In this blog post, I will show you the steps to deploy Adobe Acrobat Reader using Intune on Windows 10 and 11 devices. You might also see this application referred to as Adobe Reader DC. After installing the application, I noticed that while the name displayed in the Help menu and documentation is Adobe Acrobat Reader, the installation folder is still named Adobe Reader DC. Despite the difference in names, both refer to the same application that we will be deploying.
This app can be used to open and read PDF files and is free to use. To summarize the steps, we will first download the app from adobe website and use Win32 app deployment method for the deployment of this application.
Contents
Download Adobe Acrobat Reader Offline Installer
Download the latest version of Adobe Acrobat Reader from adobe website using below steps:
Select Operating system, Language and use the drop-down to select the Version. Click on Download Acrobat Reader to download the EXE application installer (AcroRdrDC2400520320_en_US.exe). Please note that the file name may be different depending on the application version you are using.
Create IntuneWin File
As we will be using Win32 app deployment method, it requires the application format in .intunewin file. Therefore, package AcroRdrDC2400520320_en_US.exe into .IntuneWin File.
Copy AcroRdrDC2400520320_en_US.exe into any empty folder (e.g., C:\Adobe setup).
Create another folder called C:\Output or any name you like. This is where we will generate .intunewin file.
Download Win32 Content Prep tool and extract it to a folder. I have extracted it to D:\IntuneContentPrepTool.
Run IntunewinAppUtil.exe and provide below details. As an example:
Source Folder: C:\Adobe Setup
Setup File: AcroRdrDC2400520320_en_US.exe
Output Folder: D:\Output
Catalog Folder Information:N
Intunewin file for Adobe reader app has been created successfully in the specified output folder.
If you find any issues creating IntuneWin file, you can also refer to below blog post which provides more detail on this and can help with this process.
Click on + Add and Select Windows app (Win32) from the app type.
App Information: Click on Select app package file and browse the Intunewin file. Provide Information in the mandatory fields below. The rest of the fields are optional but useful for application documentation and troubleshooting issues.
Requirements: You can specify the requirements that devices must meet to deploy the app. If your devices mix 32-bit and 64-bit types, check the boxes for 32-bit and 64-bit in the Operating system architecture drop-down. Else, go with 64-bit.
Operating System Architecture: 64-bit
Minimum operating system: Select the minimum OS requirement for this deployment.
Detection Rules: Select Manually configure detection rules and click on +Add to add a detection rule.
Above detection rule detects the presence of AcroRd32.exe file to detect the application and reports its status to Intune. Alternatively, You can use a detection method which can detect the version of Adobe Acrobat reader installed on the target device. It’s useful in scenarios where you want to update the application based on the version information.
From the Intune admin center > Apps > All apps. Click on the deployment and check the Overview page to show the deployment status.
Sync Intune Policies
The device check-in process might not begin immediately. If you’re testing this policy on a test device, you can manually kickstart Intune sync from the device itself or remotely through the Intune admin center.
Alternatively, you can use PowerShell to force the Intune sync on Windows devices. Restarting the device is another way to trigger the Intune device check-in process.
End User Experience
After the deployment is completed successfully, you can check and confirm if the application has been installed successfully. You will find a desktop shortcut of the application and also a Start menu item. Launch the app to confirm if it’s working fine.
Click on the Menu > Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader to check the App version information. As you can see from below screenshot, we have installed Adobe Acrobat Reader Version 2024.005.20320 which is latest at the time of writing this blog post.
You can also check in Programs and Features to confirm if Adobe Acrobat Reader app has been installed.
Adobe Acrobat Reader Version Number in Registry
To find the version number of Adobe Acrobat Reader in Windows registry
Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall{AC76BA86-7AD7-1033-7B44-AC0F074E4100}.
On the right-hand side you will find DisplayVersion registry entry which shows the version of Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your system.
Another location where you will find the Registry keys for Adobe Acrobat Reader is HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Adobe\Acrobat Reader\DC\Installer where you can find the Installation Path, Install time, Install date etc.
Uninstall Adobe Acrobat Reader Using Intune
Now that, we have deployed Adobe Acrobat Reader App on Windows 10/11 devices using Intune via Win32 app deployment. We can use the same deployment to uninstall it. Here are the steps to uninstall it:
From the Intune admin center > Apps > All apps.
Search for the app deployment for Adobe Acrobat Reader and click on it.
Go to Properties under Manage.
Click on Edit next to Assignments.
Remove the devices from the Required section and add themto the Uninstall section. Ensure that the same device is not a part of Required and Uninstall section both. After saving the deployment, Uninstall command specified in the Program tab will execute to uninstall the app from the device.
