Missing the the "Auto detect pen hardware to enable markup" setting - Surface Pro 6 and Surface pen

Question

There has to be an answer somewhere for this issue.

In settings->Commenting there is supposed to be the Auto detect pen hardware setting, but on my surface it is missing.  How do I get it back.

I know its missing because its there on two other Surface Pro 6 computers and a lenovo mix, all running the same versions of windows 10 and all running the same version of Acrobat including the patch level.

On this surface using the pen in Acrobat is quite horrible.  No issues using the pen in word and other apps though.

Please somebody help.

Bruce

Answer 1

Hi, Bruce Young (b.young)")!

Thanks for reaching out to Microsoft Community and posting your concerns regarding a setting that is missing on your Surface Pro 6. Thanks for noting that the setting shows up on your other Surface Pro 6 and Lenovo devices with the same exact Windows 10 version. May we know if they have the same OS Build? If they do, this might have something to do with the app itself on that specific device.

You may also try to reinstall the app on the device that you have issues with the setting. If you still do not see the setting, please Please check if the Acrobat app on all devices have the same version as well. If not, please check with the app developer if there's some update that was recently released or not. Please visit their support site to see details regarding the version of the app installed on each device.

For the device, please ensure these steps are performed though.

·         Check for Windows Update:

Go to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > Check for Updates

Please restart your device to apply the updates.

·         Run Surface Diagnostic Toolkit and make sure to complete the tasks.

·         Force shutdown the device and restart. 

1. Press and hold the power button until the screen turns off (about 10 seconds), then release the power button.
2. Press and release the power button to turn your Surface back on. You should see the Microsoft logo.

If that doesn't work, here's how to make sure your Surface turns off completely:

Press and hold down the power button until your Surface restarts and you see the Windows logo screen (about 20 seconds), then release the power button.

We hope this helps you out. Otherwise, don't hesitate to respond to this thread if there’s anything else that needs to be addressed. 

Kind regards,

Janette_Z

Answer 2

Thanks for the suggestion Janette.  I had already run the Surface diagnostics and recalibrated the pen.

But further investigation last night has revealed this as a user specific issue.

Creating a new user on the same surface and launching Adobe Acrobat, the preference setting is available and the pen issues are resolved for that new user.  Return to the original user and the bad pen function returns.

With respect to the other working systems, they are all the same build with June security roll-ups applied.

There is a difference in surface firmware between one of the working surfaces, but in light of the item above, its not specifically firmware related.

I am still of the opinion that there is an interconnect between surface hardware and this issue as the only other references I can find to this "missing" setting are from other surface users.

Answer 3

Hello, Bruce Young (b.young)").

With the information you shared, this seems like a device in a workplace. You may need to Surface Support for Business/Enterprise for further assistance.

Regards,

Janette_Z

Answer 4

Creating a new user on the same surface and launching Adobe Acrobat, the preference setting is available and the pen issues are resolved for that new user.  Return to the original user and the bad pen function returns.

Sounds like something is corrupt for that user. So what happens if you remove
that original user, restart, and then recreate the original user?