Internet Explorer 11.0.9600.17728
Running on Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard
Add-On (ActiveX Control) - Adobe PDF Reader (AcroPDF64.dll) 11.0.11.18 Class ID: {CA8A9780-280D-11CF-A24D-444553540000}
We have an issue whereby certain websites that load embedded PDF files will simply not invoke the PDF Reader addon and load the PDF.
We are only experiencing this in Internet Explorer, other browsers such as Google Chrome, work as intended.
Loading PDFs that are not embedded load and work fine with the browser as expected.
We have a fairly strict Group Policy structure, which prevents Internet Explorer Add-Ons from loading, unless they are in a permitted list.
The Group Policy Object uses the following settings:
User Configuration > Policies > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Internet Explorer > Security Features > Add-on Management
The setting 'Add-on List' is enabled - I have made sure that the Adobe PDF Reader Class ID value is on and enabled. It does appear as this on the machine, and as states non-embedded PDFs work fine in the browser.
The setting 'Deny all-add-ons unless specifically allowed in the Add-On List' is also enabled. This is the setting that is causing the issue. If this setting is disabled, then the embedded PDF will render and work.
I need to understand what other Class ID's are being called by Internet Explorer to render embedded PDFs and then add them into the permitted list.
The website in question is Key Investor Information documents | Legal & General Investments - selecting any the PDFs in the middle opens another third party website:
This never loads the embedded PDF just the HTML title bar. Using the IE Developer Tools, we can see that the document sits as 'Pending' with an application type of application/pdf. Copying the link directly and pasting into the browser opens the PDF as expected.
Doing some research, I can see there are 4 DLL files within C:\Program Files\Common Files\Adobe\Acrobat\Activex
I have found the Class ID values for these in the registry and added these into the Add-On List. This still has made no difference.
I'm sure its Internet Explorer calling other Add-Ons via DLL to then open Adobe PDF Reader in embedded mode.
Thanks,
Tom