SharePoint - how to default open in desktop app, specifically PDFs to Adobe

Question

Is there a way to automatically open documents in the Desktop app?

We prefer to work with desktop apps and would like to ensure users at our company use the Desktop apps. With the recent removal of "Open in Desktop App" option from the browser view, we are having more issues.

I see in Office 2013 there was an option for "Default open behavior for browser-enabled documents in Office Web Apps" but there is not the same option for Office 365.

Another major concern is opening PDF's in Adobe Acrobat or Reader instead of the browser window.

Answer 1

Hi @Sumanth Bhaskaran ,

At the document library level, we could go to Library settings>Advanced settings>Open in the client application:

If you want to enable this at site collection level, please go to Site information>View all site settings>Site Collection features> activate the feature as shown below:

Then make sure that the document library settings point to the client:

Unlike Microsoft Office documents, they are still seeking a solution to open pdf files in the client (Adobe) by default.

Please refer to this user voice:

https://sharepoint.uservoice.com/forums/329214-sites-and-collaboration/suggestions/12336546-open-adobe-pdf-in-client-application

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