You may receive the error message “There was an error opening this document. The file is damaged and could not be repaired” when you try to open a PDF file in Adobe Acrobat Reader. In this post, MiniTool Partition Wizard offers several methods that may help you solve the error.

At times, while using Adobe Acrobat Reader, you may fail to open certain PDF files and see the error message: There was an error opening this document. The file is damaged and could not be repaired. This error is mainly caused due to the following reasons:

  • The Enhanced Security Protection mode
  • Corrupted PDF file
  • Temporary browser files
  • Outdated Adobe Acrobat Reader

To help you fix the error, a couple of solutions are listed in this guide below.

Solution 1: Download the PDF File Again

If the “PDF there was an error opening this document. The file is damaged and could not be repaired” issue only happens when you open certain specific files, it may indicate there is something wrong when you download these PDF files. Therefore, to fix the issue, you just need to delete these corrupted files and then download them back.

If the issue occurs whichever files you open, then you need to try other solutions.

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Solution 2: Change Adobe’s Security Settings

Sometimes, the Enhanced Security Mode in Adobe Acrobat Reader may prevent you from opening a PDF file and show you the error message “There was an error opening this document. The file is damaged and could not be repaired”. To resolve this issue, you can try disabling the Enabled Security mode.

Step 1: Launch Adobe Acrobat Reader and then select Edit > Preferences.

Step 2: Go to Security (Enhanced). Then uncheck Enabled Enhanced Security from the right side.

Step 3: Click OK to save the changes.

Step 4: Relaunch Adobe Acrobat Reader to see if the issue disappears.

Solution 3: Clear Temporary Files

Another way you can try to fix the “there was an error opening this document. The file is damaged and could not be repaired” issue is to clear the temporary browser files.

Step 1: Press Windows + R to open the Run dialog.

Step 2: Type inetcpl.cpl in the box and then press Enter.

Open Internet Properties

Step 3: In the General tab of the Internet Properties window, click Delete.

Step 4: In the pop-up window, check all options and then click Delete.

Delete temporary Internet files

Wait until the process completes and you might be able to open PDF files properly after that.

Solution 4: Repair Adobe Acrobat Reader

The “PDF there was an error opening this document. The file is damaged and could not be repaired” issue may also come out if there is something wrong with the Adobe Acrobat Reader app. In this case, you need to fix the issue by repairing this app.

Step 1: Open the Run dialog and then type appwiz.cpl in the text box and then press Enter.

Step 2: After you enter the Uninstall or change a program window, right-click Adobe Acrobat Reader and select Change.

Step 3: On the pop-up window, select Repair installation errors in the program. Then click Next to begin the repair process.

Repair Adobe Acrobat Reader

After the process finishes, restart your computer to check if the error is solved.

Solution 5: Update Adobe Acrobat Reader

An outdated version of Adobe Acrobat Reader can lead to the “there was an error opening this document. The file is damaged and could not be repaired” issue as well. Therefore, you should make sure you are using the latest version when you meet the issue.

Step 1: Launch Adobe Acrobat Reader and then select Help at the top-right corner.

Step 2: Select Check for Updates. If any updates are found, you ought to install them.

Step 3: Once you update Adobe Acrobat Reader to the latest version, restart the app and the issue might be repaired already.

If the issue persists, you can also try uninstalling and then installing Adobe Acrobat Reader back to your computer.

When you get stuck in the “there was an error opening this document. The file is damaged and could not be repaired” issue, you can try these methods mentioned above. If you have any other problems with the issue, you can leave a message below.

Are you interested in MiniTool Partition Wizard? If so, you can visit its official website to learn more about this comprehensive partition management program.

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