TechNote

Error "...document could not be saved..." occurs or Save options are dimmed (Acrobat Reader 5.x, Adobe Reader 6.x on Windows)

Issue

When you try to save an Adobe PDF document that you opened by clicking a link in a website, one of the following errors occurs:

-- Adobe Reader 6.x returns the error "The document could not be saved, this operation is not permitted."

-- In Acrobat Reader 5.x, the Save and Save As menu options are dimmed.

Details

Your browser is configured to use Adobe Reader or Acrobat Reader to open web-based PDF documents in an Acrobat window instead of the browser window.

The Adobe Reader or Acrobat Reader title bar indicates the file is Linked (Adobe Reader) or Embedded (Acrobat Reader).

Solutions

Do one or more of the following solutions:

Solution 1:Upgrade to Adobe Reader 7.0.

The free Adobe Reader 7.0 is available from the Adobe website at www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html .

Solution 2: Repair Adobe Reader. (Adobe Reader 6.0.1 only)

1. Quit all applications.

2. Start Adobe Reader.

3. Choose Help > Detect And Repair.

4. Click Yes to restart the computer.

Solution 3: Enable webbrowser integration.

To enable web browser integration:

In Adobe Reader 6.x:

1. Choose Edit > Preferences.

2. Choose Internet in the Preferences window.

3. Select Display PDF In Browser, and then click OK.

In Acrobat Reader 5.x:

1. Choose Edit > Preferences.

2. In the Preferences window, choose Options.

3. Under Web Browser Options, select Display PDF In Browser, and then click OK.

Solution 4: Manually save the PDF document from the website. (Internet Explorer only)

1. In Internet Explorer, right-click the link to the PDF document and then choose Save Target As in the pop-up menu.

2. Select a location on the hard disk, and then click Save.

Solution 5: Save the PDF from the Temporary Internet Files folder.

1. Locate the PDF file in Windows\Temporary Internet Files (Windows ME, 98SE, or NT) or Documents and Settings\[user profile]\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files (Windows XP or 2000).

Note: If you can't locate the Temporary Internet Files folder, enable Windows to show hidden files and folders. For instructions, see Windows Help.

2. Right-click the PDF file and choose Copy from the pop-up menu.

3. Navigate to a location to save the file, right-click in the folder, and then choose Paste from the pop-up menu.

4. Double-click the PDF file in the location that you saved it to open it.

Background information

If Microsoft Internet Explorer is configured to use Adobe Reader as a helper application, an unknown issue occasionally causes Adobe Reader to return an error, or the options for saving documents in Acrobat Reader to be dimmed, when you try to save a linked or embedded PDF document.