Allow standalone Acrobat deployment with CCE serial"?

[garistotle]

Hi

I'm trying to make an Acrobat DC deployment package. We are a CCE customer. I'm yet to have success with Acrobat DC deployments. They tend to work at first, then the prompt for sign-in comes back, or the product claims to not be activated. In any case, here are the steps I'm taking, please tell me whether or not it looks like I'm doing this right. And most of all, what I'm supposed to do with the checkbox that offers me to "allow standalone Acrobat deployment with CCE serial... This is new, and thus far, I have not been able to find any documentation that explains what it is. Not even the "Help" window that displays for each page addresses it. Questions are in bold.

1. Make Acrobat DC package using CCP. I uncheck the "Creative Cloud Desktop Application", as this package should be strictly the latest version of Acrobat. Though, I do want admin users to be able to update their own software.
2. I open Acrobat Customization Wizard DC and proceed to open C:\[path]\Acrobat Pro DC\Build\Setup\APRO15.0\Adobe Acrobat\AcroPro.msi. All defaults are left default unless noted in the following steps.
3. Since this is a package made with CCP, I leave the serial number field blank.
   1. Personalization
      1. In this scenario (am a CCE customer, configuring a package to be deployed via SCCM) what should I do with "Allow standalone Acrobat deployment with CCE serial"?
      2. Check- Suppress display of EULA
   2. Installation Options
      1. Remove all versions of Reader
      2. Silently
      3. Suppress reboot
   3. Online Services and Features
      1. Check- Disable Upsell
      2. Check- Disable SignOut
      3. Check- Disable all services
   4. Save the package.
   5. Save the entire folder to the application share for SCCM
   6. Open SCCM > Software Library > Create Application
      1. Windows Installer (some things say to use the installer, other things say to use the MSI. Please explain!)
      2. Browse to location of AcroPro.msi
      3. Fill in Application details
      4. Installation program: msiexec /i "AcroPro.msi"  TRANSFORMS=AcroPro.mst /q
         1. Is this the right installation program? Should I change from msi to exe? Does the transform and /q switch look right?

So far, the application will deploy and install fine, but "Sign In Required" pops up immediately upon opening a PDF, which feels like neither the work pulling down the app from CCP, or switching the MST is making any difference. Also, I want to make this part of a OSD task sequence. What else do I need to do to this package in order for it to install as part of a task sequence, activated and not requiring sign in?

Thanks for your help!

-Garrett

[garistotle]

I just tried manually running the setup.exe found in C:\[path]\Acrobat Pro DC\Build\Setup\APRO15.0\Adobe Acrobat\ and it installed silently, but still prompted for a login. I tried again from the command line, using the path to the share and invoking /setup.ini, and it prompts me with a window that  "Adobe Acrobat DC (continuous) - Setup", which offers me to put in a serial number. So, this appears to not be running any sort of customization. Any advice on how to get the proper command line to work?

[Steve Cordero]

The instructions that you are referring to are likely predicated on whether or not you want to use CCP based installer as the delivery system.  You do have a choice here on which installer delivery you want to use.  It will either be the CCP installer or going with the Acrobat MSI installer.  So, first make that decision and then the instructions might make more sense. 

Q1:  Personalization ->  a.  In this scenario (am a CCE customer, configuring a package to be deployed via SCCM) what should I do with "Allow standalone Acrobat deployment with CCE serial"?

Response: 

A.  If you are using CCP installer delivery you don't need to apply the serial number here in the Adobe Customization Wizard DC.

B.  If you decide not to use the CCP installer and decide to go with simply using the Acrobat MSI installer using the Adobe Customization Wizard DC, then put in the CC serial number in the SN field and push the Get Offline Exception button.  Note, you need to be on  a machine that has internet access to do this procedure.

Q2:  Open SCCM > Software Library > Create Application -> a. Windows Installer (some things say to use the installer, other things say to use the MSI. Please explain!)

Response:  Again,  it depends on the choice that you have made on whether or not to use CCP or the base Acrobat MSI installer.  If you are using the base Acrobat MSI installer then it's not that different than what you are used to doing with any other MSI based installer.

[garistotle]

Hi Steve,

Thanks so much for your response. I have a few follow up questions.

• When you refer to "CCP Installer" vs. "Acrobat MSI installer", could you please give me some details on which exact file it is that you're referring to? Just the generic directory would be immensely helpful, i.e., "Build\Setup\APRO15.0\Adobe Acrobat\[generic filename and extension]
• Assuming I use the CCP to build the package, what should determine whether I use the CCP installer or the MSI installer?
• Can you point me to any documentation that explains the "Allow standalone Acrobat deployment with CCE serial" check box?
• If I use the CCP installer (is this the setup.exe found in "Build\Setup\APRO15.0\Adobe Acrobat"?), what do I need to do to invoke the customizations made in ACW?

