Installing Adobe Acrobat software

Owned by Barb Yantha (Unlicensed)
Last updated: Mar 10, 2023 by Gwendolyn Shaver
4 min read

The University has a site license for Acrobat Pro DC which allows all full-time employees to use the software free of charge. Acrobat Pro DC will be automatically deployed to all IST managed Academic Support Windows computers. For full-time staff and faculty working in a faculty, please contact your Faculty IT group to see if the software is being deployed to managed computers in your faculty.

  • For additional information on how to access Acrobat for full-time employees see Adobe Acrobat Pro DC .

If you are not a full-time employee and have been assigned an Acrobat license through the adobe VIP program, continue to follow the instructions below.

How to install Adobe Acrobat on a managed computer (Nexus PC).

Note

Before installing Adobe Acrobat, close all Microsoft 365 (M365) desktop and web browser apps. 

Acrobat has plug-ins for M365 app such as Outlook, Word, Excel, and the most common web browsers. Therefore, the Acrobat software will not install if the Microsoft 365 apps are still running. 

 

  1. Contact your Academic support computer rep or submit a request to have your managed computer added to the Nexus security group AS-CM-AdobeAcrobatDC

  2. The RT needs to include the name of your computer, e.g. “IST180101.nexus.uwaterloo.ca”

    1. A request can request transferring Acrobat Pro to a different machine. Include the names of both the new and old PCs. Acrobat Pro will need to be manually removed by a computer rep or someone with admin rights on the old system.

  3. The Acrobat software will become available via the Software Center application on your PC. It may take about 2 hours to be listed.

    1. Your computer must be on campus or connected via the Cisco AnyConnect VPN for managed software to be deployed to your managed PC.

  4. Open the Software Center. The Applications window will be visible. Scroll down and click Licensed – Adobe Acrobat DC…



    Before installing the software:

    1. Click the Install button. If you click the Install button shortly after the application is advertised as available (clicking on the pop-up balloon in the Windows Notification area) the process may take additional time as Software Centre needs to download the installation package (2,390 MB).

    2. Software Center will show a status of Installed in the lower portion of the window when complete. You may need to restart your computer before you will be able to run Adobe Acrobat.

  5. Launch Adobe Acrobat and click the checkbox to set Adobe Acrobat as the default application for PDFs.

    1. The first time you launch Adobe Acrobat you will need to sign into the app using your email address and the password you set for your Adobe account.

How to install Adobe Acrobat on a non-managed computer (Mac or PC)

Note

Before installing Adobe Acrobat, close all Microsoft 365 (M365) desktop and web browser apps. 

Acrobat has plug-ins for M365 app such as Outlook, Word, Excel, and the most common web browsers. Therefore, the Acrobat software will not install if the Microsoft 365 apps are still running. 

 

  1. Sign in to the Adobe page: https://www.adobe.com using the link in the email from Adobe to inform you that you have been assigned a license for Adobe Acrobat DC.

  2. You may need to click on a prompt on the page to either allow or dismiss cookies used on the site – your preference.

    1. A first-time visitor will be prompted to create an account with a username (maximum 8 characters e.g. j25marti) @uwaterloo.ca and set a password. Do not use your UWaterloo password for the Adobe site password.

  3. Click the waffle icon at the top-right, then click More towards the bottom of the drop-down menu that appears.


  4. About midway down the expanded menu to the right of Creative Cloud Apps click on the View All button.



  5. Find Acrobat DC on the list of applications on the page. Acrobat DC = Acrobat Pro. Accounts that have a license assigned for Acrobat DC will have a button to Install the app. (If you don’t have a license for Acrobat DC it only reads “Learn more.”)




  6. Click the Install button. Download and follow the prompts to install the app. On unmanaged computers, it will download and install the Adobe Creative Cloud Desktop application first (an app that manages Adobe software updates) and then Adobe Acrobat.

  7. The Adobe Creative Cloud Desktop application may prompt you to sign in using your email address and the password you set for your Adobe account. If you haven’t signed into Adobe CC Desktop then Adobe Acrobat DC will prompt you to sign in to begin using the app.



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