New updates to Adobe Document Cloud show the power of integration with SharePoint and OneDrive
Published Jun 17 2019 12:20 PM 51.4K Views
Microsoft

We’re always evolving Microsoft 365 to add more tools and capabilities across products – for example, at the recent SharePoint Conference, we announced many new product innovations. You can go even further to create transformational productivity experiences when you customize Microsoft 365 with integrated applications from Microsoft AppSource.


Microsoft 365 is designed to be tailored with web technologies to make every experience fit your team workflows. Well-integrated tools save you time by avoiding distracting context switches and providing tools right where you need them. Applications like SharePoint feature many ways to extend many user experiences, including file handlers and SharePoint Framework Extensions.

 

As one example, innovations from a Microsoft Partner – Adobe – show how it’s possible to further streamline workflows through deep integration across Microsoft 365. Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Document Cloud and Adobe Sign are standalone document applications in their own right, but because they deeply integrate across a number of Microsoft 365 products – including applications on Windows, integrations with SharePoint, Outlook, and Word, Microsoft Teams, and more -- they can drive new levels of productivity.

 

For example, Adobe Acrobat is perhaps best known as a powerful Windows and MacOS application for working with PDF files. Through an updated web application and many integrations with SharePoint, Adobe Acrobat on the web brings these PDF tools to where your files are – in SharePoint and OneDrive.

 

In the newest set of updates to PDF tools designed to deepen integrations with SharePoint and OneDrive, Adobe Document Cloud has improved the user experience for its web tools, ensuring that you have all of the major capabilities to work with PDF files on the web and in the context of SharePoint. New inline commenting and drawing capabilities keep feedback close at hand. Adobe Document Cloud also now supports single sign-on with Azure Active Directory, dramatically simplifying log-in and avoiding the need to manage multiple account sign-ins. Taken together, common tasks for working with content and PDF files are just a click away, saving you time, and extending the power of your Microsoft 365 investments.

 

Adobe Acrobat PDF web tools, accessible from Microsoft SharePointAdobe Acrobat PDF web tools, accessible from Microsoft SharePoint

Acrobat now also features new form filling capabilities via Acrobat on the web. You can upload and send links to Adobe Acrobat PDF-powered files stored in SharePoint that can collect information. In the future, this integration will also use Microsoft Graph APIs for SharePoint to connect to more data, ensuring a performant integration experience. Because the files continue to stay in SharePoint and OneDrive, you keep the benefits of unified management and governance for content.

 

Adobe PDF Form Filling web toolsAdobe PDF Form Filling web tools

Adobe Sign supports comprehensive integrations for e-signature and approval workflows across SharePoint, Teams, Outlook and Dynamics 365 – like Acrobat and PDF tools, bring experiences everywhere you work. Building on these integrations, Adobe Sign also now features a connector for Microsoft Flow and PowerApps that enable you to use e-signatures across document processes. With this connector, you can trigger updates based on e-signatures, and store your signature audit trails back in SharePoint so that your critical document data are stored in one place and work consistently with Microsoft management tools.

 

Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Document Cloud and Adobe Sign are just a few examples of well-integrated Microsoft 365 applications. By integrating with the SharePoint and OneDrive user experience, storing key data in SharePoint lists and libraries to facilitate unified management, and by connecting to data via Microsoft Graph, they support making SharePoint and OneDrive the most productive and compliant location for working with your critical document content. Make sure you explore the set of Adobe integrations for SharePoint and OneDrive. Many other applications, available via AppSource and built within enterprises, integrate in similar ways. For any applications you work with, that leverage documents in capabilities, we hope you take advantage of the opportunity to improve productivity with products deeply integrated with OneDrive and SharePoint.

17 Comments
Copper Contributor

In essence, we have no longer have to check out, download, edit, save, and then upload-replace pdf files in order to edit them in SharePoint Online. Now we simply need to convince our companies to pay for additional Adobe services (and have IT certify Adobe cloud) in order to edit pdf files from our browsers?

 

Why are SPO and Office web apps so slow to adopt features its competitors adopted years ago? I get that Adobe has a stranglehold on PDF, even though it's original use (print only/scans) is no longer feasible. However, forcing MS clients to use file shares and local storage to edit cloud files of a certain file type is not a responsible strategy and shows how MS is still not client-focused. Furthermore, the fact that new features are supposedly rolled out to cloud platform faster than on-prem, yet we can only edit and open PDF files in Adobe client if stored on-prem.

 

So, when can we expect to see GDocs style concurrent multi-user text cursors in MS web apps and when can we expect, if ever, to be able to open and edit PDF files stored in Adobe client that are stored in SharePoint Online?

Steel Contributor

This is great!  We can now edit PDF files on SharePoint, from the web browser!  (Not needing to use File-Explorer).  

Copper Contributor

Hello, did anyone manage to complete an interactive form as in the example above?
When I try, the fields of the form are not accessible while it works well in web classic mode. Only annotation features are available.
Thank you for your feedback.

Steel Contributor

One important piece missing from the tool with SharePoint Online, is the Typewriter tool.  

I'm guessing there will be growing pains with this.  Hope this is on Adobe's plate of upcoming enhancements.

