synchronize the color settings file missing after Adobe set up Acrobat DC w/ CC21

Also, with Catalina and Big Sur the permissions might be blocking the Settings folders. Try doing a web search for big sur permissions problems 

Are you trying to load one of the default .CSF settings, or one that you saved? On OSX the installed default CSF files should be found here:

⁩ ▸ ⁨Library⁩ ▸ ⁨Application Support⁩ ▸ ⁨Adobe⁩ ▸ ⁨Color⁩ ▸ ⁨Settings⁩ ▸ ⁨

If you are saving your own, try saving to either the same folder or your user Settings folder:

Users⁩ ▸ ⁨username ▸ ⁨Library⁩ ▸ ⁨Application Support⁩ ▸ ⁨Adobe⁩ ▸ ⁨Color⁩ ▸ ⁨Settings⁩

Synchronized settings are really only useful when you are creating new content. So for a project headed to a GRACol Coated offset press I use this setting, which I saved out of Photoshop—InDesign uses the CMYK Black Ink profile to manage Grayscales, so for the Gray Working Space I’m using a matching Black Ink GRACol profile:

My saved CSF shows in Bridge where it can be synchronized. Clicking Show Saved Color Settings files will open your user folder’s Settings folder:

Just to keep things in perspective, there is normally no need to synchronize color settings and the significance of it is overrated. Individual files will still override it. Embedded profiles take precedence.

If you have inconsistencies beween applications, this is not the reason. Then you have other problems, most likely that there is no embedded profile at all.

In color managed applications, any profile will be handled correctly. There's no need for anything to match, as long as there is a profile. That's the whole point of color management.

Color settings just set up fallback defaults for new documents and missing profiles. The only really important setting is "Color Management Policies". This should always be set to Preserve Embedded Profiles. That's the default, don't ever change it.

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There are two exceptions: In Illustrator and InDesign, there are some special considerations for CMYK policies. So in those apps, there is a special setting called "Preserve Numbers". It keeps K-only blacks from being converted to 4C blacks, at the potential cost of color consistency. Photoshop doesn't have (or need) this setting.

Grayscale is another exception and special case, but the reason for that is that no other application outside Photoshop has proper grayscale color management. Not even other Adobe applications. Only Photoshop does it. So to have full consistency here, you need to take a few precautions. That's a bit too technical to get into for now.

The color settings file, which synchronises across Adobe Applications is made in Adobe Bridge. 

https://www.creativebloq.com/advice/how-to-manage-colours-in-photoshop/3

see: Sync your settings across apps

This should create the Color Settings file for you

I hope this helps
neil barstow, colourmanagement net :: adobe forum volunteer
google me "neil barstow colourmanagement" for lots of free articles on colour management
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