Error: "The file AdobePDF.dll is needed" | CS3 | 64-bit Windows

Last updated on May 16, 2021 05:23:52 AM GMT | Also Applies to Creative Suite CS3

Issue: "The file AdobePDF.dll is needed" error is encountered when you install CS3 on 64-bit Windows

When you try to install Adobe Creative Suite 3 on a 64-bit version of Windows, the installer returns the following error message: "The file AdobePDF.dll on Windows Vista CD-ROM is needed."
You are given the option to browse to the file.

Solution

Windows Vista 64-bit version

Update Adobe Acrobat 8 Professional after you install it.

When the error occurs, click Cancel to exit the dialog box and continue with the installation.

Install the Microsoft hot fix as documented in Microsoft article #930627 available at http://support.microsoft.com/kb/930627.

Update Acrobat to version 8.1 or later. The Acrobat update is available on the Adobe website at www.adobe.com/support/downloads/.

Windows 7 64-bit version

Manually extract the file "adobepdf.dll_64" from the data1.cab file before installing Acrobat. When the prompt appears, navigate to this file and select it.

Navigate to the folder that contains the setup.exe file for your Acrobat 8 installation.

Locate the file "data1.cab" and open it (you sometimes need a third-party compression utility, such as WinZip, to extract the file).

Inside the content listings, locate the file "adobepdf.dll_64" and copy it to your desktop.

Run the installer setup.exe and when the prompt appears, choose browse and select the file you copied to the desktop.

Note: If the file cannot be selected, change the file type drown down in the dialog box to "Files of All Types." Or, rename the file to "adobepdf.dll" by removing "_64" from the end of the filename extension.

Additional information

Adobe Acrobat 8 Professional is installed with the Design Premium, Design Standard, and Web Premium versions of Creative Suite 3. Although Adobe has tested Adobe Acrobat 8 (Standard and Professional) on Microsoft Windows 64-bit operating systems running on a 64-bit processor machine, there are known limitations.

As the Adobe PDF printer is not supported on 64-bit operating systems, the 64-bit version of the AdobePDF.dll does not get extracted during installation. Therefore, the installer can't locate it. While Acrobat is installed, the Adobe PDF printer isn't installed. Following the update procedure above addresses the issue.