Adobe has announced they are ending support for PostScript Type 1 fonts in all their apps in January 2023. As we shared in our webinar, failure to identify, isolate, and replace PostScript Type 1 fonts in your collection could lead to costly delays from unexpected text overset and reflow.

We want to help you avoid this kind of creative chaos. In this guide we’ll show you how to discover, evaluate, and find replacements for all PostScript Type 1 fonts within your creative environment.

1. Identify PostScript Type 1 fonts within managed font libraries

   The first step is to identify PostScript Type 1 fonts that live in your company’s managed font workgroups. It’s important to gather these fonts for the next step of isolating them from your workgroups, so they cannot be used for new projects.

   Actions To Take

   1. Create a new workgroup to contain all the PostScript Type 1 fonts

      1. Create a new library or workgroup in Universal Type Server
      2. Restrict access to admins who will manage the cleanup process

   2. Isolate all PostScript Type 1 fonts into a single library or workgroup

      1. Select the ‘All Server Fonts’ workgroup
      2. Run an advanced search (Command-f on Mac or Control-f on Windows), and choose the ‘Type’ field with ‘matches’ criteria of ‘PostScript’
      3. Click the (+) to add a second criteria of ‘PostScript - MM’
      4. Select all results in the lower list panel, right-click your selection, and choose ‘New Set from Selection’
      5. Name your set something like ‘PostScript Fonts for review’
      6. Drag the set into the new workgroup you just created in step 1.1
      7. Once completed, search all of your workgroups for PostScript Type 1 fonts using the same advanced search method you just performed, and remove them from each workgroup
      8. From this point, you will manage all PostScript Type 1 fonts from the new workgroup

   3. Access the ‘Reports’ page in the Universal Type Server Management web application

      1. Select the ‘Fonts by Name’ or ‘Fonts by Workgroup’ report
      2. Export the file to Excel or CSV and open in Microsoft Excel
      3. Sort report by the ‘Type’ field
      4. Hide all non-PostScript Type 1 font entries
      5. Maintain report for further steps

2. Implement interim workflow preventing new use of PostScript Type 1 fonts

   Follow these steps to ensure PostScript Type 1 fonts are restricted from ongoing use, but are still available during the “replacement” period on a case-by-case basis.

   Actions To Take

   1. Implement a simple business policy and inform all users to ensure PostScript Type 1 fonts are removed from the creative workflow

   2. Create a new temporary workgroup named ‘Temp PostScript Fonts’

      1. Manage a simple process to grant access only as needed
      2. When a PostScript Type 1 font is required, ask the user to provide the Font Sense IDs for each font so an accurate match can be found
      3. When a Font Sense ID cannot be provided, use the following details to find the closest match: PostScript Name, Foundry, and Version
      4. Confirm the user has access to the ‘Temp PostScript Fonts’ workgroup, add a copy of the font to a project or job set in that workgroup, and share the set with the user
      5. To guarantee PostScript Type 1 fonts aren’t used unnecessarily, remove them from the ‘Temp PostScript Fonts’ workgroup as soon as possible

3. Identify PostScript Type 1 fonts in Adobe Creative Cloud documents

   Audit your Creative Cloud documents and templates to discover those containing PostScript Type 1 fonts.

   Actions To Take

   1. Scan all documents/templates and flag those with PostScript Type 1 font usage information

      1. The goal is to assess the impact PostScript Type 1 font replacement will have on your organization over the next 12 months
      2. For clarity on any of the following steps, please speak with your Customer Success Manager

   2. Document Discovery Solution #1 – Extensis Portfolio Digital Asset Manager (DAM)

      1. You’ll need a running instance of Portfolio to process Creative Cloud documents for PostScript Type 1 font inspection
      2. Configure Portfolio to audit documents for applicable font metadata
      3. Run analysis of all affected documents & templates using PostScript Type 1 fonts
      4. Create a visual gallery of affected files for further evaluation
      5. Use the ‘Export Field Values’ function in Portfolio to pull a list of all Font Sense IDs from these PostScript Type 1 fonts
      6. In Portfolio, analyze the list of affected documents and separate them into two galleries for sorting: Fonts Needing Replacements Fonts to be Archived (the latter category is for PostScript Type 1 fonts which do not appear in any of your documents)
      7. Speak with your Customer Success Manager about setting up Portfolio by clicking the TALK TO AN EXPERT button below

   3. Document Discovery Solution #2 – Adobe Bridge

      1. You’ll need a running instance of Adobe’s Bridge application
      2. Use the Find command in Bridge to search your documents containing fonts
      3. Refer to this article for more information

   4. Documents requiring font replacements

      1. Isolate the PostScript Type 1 fonts that need to be replaced to a permission-restricted workgroup in Universal Type Server (see Section 4: Step 2)

   5. Documents requiring no further actions can be archived

4. PostScript Type 1 font replacements, removals, and conversions

   There are 3 main actions you can take with handling documents and templates that contain PostScript Type 1 fonts: Remove versions that are no longer needed, find replacements for your PostScript Type 1 fonts, and convert fonts that are no longer commercially available.

