Change "Open with" not changing...

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Level 1

6 points

Change "Open with" not changing...

For reasons unknown to me, I cannot change the default "open with" application. In this case PDF's are opening with Preview. I'd like them to open with Adobe Acrobat. Indeed, when I select a pdf and "get info", Adobe Acrobat is indicated as the application to open pdf files. However, in the finder, the icon is still that of Preview, and when double-clicked, it opens in Preview.

I have tried changing the "open with" application back to Preview, and then back to Acrobat. Now, when I chose "Books" as the default, it worked (although the file icon remains that of Preview). Then I tried chaining it from Books to Adobe Acrobat and the file again opens in Preview.

When I open a pdf directly from Acrobat (or by dragging the file to the Acrobat Icon in the Dock), I receive a message from Acrobat to change the default application to Adobe Acrobat, and although I select "Make Acrobat Default", pdf files are still opening in Preview when double clicked.

Interestingly, when I control-click a pdf and select "Open With" from the menu, Adobe Acrobat is listed in the first position indicating that it is the default application for opening pdf files.

I'm running Big Sur 11.5.2

Mid 2019 13-inch MacBook Pro

Any advice on how to remedy this issue would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

MacBook Pro 13″, macOS 11.5

Posted on Sep 14, 2021 9:13 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

Alien Duck Author

Level 1

6 points

Sep 15, 2021 6:59 AM in response to Alien Duck

I have found the solution. I revisited the "com.apple.finder.plist" suggestion from earlier. It seemed to me to make sense that the problem was a finder issue. The suggestion was to go to Users/[youruserfolder]/Library/Preferences and find the com.apple.finder.plist file. Next, move com.apple.finder.plist to the trash. Do not empty trash. Restart computer. See if all is well, and then empty the trash.

This time instead of going directly to the library, I did a search to discover there were two files named com.apple.finder.plist. I put both of them in the trash, restarted, and emptied the trash. Since then everything is operating smoothly.

Unfortunately I didn't pay close attention to where the two .plist files were located. Also, I still have no idea what caused the issue in the first place. Either way I hope this helps anyone else who encounters a similar problem.

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Answer 2

PRP_53

Level 10

84,931 points

Sep 14, 2021 9:36 AM in response to Alien Duck

Perhaps related, updating from Big Sur 11.5.2 to newest Big Sur 11.6 may or may not change this behaviour.

As usual , perform a Time Machine Backup before attempting the update - very useful and can be used to Revert to Previous Working macOS.

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Answer 3

Alien Duck Author

Level 1

6 points

Sep 14, 2021 2:58 PM in response to Alien Duck

The problem continues. I uninstalled and reinstalled Adobe Acrobat, and it seemed to fix the issue. However, now the problem has moved over to illustrator files, which when double-clicked open in Preview. So I reluctantly uninstalled Illustrator and reinstalled it. The problem persists.

I found an old thread (unsolved) that suggested the com.apple.finder.plist may be corrupt. The directions they gave was to move the .plist to the trash then restart the machine before emptying the trash. - I tried this and nothing changed.

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Answer 4

Alien Duck Author

Level 1

6 points

Sep 14, 2021 4:36 PM in response to Barney-15E

Yes. I have clicked "change all" to no avail. Interestingly, when I switched ai files to preview (clicking change all) the word "default" appears in parentheses. When I change it back to Illustrator, I "default" goes away.

Furthermore, I am beginning to get "are you sure you want to open this? Mac OS cannot verify the developer... "

all of this was working just fine yesterday. I am supremely puzzled.

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