Acrobat DC 2017 'The document could not be saved. The file may be read-only, or another user may have it open.'

[will97879410]

I've been trying to resolve an issue that two of my end users are experiencing.  They cannot open a pdf file and make changes and save it without getting the error in the title.  The full error message is:

'The document could not be saved.  The file may be read-only, or another user may have it open.  Please save the document with a different name or in a different folder.'

Here are the workstation specs:

Windows 7 32 bit

Adobe Acrobat Standard DC 2017 v2017.001.30079

The issues we are currently having are unusual.  Again, the user receives the error above once they attempt to modify and then save the pdf.  It will work as intended once the user reboots the computer and attempts the same process.  This will work correctly but for only a certain amount of time, ranging from 15 minutes to three hours.  My question is what process in Windows/Adobe could trigger this effect to lock the file after it has been opened?

Here is a little bit of information regarding the pdf file.  The file is on a shared network drive.  If the file is not already locked, other unaffected machines can make changes to it and save the file as intended.  These machines range from Windows 7 32bit to Windows 10 64 bit and Adobe versions range from Adobe Acrobat X Standard to Adobe Acrobat DC Pro.  If the pdf file is moved to the local drive, it works as intended.  The affected machines can modify any other filetype (.xlsx, .docx, .txt, etc.) in the same shared network folder without any issues.  The user has ‘Full Control’ permissions for the pdf file.  Once the file is locked, the user must reboot their computer or a server admin must unlock the file from the server itself.  I have not been authorized to replace the machine or do a reinstall.

These are the troubleshooting steps we've already attempted that have not resolved the issue:

1. 1.     Disable preview pane in Windows Explorer
2. 2.     Disable details view in Windows Explorer
3. 3.     Unselect the pdf and navigate to a different folder
4. 4.     Disable Protected Mode in Adobe Acrobat
5. 5.     Disable Javascript in Adobe Acrobat
6. 6.     Disable the AdobeGCInvokerUtility scheduled task
7. 7.     Disable the Adobe autoupdate utility scheduled task

So to finish my thought process, why would a user receive this particular error after a certain amount of time and how do I go about fixing it?  Any help would be greatly appreciated. 

Thanks in advance.

[Billriley]

We can confirm this behavior using adobe11.

Saving to a network share then closing adobe , if you try to delete or rename it says the file is in use . Does not happen on a local drive. Only affects redirected libraries or network shares.

This seemed to start on the 16th after the latest rounds of Microsoft updates.

Associated .pdf to nuance as well as ie and this issue does not occur. Switch back to adobe and the file stays open and locked requiring it to be killed on the file server side.

[jane-e]

Billriley​

Adobe is a company, not a product. The product is Acrobat.

The OP is using Acrobat DC, not Acobat XI. Acrobat XI is no longer supported.

Just curious, who is the "we" in your first paragraph?

[Billriley]

You are correct it‘s acrobat not adobe. I’ll edit it. I am well aware XI is not supported , however I was just confirming this behavior with another version as well.

As an update “acrobat dc” is giving the same issue.

The “we” that you are asking about are a few IT Techs testing different scenarios coming up with the same result. The problem seems to exist only when saving to a redirected library or share. Seems to work properly saving to a local disk. This problem seemed to start after the last round of Microsoft patches.

[will97879410]

Thank you for your replies.  We started having this issue back in late December.  We've also uninstalled/reinstalled Adobe Acrobat DC.

[Tariq Dar]

Hello,

Will,

Are there any group policies which comes to affect after sometime when the user log-in into the machine?

Like some network policies or do you have a web security which could have an impact on network operations.

You may try whitelisting the network path as follow:

• Launch Acrobat.
• Click Edit>Preferences>Security(Enhanced) , choose Add Folder path.    
• Relaunch Acrobat and try again, same for Adobe  Reader.

Billriley,

Could you tell us more about your environment or you have a single machine experiencing this issue?

Also, I would suggest try exhaust above suggestion and let me know if that helps

Feel free to update the discussion.

-Tariq Dar

[will97879410]

I'm not aware of any group policies that trigger after a certain amount of time after a user logs in.  I'll ask our network admin regarding any network policies that could cause my issue.  Do you have any examples of a network policy that could cause this type of issue?

I checked the whitelist in Preferences -> Security (Enhanced) and unfortunately, I've already added those folders.

I really liked your idea about Adobe Reader, so I checked but the user doesn't have it installed.  There is a chance that I uninstalled it a few months ago.  Would remnants of Reader after it was uninstalled cause an issue like this?

There are only two machines that are having this issue.  The only difference between the two computers is Adobe Acrobat Standard DC 2017 and Acrobat Standard XI.  I'm aware that Standard XI is unsupported so I'm not going to put any effort on that user at this time.  I'm not sure what else I can mention that I haven't already regarding the environment.  Are there any specifics that you are interested in knowing?