   Step 1 is the simplest step, since it involves identifying the documents that are no longer needed so they can be archived without any further action.

   Step 2 requires identifying documents that need further review. Understanding which PostScript Type 1 fonts show up in each document is key to deciding what to do next. Documents that require further action should be analyzed to determine which PostScript Type 1 fonts they have in common. It’s likely the same fonts have been used in multiple documents, which will make replacing them much less tedious. Maintaining a fonts log for each file can help the replacement process.

   Step 3 considers the decision to convert fonts that are still needed but no longer commercially available. Due to font quality and compliance concerns, conversion methods should only be used in exceptional cases and only after all other options have been exhausted. In the long-term, converted fonts should be deprecated as soon as substitutions can be found.

   Actions To Take

   1. Documents which PostScript Type 1 fonts are safe for removal

      1. Analyze your documents to determine which PostScript Type 1 fonts have not been used so you can eliminate unneeded fonts right away and trim down your library of PostScript Type 1 fonts from the start

   2. Documents with PostScript Type 1 fonts requiring replacements

      1. One of the best times to quickly replace fonts is when you open documents in Adobe apps
      2. Find the closest OTF or TTF matches from your licensed collection
      3. When utilizing auto-activation alerts for ‘missing fonts,’ you’ll be presented with the closest matches by Type and Font Sense IDs
      4. Important: While it’s easy to substitute similar OpenType or TrueType fonts for PostScript Type 1 fonts, be sure to preflight each document for unexpected text overset and reflow errors
      5. Within Universal Type Server, the QuickMatch function helps find new alternatives for fonts already licensed (when relevance is set to 100%)
      6. Fonts can be searched and discovered by their Type and Font Sense IDs

   3. Redesign documents using alternative fonts from other foundries

      1. You can also purchase similar OpenType or TrueType fonts from other foundries
      2. You may decide to redesign documents using some of these alternative fonts

   4. Conversions for fonts no longer commercially available (a definite last resort)

      1. Converting violates the end user license agreement in nearly all cases
      2. Find the closest matching font where possible
      3. Convert text to outlines when the font is no longer commercially available
      4. Consider conversion as a last resort and use in critical work only

5. Continuous maintenance process and font reporting health checks

   Maintain an ongoing process and monthly reporting during the “resolution” period to ensure PostScript Type 1 fonts are replaced in your font management workflow before Adobe’s end-of-support deadline in January 2023.

   Actions To Take

   1. Identify affected documents, gather reports, and implement a regular removal and replacement process

      1. Which PostScript Type 1 fonts have not been used in any documents? Documents without PostScript Type 1 fonts can be logged and safely removed from future reports since no further action is required
      2. Which PostScript Type 1 fonts were used in which documents? These reports can be pulled from Portfolio by extracting field values from documents found to contain PostScript Type 1 fonts
      3. Font Sense IDs are included in exported Portfolio reports, and when manipulated in Microsoft Excel these reports can show where and when specific PostScript Type 1 fonts appear across numerous documents

   2. Determining PostScript Type 1 font usage in Universal Type Server

      1. You can track font licenses in Universal Type Server to determine which PostScript Type 1 fonts are still being used
      2. Create a font license and attach it to the PostScript Type 1 fonts you want to track (UTS Enterprise Edition required; please speak with your Customer Success Manager if you have questions)
      3. Review the ‘Fonts by Workgroup’ report to determine which versions of your Postscript Type 1 Fonts are being activated

   3. Designating new fonts for those needing replacements

      1. Create a process to ensure replacements for PostScript Type 1 fonts are used consistently
      2. This way, when a specific OpenType or TrueType font is determined to be the “official” substitute for a certain PostScript Type 1 font, it will be used in all instances
      3. Currently, there isn’t an “official replacements” report automatically available from Universal Type Server or Portfolio, so this report should be maintained manually
      4. Extensis suggests logging the following information for each font: