Adobe PDF Maker ARX Application - Incompatible Error

Issue:

You are getting this error when launching AutoCAD-based products:
2020-08-20_14-36-43

Causes:

This is actually an Adobe issue, a recent update has caused the DBX and ARX applications to no longer work in AutoCAD.

Solution:

Navigate to the directory shown in the Error (in the image above the path is C:\Program Files (x86)\Adobe\Acrobat DC\PDFMAKER\AutoCAD\2018\64)
Locate and rename the AcrobatAcadlc.dbx, AcrobatAcadlc.arx and PDFMAcad.arx and rename them to .old or some other extension (so AutoCAD cannot read them)

That will cause the error to no longer come up.  You will still be able to Plot or Publish to PDF, but until Adobe fixes the issue, you will not have the Adobe Ribbon in your AutoCAD.

Note: As of 03/19/2024,  AutoCAD 2018 is no longer supported by Autodesk. The information contained in this post may no longer be relevant and/or the necessary updates to the product may be inaccessible.

About the Author

Ryan Wunderlich

Sr. Technical Support Specialist<br><br>An AutoCAD Certified Professional, Ryan is responsible for taking client cases and assisting with issues with the software - everything from regular glitches to software deployments and whatever else goes wrong. He's proficient in AutoCAD (including customization), VBA, LISP, and Civil 3D.

Follow on Linkedin More Content by Ryan Wunderlich
Previous Article
Inventor Task Scheduler Tips
Inventor Task Scheduler Tips

The Inventor Task Scheduler is intended to perform automated tasks and acts as a batch processor in Invento...

Next Video
Automating CAM Processes with Autodesk FeatureCAM
Automating CAM Processes with Autodesk FeatureCAM

Explore how you can leverage Autodesk FeatureCAM to automate your CAM processes.

Need tech support? Let us help!

Learn More