I really appreciate the time you are taking to help with my issue.  Thank you.

-Will

[Tariq Dar]

Thank you, Will, for the swift response and for the information.

You are right, XI is declared as End of Support.

Is it possible, if you could install the latest version of Acrobat Pro trial on one of the affected machines, the trial can be used for a week:  Download Pro or Standard versions of Acrobat DC | Non-subscription and let us know how it works.

At my end, the issue is not reproducible at all.

Also, I would suggest if you could collect process monitor logs: Download Acrobat and Reader Process Monitor Tool - Adobe Labs please read the instruction carefully how to collect logs and save logs.

Use Adobe Send to send us the logs: How to share a file using Adobe Document Cloud

-Tariq

[will97879410]

I apologize for the delayed response, however, the user is out sick so I have been unable to run the monitor software.  I will update this post once they get back.

[will97879410]

Here are the files you requested.  We found another issue.  If the user opens a pdf, scrolls through it, then closes it, the pdf will now become locked and they are unable to delete/edit/move the file until the user reboots their computer.

The user is becoming increasingly frustrated that they are unable to move a pdf after they open then close it.  I understand their frustration, but I am unable to provide them with an answer.  I appreciate the effort you're taking in my plight.

[will97879410]

As of today, the user still cannot access their files without rebooting or logging off/on.  The current suggestion is to imitate the current scenario with another computer and determine if the issues persist.  I do not currently have a similar computer so I cannot quite check that option.  I will continue to work on this issue but I'm not hopeful that I'll find a solution.

[jane-e]

Does this happen with non-Adobe products?

Have you checked for Malware and viruses?

[will97879410]

No, this only happens with pdf files.  Excel, Word, txt, or any other filetypes do not have this issue.  We've used multiple virus scanners on the computer without finding any malware or viruses. 

[Karl Heinz Kremer]

Take a look at this, it may provide a workaround for your problem:

Who is Hogging My File? - KHKonsulting LLC 

[will97879410]

Thank you Karl for the suggestion, however, the preview pane has already been disabled.

[default54mzxvq3x1xt]

Deselct Preview pane in Windows explorer is the resolution. Thats for the Link!!

[MRKSOS4]

Any news on this issue? I have several client sites with Adobe Acrobat 2017 Pro having the same exact issues.

[will97879410]

I'm sorry, but there are no new updates on this issue.  My users still have this issue.  I have NOT tried to replace the computer yet, so that might fix the issue.  It hasn't been approved so I'm limited on my options. 

[MRKSOS4]

Save your money on replacing computers. This issue is a problem that Adobe needs to address but they have failed to do anything about it. We had the problem starting with Adobe Acrobat Pro X, continued to XI, DC, and now 2017. During that time, we have replaced ALL computers at two client locations but the problems continue. This only happens when they are accessing files off the network so there has to be something related to that that Adobe Acrobat developers need to investigate. Very frustrating that Adobe is not responding to this issue.

[will97879410]

I agree with your statement as you can clearly search for similar people asking the same question I have since 2010.

In my opinion, Karl and the vast majority of people are correct.  The issue is in regards to the preview pane, or more importantly, the effect of how Windows and Adobe Acrobat work and hold/lock files.  Other common filetypes (docx, xlsx, txt, etc.) do not have these issues.  I do not know which Acrobat process that continues to hold the file, or if some type of flag isn't changed so that Windows continues to hold that file.  It doesn't make much sense to me. 

[petedunord]

I'd like to add that I've had this absurred problem for ever, also. Over multiple versions on various machines. From what I've seen on my machines and in many other posts is not to do with the preview pane in Windows at all, especially as Mac users report the same issue. I've always had this issue with any PDF not strictly "local" on my machine - it's always been a file on a network volume, or a file synced with Google Drive. The Google Drive instance is perhaps most frustrating for me, as the file, strictly speaking, is local to my machine.

I could speculate the issue arises from Acrobat recognizing some operation is occuring with the file related to its content as it's being read to Drive or from Drive to validate or perform synchronization...

[jeffreya17835959]

Just wanted to speak up and add my voice to the complaints. I have this exact issue with one of our users.

[iamdigustedbyaadoebee]

same issue here, why has adobe not replied to this issue???

[carriek22813412]

We are having this same exact issue. It's happened twice in two days. Tried everything to get the PDF to release and it finally will, but it's random. Checked all the network permissions and group policy, nothing is affecting it. Not only that but different pdfs in the same folder can be deleted without any problem, it's only the one that was recently opened that gets stuck. Adobe, please fix it!

[cherihartzog]

I have worked for the Federal Courts for 25 years in IT and I have had this issue since Adobe X and now we are on the DC and my users constantly complain.  I'll tell them to re-save it as another name or save to their hard drive.   This sooooooo needs to be fixed.    I can't believe it has gone on for this long with no fix.   : (