Skip to main content
S
smithfast
New Participant
July 16, 2018
Answered

Cannot open .pdf file - says not supported or file is damaged... HELP!

  • July 16, 2018
  • 3 replies
  • 325333 views

I receive PDF files on a daily basis from many different people, and never have an issue opening them. However, one of the contacts I regularly get emails from, has PDF files that I cannot open. The following dialog pops up when I attempt to open it:

"Adobe Acrobat reader could not open '[filename].pdf' because it is either not a supported file type or because the file has been damaged (for example, it was sent as an email attachment and wasn't correctly decoded)."

I contacted the sender and made them aware of our problem. They said they send similar files to all their other contacts in the same manner and no one else has a problem with opening them. I have my acrobat reader up to date with the latest version, and my account is active. I have no idea why I cannot open the file. I did, however, try to right click on the file on the email, and it doesn't give me an option to "open with...", only to "save as..." which saves as a webpage.

What is the issue here? And how can I fix it?

    Correct answer AnandSri

    Hello Smithfast,

    We're sorry for the delayed response and inconvenience caused. The error comes when a PDF file is corrupt or damaged and Adobe Reader tries to open it, but when it finds that there is an issue with the PDF, it throws the error.

    It seems that the email server has corrupted the file by encoding it incorrectly. Please ask the original sender to zip the PDF file, or share it using cloud storage like Dropbox or Google Drive or Adobe Send instead of email.

    You can also refer and try the suggestions from the following Adobe article and discussions Resolve damaged document error when opening PDF files

    Adobe Reader could not open a pdf file - either not supported file type or file damaged

    Is it a Mac or Windows machine and what is the version?

    What is the dot version of Adobe Reader installed? To identify, refer to Identify the product and its version for Acrobat and Reader DC

    Let us know how it goes and share your findings.

    Thanks,

    Anand Sri.

    3 replies

    M
    Mbomvu
    New Participant
    July 18, 2020

    Please assist me to the file 

    try67
    Community Expert
    try67Community Expert
    Community Expert
    July 19, 2020

    We need more information to be able to help you. We're not mind-readers.

      N
      nathant6758536
      New Participant
      February 6, 2019

      Hello,

      I am having the same issue where I created a fairly large PDF (56MB) and saved it, but now when I try to open it I get the following error:

      "Error 2 opening file.

      Could not open '221123-001B_Booster PS (Working Copy).pdf' because it is either not a supported file type or the file has been corrupted.   For example, it was sent as an e-mail attachment and wasn't correctly decoded."

      Is there a way that I can get this fixed so that I do not have to recreate the entire PDF file?

      Thanks,

      Nathan Tyson

        B
        bmiss
        New Participant
        June 29, 2020

        I am still having this issue and have not seen a reply posted anywhere on this site. I'm more than a little frustrated. I get files on a fairly regular basis from various vendors and occassionally have this issue. I cannot necessarily ask or expect them to change what they're doing, but if I'm going to make a request, I have to know what I'm requesting. I don't know what is causing the issue. Is it on the sender side, my side, what?????

         

        K
        km_dilli
        New Participant
        July 28, 2020

        Have you done this?


        Yes it worked out for me. I have tried it on windows 8.1(home edition) and windows 10 (enterprise edition).

        AnandSri
        Community Manager
        AnandSriCommunity ManagerCorrect answer
        Community Manager
        August 31, 2018

        Hello Smithfast,

        We're sorry for the delayed response and inconvenience caused. The error comes when a PDF file is corrupt or damaged and Adobe Reader tries to open it, but when it finds that there is an issue with the PDF, it throws the error.

        It seems that the email server has corrupted the file by encoding it incorrectly. Please ask the original sender to zip the PDF file, or share it using cloud storage like Dropbox or Google Drive or Adobe Send instead of email.

        You can also refer and try the suggestions from the following Adobe article and discussions Resolve damaged document error when opening PDF files

        Adobe Reader could not open a pdf file - either not supported file type or file damaged

        Is it a Mac or Windows machine and what is the version?

        What is the dot version of Adobe Reader installed? To identify, refer to Identify the product and its version for Acrobat and Reader DC

        Let us know how it goes and share your findings.

        Thanks,

        Anand Sri.

          tenesor80
          tenesor80
          New Participant
          December 25, 2018

          Hello

          I have a pdf file that I can't open, I have followed the instructions to send it to myself via google drive but it gives me the same error.

          Can't open the file. I need the file.

          How can I fix this problem ??

          Thank you.

          AnandSri
          Community Manager
          AnandSriCommunity Manager
          Community Manager
          December 26, 2018

          Hi Tenesor,

          I am sorry for the trouble you had, are you getting the error message with one specific PDF file or is it with all the PDF files?

          What is the version of Adobe Reader or Acrobat installed? To identify, refer to Identify the product and its version for Acrobat and Reader DC

          Are you on a Mac or Windows machine and what is the version?

          If it is specific to one PDF file, is it possible to share the file with us so that we can test it at our end? Share the file by direct/private message only How Do I Send Private Message

          Thanks,

          Anand Sri.

          Terms & ConditionsAccessibility statement
          Using the community Terms of use Privacy Cookie preferences Do not sell or share my personal information ad choicesAdChoices