and have applied App Protection (MAM-WE) policies to all unmanged handheld devices.

I am trying to test the Adobe Acrobat app, but when I try to launch it, it just states:

"Protecting this app"

then

"this seems to be taking longer than usual"

then

"Still trying" endlessly.

I have tried uninstalling the app and then reinstalling after a device reboot.

When I do this, I can log on with my corporate account (going through Microsoft Authenticator for the MFA), but when I close and relaunch the app, I get the above messages again and cannot get into the app.

Has anyone else come across this, and if so, what is the solution?

[S. S]

@Ed Collins @Nick35135886amzq @Ed34962233yqt3 

Can you guys confirm if the workaround shared by @Chinmay35116641e50g  works for you? If yes, this could be a makeshift solution till the dev team comes up with a resolution.

-Souvik

[Chinmay35116641e50g]

@S. S ,

Could you please confirm if Dev team has identified the issue or not? If yes, are they working on resolution? 

[Ed Collins]

Hi @S. S 
I already have the Authenticator app on my device.

Re-installing the Adobe Reader app has had no effect and the issue persists

[S. S]

@Chinmay35116641e50g The dev team is discussing a resolution with the Microsoft Intunes team.

@Ed Collins Thanks for the confirmation. I will forward this to the team.

-Souvik

[James38547147zq78]

Is there any fix from Adobe on this? I also face the same issue for our corporate users. Microsoft said this is Adobe issue. Can you confirm if this issue is indeed Adobe issue and the fix is pending?

[Ed Collins]

After doing a lot more testing and looking at EntraID sign in logs, I think that an important distinction to make here is the way that we associate the "work account" with Adobe Reader that I think is likely the cause of this.

When signing into the app, we sign in with an Adobe account.

Even though that account is using my corporate email address (and uses SSO, meaning it prompts for MFA), this is still an Adobe account and not a "work" account that is linked to the App, and so our App Protection policy does not kick in by simply logging into the application.

It is when trying to link OneDrive for Business to the app where we are running into the issue.

This is because it isn't until that time (as soon as we log in to OneDrive for Businss) the "work" account is linked to the application.

But the application itself is still not signed into using the "work" account and so the App Protection Policy is getting confused (making assumptions here).

If the above is true, then I think this will result in Adobe Reader not being able to work with Microsoft App Protection policies at all, unless Adobe makes the application itself an SSO app.

[Chinmay35116641e50g]

I followed these steps, please check if they make any difference.

1. Re-install Adobe acrobat in ios.

2. Make sure authenticator is present in the device.

3. Open acrobat. Do not sign-in with any account.

4. Go to files>> select onedrive>> authenticate with credentails. 

5. A error will pop-up intune is blocking from accessing location or something. No onedrive files visible. 

6. Again select onedrive>> authenticate with credentails. 

7. This time we get an message to restart the application.

8. re-open app, APP policy check goes through. Files are visible in Acrobat. 

[Ed Collins]

Unfortunately this didn't work in my case.
I tried the folowing:

Cleared all storage from the Adobe Reader app,

Offloaded the Adobe Reader app,

Deleted ithe Adobe Reader app

Rebooted my device.

Opened App Store and re-downloaded and installed the Adobe Reader app

Launched it and did not sign in

Clicked on the OneDrive icon to try to open it

Microsoft Authenticator opened and I selected my work account and authenticated

I got no errors, but nothing happened, so I clicked on the OneDrive icon again to try to open it

Microsoft Authenticator opened and I selected my work account and authenticated

I then get the same messaging as before:

"Checking App Status"

then

"Protecting this app"

then

"this seems to be taking longer than usual"

then

"Still trying..." endlessly.

[Fruit358991037p2v]

We have the same issue, being unable to use Adobe Reader on 20.000 devices.

Calling Adobe Reader mobile app Intune compatible hardly seems realistic when requiring data exemption setup, device registration, XML configuration, enrolling the app and possibly exclude it from a range of CA policies. Maybe if the app wasn't free, this issue would have been resolved in the first year or two. But we're still waiting!

[Marc257889901r93]

I've closely followed this thread and would like to update with some information I discovered.  I have this working temporarily but seems to break after adobe updates its app (about once a month).  I have found that it will then start the loop of protecting the app .  In order for me to get it working again.  i close the app then I delete the app from my ipad.  (note that if you do not delete it first it will not work) next I reinstall it from the intune company portal.  Once I do this app opens as normal and i try and access one drive.  It prompts for credetial and pops up authenticator app on ipad which i then choose the microsoft account.  At this point it restarts adobe app and I have to go throught the process again and the app protection policy applies and i am good for another month or so depending on update frequency.   

Hope this serves as a temp fix for you all and can give Microsoft or Adobe insight to the overall problem.

[Shane38278737jfn6]

So, I have an active ticket open with Microsoft on the same exact issue. They told me it was not them and that I needed to log a ticket with Adobe. I stumbled onto this discussion when trying to figure out how to even log a support call with Adobe. But after reading this entire thread it seems like it's a finger-pointing match between Adobe and Microsoft, with no resolution in sight. 


I just provided a link to this discussion with the Microsoft reps so hopefully Adobe and Microsoft can get together and figure it out.

[Louis36353250518i]

We're having the same problem. Is there are chance that this was resolved? basically we just want PDF files stored in Onedrive>Adobe Acrobat and not deep integration of OneDrive>Adobe Acrobat. Looks like Intune MAM policies are not deployed in Adobe Acrobat app, toggle for Intune App Protection is disabled, if you try to enable it asks for consent however we don't want to give these consent due to security controls and privacy. is there a way to enable this pdf opening from OneDrive without giving much consent to Adobe App in Enterprise App?

[ebenezer_7634 · Accepted solution]

We have been facing the same issue. It seems to have resolved after signing into Acrobat Reader using our company account. You have to reinstall the app, in the initial sign in screen, use adobe account and use your company account to sign-in to Acrobat. This seems to have fixed the issue. 

[revdcobb]

Same issue. I use am unmanaged iPhone and have been unable to open Acrobat Reader for about 2 years. I can open it on my Mac, just not my iPhone. It's frustrating when trying to open or save a page as a pdf or trying to sign a document someone sends me.