Information
  • Author: Appian Corporation
  • Type: Plug-in (Function & Smart Service)
  • Support: This is an Appian supported plug-in. To the extent that this plug-in does not conform to its documentation, please submit a ticket to Appian Technical Support. Appian does not support customer-created customizations or outdated versions of the plug-in.
  • Industry: All Industries
  • Compatible Version(s): 24.2
  • First Released:
  • Last Updated:
  • Cost: Free - Appian Supported
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Home » AppMarket » PDF Tools

PDF Tools

Overview

Contains multiple Smart Services and Functions for interacting with PDF Documents.

Key Features & Functionality

Smart Services:

  • Merge PDF - Merges multiple PDF documents into a single document.
  • Extract PDF Pages - Extracts a range of pages from an existing PDF into a new PDF.
  • Fill PDF - Populates the fields of a PDF Form and optionally flattens it disallow further changes.
  • Create PDF Content - Allows text to be added to a PDF with control over the style, position, and angle. An existing PDF can be updated or a new one created from scratch.
  • Convert PDF to Image - Creates an array of images or a multi-page tiff from a PDF.
  • Compress PDF - Compresses the images in the PDF to make it smaller.
  • Un-protect and Copy PDF - Using the document password, create an un-protected copy of a protected PDF.
  • Convert Image to PDF - Creates a PDF starting from one or many images. It also supports multi-page tiff images.
  • Encrypt PDF - Encrypts an existing PDF with a password,
  • Split PDF Pages In Half - Supports spitting individual pdf pages horizontally or vertically with an overlap
  • Rotate PDF - rotate entire pdf by 90, 180, or 270 degrees
  • Convert Txt to PDF - Convert a text to pdf with a choice of font type and size

Functions:

  • Get PDF Metadata - Retrieves metadata on the PDF: page count, title, author, security, encryption, etc.
  • Get PDF Text - Retrieves the text content from a PDF.
  • Get PDF Form Fields - Retrieves the populated form field values of an unflattened PDF.
  • Get PDF Signature Fields - Retrieves the populated signature field values of an unflattened PDF.
  • Get PDF Bookmarks - Retrieves the list of bookmarks and associated page number in the PDF

Anonymous
  • in reply to davidl0016

    This is caused by a known limitation in our plugin management software when the plugin is updated, it is solved by restarting the site.

  • Hello,

    i've the following exception with the 2.9.0 version on an appian  24.4.600.0

    Caused by: java.lang.ClassNotFoundException: Unable to load class 'javax.imageio.stream.ImageInputStream' because the bundle wiring for pdftools is no longer valid.
    ... 259 more
    2025-06-27 14:45:37,182 [https-jsse-nio-8443-exec-9] ERROR com.atlassian.plugins.rest.common.error.jersey.ThrowableExceptionMapper - Uncaught exception thrown by REST service: javax/imageio/stream/ImageInputStream
    java.lang.NoClassDefFoundError: javax/imageio/stream/ImageInputStream
    at com.github.jaiimageio.impl.plugins.bmp.BMPImageReaderSpi.canDe

    Could you please advice ?

    Tanks in advance 

  • v2.9.0 Release Notes
    • Fixed the Encrypt PDF smart service to restrict the printing and editing after protected.
  • v2.8.3 Release Notes
    • Fixing missing input on smart service: Convert PDF to Image not creating valid documents
  • in reply to Mike Schmitt

    Despite configuring the parameter 'Read Only = True,' the generated PDF remains editable, allowing modifications to its content. Utilizing the editing tools within Adobe Acrobat (full version), users can switch to edit mode, make changes, and save the file without restrictions.

    Our requirement is to ensure that the generated PDF files are effectively set to read-only and rendered non-editable under all circumstances.

  • in reply to Omkar

    This is the same issue I previously noted.  No information about a fix yet, but the engineering team is supposedly aware of it.  If it's a critical failure, you can request (via a support case) them to roll your plug-in version back to a previously working edition (i.e. ~2.6.0 or so), i believe.

  • in reply to Ole Jørgensen

    I had the same issue and solved the problem by doing the following steps:
    1- Make sure the PDF file doesn't have tags and comments in it.
    2- In the process model go to the node, then go to the assignment tab, and make sure the node is running as whoever designed this process model.



    I hope this can help.

  • Hi Team,

    Image is created and uploaded to the folder but not able to open it or download. Anything I am missing on this part?

  • in reply to harikanthk0004

    When you say "able to edit", what exactly does that mean?  Are you talking about fillable fields still being fillable when opened normally (which i had thought "flatten" might take care of), or do you mean like you're able to open it in Adobe Acrobat (the full version with editing capabilities) and still switch to "Edit" mode?  If it's the second one, I'm not sure what the solution is, though you might need to look into a way to LOCK pdf's.

  • in reply to Mike Schmitt

    Update: this deployment issue has now been fixed, per the comment below by Michael C.  I've confirmed in my own environment that it allows the upgrade now.

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