 

While the StickyNotes tool is available, it is not a replacement for the Typewriter tool.  The contents of the adobe StickyNotes can only be seen when opening the PDF files with Acrobat.  StickyNote content is not shown when viewing the PDF file in the Edge browser.  The browser viewer is a default for many, because it does not have the overhead and slow speed.  

Iron Contributor

I was playing around with this a bit on our test tenant and I noticed when clicking a PDF, it redirects to documentcloud.adobe.com

Does this mean the file/data is uploaded to Adobe cloud platform in order to work with the PDF and then written back to SharePoint?

Does any data/metadata remain in Adobe cloud when I close the file?

I wasn't able to track down any detailed information about how this exactly works and I just want to be prepared because I know those questions are coming when/if I propose this internally :)

Brass Contributor

I second @Steve Hernou's question!

Iron Contributor

Firstly, thank you to the commentors above for succinctly and clearly explaining what the post is actually about - Microsoft's copywriting skills are absolutely atrocious!

 

Secondly, can someone explain how this is actually accessed? Is it available to everyone yet?

 

Thanks!

Steel Contributor

Responding to @Michael Butterfield, Here is where you go to get Adobe Acrobat Experience for Office 365 (SharePoint Online), https://appsource.microsoft.com/en-US/product/web-apps/adobeinc.adobe-document-cloud-pdf

 

It appears it is available to everyone.  I followed the prompts, and it showed up for everyone in my tenant, in SharePoint online.  I am an admin on the Tenant.  Those that have an Adobe license, can sign in with their Adobe ID, opening up more edit options.  Otherwise, one primarily only gets Adobe Acrobat Reader options.  One thing missing today, is the Typewriter tool.  The Sticky Notes tool is there, but Sticky Notes is not the same as the Typewriter tool.

Copper Contributor

@Steve Hernou Did you ever get an answer for this. Our Organization is looking at this & Our Internal Security team raised this exact question. 

Iron Contributor

@Marian Erik Dobesch , @mukeshy , I still don't have any more information on this. Will reach out to some people who may know or know where to find the info. I will post here if there's news.

Copper Contributor

Not able to fill forms. Is there something special that needs to be done?

Copper Contributor

That's Really nice, it is just integrated with SharePoint Modern View and Not Classic View.

 

For example, if accidently I try to use Classic view for a library because I need to add metadata to my file before I check-in the file its not possible.

Therefore, you cant run your flow or workflow base on a column values.

 

See, it is like a domino, which just not working for may solutions.

 

Thanks 

Copper Contributor

This add-on in current development stage is useless. It does not work properly and if you have problems with it, Adobe will not help you! I spent countless hours on the phone trying to reach a proper support team, sent several emails to support. THERE IS SIMPLY NO SUPPORT FROM THEM! 

 

@Steve Hernou a quick answer to your question, yes your documents once opened with this addon are stored in their cloud!

Brass Contributor

Thanks @T00mek for answering our storage question. And too bad to hear that the add-on is currently useless...

Steel Contributor

Where are the instructions for disabling this SharePoint Online Acrobat add-on?  It continues to give too many issues.  

Copper Contributor

We just installed this on our tenant because the free version provides the basic tools we need to annotate PDFs for a basic document review process we wanted to roll-out.  However during testing we have run into some confusing and inconsistent behaviour of the Adobe Document Cloud (ADC) file handler, and as @T00mek mentioned above there does not seem to be any real support available. 

 

Here's a summary of our experience:

  • We configured the Adobe Document Cloud for Office 365 app in our tenant to be available for all users.
  • For User A the "Open in ADC" menu item appears on SharePoint in IE11, Chrome, and Edge as expected.
  • For User B, the "Open in ADC" menu does not appear on SharePoint in IE11 but does in Chrome and Edge.  IE11 is User B's default browser due to other legacy application requirements and so we need ADC to work with IE11 and SharePoint.  Incidentally, the "Open in ADC" menu appears for User B when accessing SharePoint libraries through OneDrive for Business with IE11, but this method does not provide the full SharePoint capabilities or fit our process.
  • We contacted Microsoft regarding the issue with User B and their response was that the ADC Office 365 app does not support IE11, even though Adobe's own Admin page for it states that it does.  No further support was provided by Microsoft.
  • We considered switching the default browser for users to Edge and then working around the legacy application IE11 requirement.
  • We continued testing with Users C and D, but discovered that for them the "Open in ADC" menu item does not appear in any browser on SharePoint even though it worked in Chrome and Edge for Users A and B.  However, these users also do see the menu item through OneDrive for Business same as User B.
  • We then tested User E and "Open in ADC" menu item appears in IE11 (i.e., which Microsoft told us was not supported) on SharePoint but not in Chrome or Edge.
  • All users involved in testing have "Edit" or "Admin" permissions on the SharePoint site.
  • Adobe does not appear to offer support for the free version, but if a customer cannot validate that the free version works then how does Adobe expect customers to potentially upgrade to the paid version?

We'd love to hear if anyone else has experienced anything similar or has any insight into how we could further troubleshoot the issue of the ADC file handler menu not appearing consistently for all users.

Brass Contributor

So, disappointed with this. You can't do basics, editing text in PDF. This is really stupid. So, they can provide option "Open in Adobe Document Cloud" but not "Open Adobe DC Desktop App". We have Adobe Pro DC license but still can't edit because the file doesn't open in desktop application. You can open in browser which has limited functionality but not the basic editing text function. 

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