Thanks again for your responses. The amount of documentation available for this process is overwhelming.

[Steve Cordero]

Q1:  When you refer to "CCP Installer" vs. "Acrobat MSI installer", could you please give me some details on which exact file it is that you're referring to? Just the generic directory would be immensely helpful, i.e., "Build\Setup\APRO15.0\Adobe Acrobat\[generic filename and extension]

Response:  The CCP Installer MSI is whatever you happen to name your build in CCP.  For example, if you name your build “Acrobat_Standalone_Test” in CCP, then your MSI file will be “Acrobat_Standalone_Test.msi”.  This and the CCP Setup.exe  are essentially a bootstrap to the actual Acrobat MSI installer within the CCP package.  The installer is located generally in “C:\Users\[USERNAME]\Desktop\Acrobat_Standalone_Test\Build\Setup\APRO15.0\” when CCP downloads its to the desktop.

In contrast the default Acrobat installer that you download from Adobe.com is always named “AcroPro.msi”.  This is the name of the file that you select with the Adobe Customization Wizard DC.  It is generally located in this location “C:\Users\labuser\Desktop\Adobe Acrobat\Adobe Acrobat\” when you expand the compressed files to the desktop

Q2:  Assuming I use the CCP to build the package, what should determine whether I use the CCP installer or the MSI installer?

Response:  That is entirely up to the needs of the organization.  For instance, if you want/need the CC services then you will need to use the CCP installer.  If not, then you could choose not to use it.

Q3:   Can you point me to any documentation that explains the "Allow standalone Acrobat deployment with CCE serial" check box?

Response: It basically means that you will use the CC serial number for Acrobat.  However,  I am unfamiliar with that particular check box choice in the current CCP Desktop version.  Where are you seeing this check box exactly?

Q4:  If I use the CCP installer (is this the setup.exe found in "Build\Setup\APRO15.0\Adobe Acrobat"?), what do I need to do to invoke the customizations made in ACW? 

Response:  No,  it’s the CCP Setup.exe.  Remember the CCP Setup.exe in part is a bootstrap to the actual Acrobat installer.  When you modify the Acrobat installer with the Adobe Customization Wizard DC a file is created called AcroPro.mst.  This file is the one that references the changes you have made.  The Adobe Customization Wizard DC also makes a modification to the file Setup.ini to reference the AcroPro.mst during the installation.

[garistotle]

Hi Steve,

Thanks again for all of your help. Here's where I'm at:

I was finally able to find an install file that works to install Acrobat DC, and invoke the customization file, though it's not the one that I expected:

• \[build name from CCP]\Build\setup.exe
  • In order for me to understand what you've told me in regard to how this file is referred to in Adobe's documentation, could you confirm how you would refer to this file? Is this what you would call the "CCP Setup.exe"? I expected the setup.exe that is located in ...\Build\Setup\APRO15.0\Adobe Acrobat to invoke the customization file since it appears to be in the same folder as AcroPro and setup.ini, but I guess that it's not, and that the files in this folder are all OOB, except for those two. I digress...
  • I've had other installations that seemed to work fine for a while, but then later start prompting for registration and/or Adobe CC login. Is there something that I might be doing that is causing it to lose those customizations? Does updating from Adobe cause the customizations to roll back?
• I haven't been able to figure out a proper command line to use in SCCM for the uninstall program. Being that I'm using \Build\setup.exe, can you give me some advice for which file to use and what switches for silent uninstall? Everything that I've seen in the Adobe documentation asks for AcroPro.msi or [CCP build name].msi /x /qn (or something close to that), but I haven't been able to get that to work. Should I be using setup.exe /uninstall /qn?

Thanks again for all of your help!

-GB

[Steve Cordero]

Q1:  In order for me to understand what you've told me in regard to how this file is referred to in Adobe's documentation, could you confirm how you would refer to this file? Is this what you would call the "CCP Setup.exe"?

Response:  Yes

Q2:  Is there something that I might be doing that is causing it to lose those customizations?

Response:  I don't think so if you have the AcroPro.mst referenced in the setup.ini file at first install.

Q3:  Does updating from Adobe cause the customizations to roll back?

Response:  Updates are "supposed" to reference the original MST file for settings.

Q4:  Being that I'm using \Build\setup.exe, can you give me some advice for which file to use and what switches for silent uninstall?

Response:  I don't believe that there is a silent uninstall for CCP.   Use the Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel.https://helpx.adobe.com/creative-cloud/kb/cc-cleaner-tool-installation-problems.html

Q5:  Everything that I've seen in the Adobe documentation asks for AcroPro.msi or [CCP build name].msi /x /qn (or something close to that), but I haven't been able to get that to work. Should I be using setup.exe /uninstall /qn?

Response:  If this is an Acrobat install then msiexec.exe /x {Product Name or GUID} will work.  If this is a CCP uninstall then use Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel.