[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

if a print job to the PDF24 printer ends with a print error, the Assistant cannot open, because the print job never reaches PDF24. Please check the following:

• Update to the current version of PDF24 Creator.
• The PDF24 Windows service must be running, it receives the print jobs. If it is not running, PDF24 shows a message with the button "Start PDF24 service".
• Delete print jobs that are stuck in the queue of the PDF24 printer, they block the following jobs.
• For the classic PDF printer: in the printer properties, tab "Ports", the port must be \\.\pipe\PDFPrint.

These points are described in the manual: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#131-the-pdf-printer-is-not-working-properly-print-jobs-are-stuck-in-the-print-queue-what-to-do

On Windows 11 24H2 and later, PDF24 may use the driverless PDF printer. Every print job to it fails if Windows forbids background apps for it. The installer of the next version allows this automatically. Until then, see the section "Background apps" here: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#63-classic-and-driverless-pdf-printers

If it still happens, so that we can reproduce this, please send us a screenshot of the error message with this button:

Send a file to the PDF24 team

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

thank you for the Process Explorer screenshot, it shows the cause. The handle on the folder test is the working folder of pdf24.exe (PDF24 Backend). This background process is normally started by the PDF24 autostart entry when you sign in to Windows. If it is not running yet, the first PDF24 tool you open starts it, and the process takes over the folder from which the tool was started as its working folder. It keeps it until it ends, so Windows cannot rename or delete the folder. That is also why we could not reproduce it here: on our test computer pdf24.exe was already running.

Thank you for reporting this, we have added it to our list so that pdf24.exe no longer holds on to the folder.

Until then:

• Leave the PDF24 autostart entry enabled, so pdf24.exe is started at sign-in and not from your folder. The entry is described here: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#132-how-to-stopremove-the-pdf24-autostart-entry
• Or end the process "PDF24 Backend" in the Task Manager, as you did. The folder is then free again.

Joining PDFs also works online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/merge-pdf

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

sorry for the late reply. We do not know the cause yet and could not reproduce it so far. Other users report that printing from AutoCAD to the PDF24 printer is very slow, see https://help.pdf24.org/en/?p=63892

Please first try it with the current version of PDF24 Creator. If AutoCAD still stops responding, please tell us your PDF24 Creator version, your Windows version (e.g. Windows 11 24H2) and your AutoCAD version, and whether AutoCAD stops when you select the PDF24 printer in the plot dialog or after you click OK.

On Windows 11 24H2 and later you can add a second, driverless PDF24 printer for comparison: PDF24 Settings > PDF Printer > plus button Install a PDF printer, type Windows Protected Print. Please note that the driverless printer only offers standard paper sizes and no custom sizes. If AutoCAD works with it, we know that the problem is related to the driver of the classic PDF24 printer. More about the two kinds of printers: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#63-classic-and-driverless-pdf-printers

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

sorry that this question remained open here. Today, when you paste an image from the clipboard into PDF24 Creator (Ctrl+V or From Clipboard), the image is added with its full pixel size and stored in the PDF in JPEG format with the highest quality. Version 11.8.0 also improved the preview images in PDF24 Creator, which were sometimes shown with a low resolution.

Please try it with the current version: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/creator

If a pasted image is still blurry in the created PDF, so that we can reproduce this, please send us the PDF and the original screenshot with this button:

Send a file to the PDF24 team

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

an update for everyone who finds this topic: since version 11.8.0 the PDF24 DocTool has the options -includeFileExtensions and -excludeFileExtensions. Add -includeFileExtensions .pdf to your command, then only the PDF files from the folders are processed and all other files are skipped. Several extensions are separated by commas, e.g. .pdf,.docx.

Description of the options: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#1111-general-format-and-options

Compressing also works online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/compress-pdf

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

sorry for the late reply. The printer "PDF24" is created by the setup. Please run the setup of the current version again with administrator rights and make sure that the component PDF printer is selected:
https://tools.pdf24.org/en/creator

If the printer is still missing afterwards, the setup writes the reason to the file pdfPrnInst.log in the installation folder (usually C:\Program Files\PDF24). So that we can check this, please send us this file with this button:

Send a file to the PDF24 team

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

in the PDF printer settings under "Auto Save", the option "Execute the following command after saving" runs your command after each saved PDF. Use the placeholder $file there: it is replaced with the full path of the saved PDF. $fileName is only the name of the print job, that is why your script received the title.

So in your command, pass "$file" (with quotes, because the path can contain spaces) to the -file parameter of your script instead of $fileName. Further placeholders are $fileDir, $printerName and $id; environment variables like %USERNAME% also work.

If you only need a new mail with the PDF attached, there is also a ready-made template: choose "Send Email" under "Templates" above the command field. PDF24 then hands the saved PDF to the mail program that is set under "Email Interface" in the settings.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

sorry for the late reply. Since version 11.19.0, PDF24 can do this: if PDF24 Reader is the default app for PDF files in Windows, File Explorer shows a preview of the first page instead of the PDF icon (in views that show thumbnails). If another program is the default app for PDF files, Windows does not use the PDF24 thumbnails.

So please:

1. Install the current version of PDF24 Creator: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/creator
2. Set PDF24 Reader as the default app for PDF files.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

scanning has been improved several times since 2022, so please update to the current version of PDF24 Creator first.

When you start the import from a scanner, the window "Select source" lists the scanners in groups (x86, x86 MS, x64). The same scanner can appear in more than one group, because PDF24 can load its driver in different ways. If PDF24 closes when you choose the SCX-4216F in one group, please try its entry in another group.

If PDF24 still closes with every entry, please let us know here which entries you see for the scanner and which one you chose.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

as of today: the PDF24 WordPress plugin ("PDF24 Article To PDF") has been discontinued and is no longer maintained.

To create a PDF of a page in Gujarati (or any other language) today:

• Open the page in your browser and print it to the PDF24 printer of PDF24 Creator (free for Windows: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/creator). The PDF is created on your PC with the fonts your browser uses to display the page.
• You can also convert a web page online by its address: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/webpage-to-pdf

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

as of today, both ways work:

• In the PDF24 OCR app, the Language field accepts several languages: open the list and select both English and Sanskrit.
• On the command line, combine the language codes with +. The codes are eng for English and san for Sanskrit, for example:

"C:\Program Files\PDF24\pdf24-Ocr.exe" -outputFile "C:\Scans\result.pdf" -language eng+san "C:\Scans\scan.pdf"

All options: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#101-command-line

List of all language codes: https://creator.pdf24.org/tesseract/4.0/traindata/list.txt

Online, as described above: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/ocr-pdf

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

as of today, PDF24 can add, rename and delete bookmarks in an existing PDF, both on your computer and online. The earlier replies here ("not possible", "offline version with the upcoming version") are outdated.

On your computer: PDF24 Creator (since version 11.26.0) includes the PDF24 Toolbox with the tool Edit PDF bookmarks. Open the PDF24 Toolbox, choose Edit PDF bookmarks and open your PDF.

• Add: drag a box over a heading on the page and enter the title (the text in the box is suggested). If a bookmark is selected in the list, the new one becomes its sub-bookmark.
• Rename, move or delete: open the menu of the bookmark in the list and choose Change text, Move up / Move down / Move left / Move right or Delete. Delete all bookmarks removes all of them.
• Save with Save PDF.

Online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/bookmark-pdf

• Add: go to the page and click Add bookmark, type the title and press Enter.
• Rename: click the title in the list, edit it and press Enter.
• Delete: select the row and click Delete (trash can) in the toolbar above the list.
• Save with Save PDF and download the new PDF.

Merging a PDF that already has bookmarks (as johnid described): with Create bookmarks ticked, Merge PDF creates one bookmark per file from the file name and drops the bookmarks that were already in the files. Untick the option to keep the existing bookmarks, then add the bookmark for the new file with Edit PDF bookmarks. With the next version, Create bookmarks keeps the existing bookmarks below the bookmark of their file.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

as of today: this prompt comes from Outlook itself, not from PDF24. It appears because PDF24 Reader is now the program that opens your PDF files. As you noticed, the checkbox in the prompt cannot be changed there.

An administrator in our German forum described how they switched the prompt off for PDF24 Reader with the registry value EditFlags of the file type PDF24.Reader: https://help.pdf24.org/de/?p=17972 (we have not tested this ourselves).

Until now, an update of PDF24 removed this setting again. With the next version, the PDF24 installer (EXE setup) keeps it when PDF24 is updated.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

the context menu question is answered above: the entry "PDF24" in the Explorer context menu opens the smaller window "PDF24 File Tools". Click Open with Toolbox there to get the complete Toolbox with all tools and your favourites.

To go from the viewer to OCR: in PDF24 Reader, click the toolbar button Forward file tools (tooltip "Forward file to ...") and choose OCR (or Toolbox). The open file is then passed on to that tool.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

your screenshot shows the reason: the print job belongs to the user SYSTEM. The accounting application prints from a background service, not as a signed-in user. Normally PDF24 hands every print job to the PDF24 program of the user who printed it. For the SYSTEM account there is no such user, so the job ends with an error.

For this case the classic PDF printer (port \\.\pipe\PDFPrint, as in your screenshot) can save the PDF itself with the PDF24 service:

1. Open the PDF24 settings with administrator rights and go to PDF Printer.
2. Under PDF Printer Tool, choose Automatically save documents after printed.
3. Under Auto Save, set the Output Directory. A local folder is the simplest choice.
4. Tick Save with the PDF24 Windows Service and leave Use a file name chooser before saving the file unticked, because no window can be shown in this case.
5. Restart Windows. With the current version the setting only takes effect after the PDF24 service has been restarted. With the next version it takes effect within 30 seconds.

After that, PDF24 saves the print jobs of the application to this folder without asking.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

as of today (this replaces our earlier replies): error 1920, "Service 'PDF24' failed to start", means that Windows could not start the PDF24 service at the end of the installation. The classic PDF printer needs this service. The MSI package then cancels the whole installation.

What you can do:

1. Restart Windows and install the current version again: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/creator
2. If you used the MSI package, try the EXE setup. It also sets up the PDF24 service, but it does not cancel the installation if the service cannot be started.

With the next version we have also fixed a case in which the service "PDF24" did not start because a process of an earlier PDF24 service was still running.

If the error remains, please send us the installation log, together with your Windows version and the antivirus software you use: for the MSI package the log of msiexec (option /l*v <file>), for the EXE setup the file srvInst.log from the PDF24 program folder. Please use this button:

Send a file to the PDF24 team

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

to answer the second question as well: there is no option that limits the size of the PDF, and the size cannot be calculated in advance.

When the photos are joined with a profile, they are processed again with the image resolution (DPI) and JPEG quality of that profile (default/good: 300 DPI). So the size of the PDF depends on the resolution and content of the photos, not on their file size. That is why your 15 large photos became much smaller, while the 100 small ones did not.

What you can do:

• Use a profile with a lower resolution, e.g. -profile default/medium (150 DPI) or default/low (96 DPI), or your own profile user/NAME from Manage output profiles in the Toolbox, as described above.
• Create the PDF, check its size, and if it is too large, put fewer photos into one file and create several files.
• An existing PDF can be made smaller with pdf24-DocTool.exe -compress and the options -dpi and -imageQuality: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#11118-compress-pdf-files

All profile options of the command line: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#1114-apply-a-profile-to-input-files

This also works online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/compress-pdf

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

as of today, PDF24 Creator is available for Windows only. PDF24 Reader, PDF24 Toolbox and PDF24 Creator for Linux and Mac are in the works and will be released once they are finished.

Until then you can use the PDF24 online tools on your Mac: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/

They run in any browser, nothing needs to be installed.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

as of today, whether a custom page size works depends on the kind of PDF24 printer:

• The driverless PDF printer (used by new installations on Windows 11 24H2 and later) offers a fixed list of 47 standard sizes, e.g. A4, A3, Letter and Legal. Custom sizes are not possible there, because Windows does not allow them for driverless printers.
• The classic PDF printer supports custom sizes (up to 72000 × 72000 points) and the forms defined in the print server properties of Windows.

If you need a custom size, use the classic PDF printer: in the PDF24 settings, open PDF Printer, click + (Install a PDF printer) and choose the kind PostScript (offered while Windows Protected Print is not active). Alternatively choose Legacy for the component PDF Printer in the installer. Details: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#63-classic-and-driverless-pdf-printers

In Word, also set the paper size in the page setup of the document, as suggested above, because Word prints with the page size of the document.

To change the page size of an existing PDF: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/change-pdf-page-size

To turn images such as A3 TIFF files into a PDF without printing them, use Images to PDF and choose the page size there (e.g. A3): https://tools.pdf24.org/en/images-to-pdf

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

as of today you can receive faxes with PDF24 Fax. For this you need a PDF24 fax number:

• Fax numbers are included in the plans SMALL and LARGE (one number each, unlimited inbound fax pages). The free plan doesn't include a fax number. Plans and the countries and area codes with available numbers are listed here: https://fax.pdf24.org/en/prices (at the moment fax numbers from Germany).
• You subscribe to a plan in the fax plans section of your PDF24 Fax account. Fax numbers are configured in the Settings and Extras area of your account.
• Faxes sent to your number are sent to you by email as a PDF file and are also stored in the fax store of your account.
• If you already have a fax number, you can forward it to your PDF24 number to receive those faxes by email as well.

According to the prices page, the plans can be tried for free during the beta test phase; the monthly fees shown there apply after the beta. There is no minimum term, and a plan is cancelled in your account with the cancellation link in the fax package.

More questions and answers: https://fax.pdf24.org/en/faq

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

as of today the "PDF24 Editor" mentioned above no longer exists. You can insert pages of one PDF at any position in another PDF like this:

Online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/merge-pdf

1. Add both PDF files.
2. Switch on Page mode.
3. Click the pages that should go into the new PDF, correct their order if necessary, and click Merge PDF.

With PDF24 Creator on Windows (https://tools.pdf24.org/en/creator):

1. In the PDF24 Toolbox, open Organize PDFs.
2. Add both PDF files with Add files.
3. Drag the pages from one document to the position you want in the other document.
4. Save that document.

Page numbers can be added with Add page numbers in the Toolbox or online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/add-page-numbers

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

as of today: the TWAIN problems of PDF24 Creator 10 were fixed with version 10.0.3, so you no longer need version 9.2.2. Please use the current version: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/creator

This is how scanning works now:

1. In the PDF24 Toolbox, open Import from scanner or camera (in PDF24 Creator: File > Import > From scanner or camera...).
2. The window Select source lists the TWAIN scanners installed in Windows, grouped by type (e.g. x86, x86 MS, x64). If you have several scanners, click the one you want to use. If a scanner doesn't work in one group, try the same scanner in another group.
3. The window of your scanner driver opens, where you set paper size, resolution and colour and start the scan.

For long documents, tick Collect files in Select source: all scanned pages are then combined into one PDF when the scan is finished. With Close app manually, the scanner window stays open so that you can scan several batches in a row.

Only devices with a TWAIN driver are listed; a scanner with only a WIA driver doesn't appear. In that case, install the scanner driver of the manufacturer with TWAIN support if one is available, or scan with your scanner software to images and combine them into a PDF with Images to PDF in the Toolbox or online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/images-to-pdf

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

as of today the registry paths in this thread (...\PDFPrint\Profiles) are those of versions before 10. There is no export/import function in the PDF24 user interface yet (it is on our to-do list), but you can copy the profiles with the Registry Editor:

1. On the source PC, open regedit and go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\PDF24\Profiles\fo. Each output profile is a subkey with the name of the profile.
2. Right-click the profile (or the whole key fo) and choose Export.
3. On the other PC, import the .reg file (double-click it) while logged in as the user who should get the profiles.

A profile can also contain security settings (password, permissions), so you can create your own profile for protected PDFs.

Default profile: there is no setting for it yet (it is on our to-do list). PDF24 preselects the last used profile, which is stored in formatOptions.lastProfile (HKCU, string) as the profile ID, e.g. user/MyProfile. It changes as soon as another profile is chosen. All registry settings are listed in the manual: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#4-registry-settings

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

as of today the paths in the earlier answers (...\PDFPrint) are out of date. Since version 10, PDF24 stores its settings under:

• HKCU\SOFTWARE\PDF24 (user settings)
• HKLM\SOFTWARE\PDF24 (application settings and settings for all users)

Values under HKCU override those under HKLM. If you put a ! in front of a value name under HKLM, the HKLM value always wins.

The complete list of registry settings is in the manual: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#4-registry-settings

For the questions here:

• Updates: UpdateMode (HKLM, DWORD): 0 = automatic updates, 1 = notify only, 2 = updates disabled. The same setting is in the PDF24 Settings under Updates > Update mode. When installing, you can switch updates off with /NOUPDATE (EXE setup) or AUTOUPDATE=No (MSI): https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#2-exe-installer and https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#3-msi-installer
• Tray icon: NoTrayIcon (DWORD) = 1, or in the PDF24 Settings under Tray Icon. Desktop icons can be left out at installation with the MSI property DESKTOPICONS=No.
• ServerPerUser is not one of the documented settings of the current version. The PDF24 Windows service receives the print jobs for the PDF printer and is needed for it: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#811-windows-service. If you only don't want the PDF24 process to start at every sign-in, you can disable the autostart entry: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#132-how-to-stopremove-the-pdf24-autostart-entry

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

as of today (the "PDF24 Editor" from the older answers no longer exists), use Merge PDF:

1. Open the PDF24 Toolbox and choose Merge PDF.
2. Add your files. Besides PDF files you can add images, for example scanned receipts.
3. Drag the files into the right order and click Merge. Then save the result.

If you only need some pages of the files, choose Page mode under Method and click the pages you want in the new PDF.

For an Excel file, create a PDF of it first, for example by printing it to the PDF24 PDF printer and saving it, and then add it in Merge PDF.

This also works online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/merge-pdf. The online tool also accepts Word documents and other files directly.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

as of today (the dialogs described in the older answers have changed), there are these ways:

An existing PDF: open the PDF24 Toolbox, choose Protect PDF, add your PDF and enter the User password. That is the password needed to open the PDF. The Owner password is only for the permissions (printing, copying ...). This also works online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/protect-pdf

When printing to the PDF24 PDF printer: in the PDF24 Assistant that opens, click Save as... and go to Security:

1. Tick Use security settings.
2. Tick Password to open PDF required? and enter the Password to open PDF.

If you only fill in Password for encryption, the PDF is protected against changes but opens without a password. That was the reason in some of the posts above.

Protected PDF as an e-mail attachment: in the Assistant, choose Custom... in the profile box above the buttons and click Send by Email. The same dialog opens; set the password under Security as above and click Continue. The PDF attached to the e-mail is then protected.

Changing or removing the password of your own PDF: use Unlock PDF in the PDF24 Toolbox and enter the current password, then protect the file again with a new password if needed. Online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/unlock-pdf

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

as of today, this is what PDF24 can do (the older answers in this topic are outdated):

• Pages: merge PDFs, rotate, remove, sort or extract pages with the tools of the PDF24 Toolbox (Merge PDF, Rotate PDF pages, Remove PDF pages ...). Online, for example: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/merge-pdf
• Adding text, images or drawings: open your PDF in the PDF24 Toolbox with Edit PDF (or Annotate PDF), add a text box and save. Online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/edit-pdf. Text that you add yourself can be changed as long as you have not saved: click it and edit it.
• Filling in a form: if your form has form fields, you can type into them directly: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/fill-out-pdf

Changing existing text or images: Editing existing content is in the works and will be released with one of the upcoming versions once it is finished. We will post here when it is available.

Until then you can replace existing content like this:

1. Open the PDF in https://tools.pdf24.org/en/redact-pdf, choose White as the color and drag a box over the text or image. The content under the box is removed when saving, the area stays white.
2. Open the saved PDF in https://tools.pdf24.org/en/edit-pdf and add your new text or image at the same place.

Placing only a white shape or a text box over the old text hides it, but the old text stays in the file and can still be found or copied. Step 1 removes it.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

as of today: the PDF24 PDF printer creates the pages in the orientation the printing program sends. So first check the page setup or the print dialog of that program.

To change the default of the PDF24 printer itself:

1. Open the Windows settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners and click the PDF24 printer.
2. Open Printing preferences, set the orientation to Portrait and confirm with OK.

This default is used by programs that don't set their own orientation.

To turn the pages of a PDF that was already created in landscape, use Rotate PDF pages in the PDF24 Toolbox. This also works online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/rotate-pdf-pages

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

for anyone finding this topic: the option Remove background in PDF24 OCR (and in the PDF OCR tool of the PDF24 Toolbox) only changes pages that consist of exactly one scanned image. Pages that are made up of several images or contain normal text, and images with a transparency mask, are left unchanged.

On a suitable page it turns the light parts of the image white (for example greyish paper or light noise) and keeps the darker content as it is. A dark or strongly coloured background can therefore remain.

If the background stays on a scanned page with the current version, we would like to look at it. So that we can reproduce this, please send us a file where it happens with this button:

Send a file to the PDF24 team

OCR with this option is also available online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/ocr-pdf

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

sorry for the late reply. The message "No preview available" does not come from PDF24 but from the Windows 11 print dialog. Since version 11.31.0, PDF24 no longer uses that dialog: printing from PDF24 Creator, the Assistant and PDF24 Reader opens the print dialog of PDF24 Reader, which shows a live preview of the pages.

Please update to the current version: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/creator

[Author]

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