[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

sorry for the late reply. There is no separate list yet, but the keys for -profileParam are the same as the values of a user profile in the registry, as you assumed. They override the values of any profile, also of a built-in one.

That pdf-standard did not work with a built-in profile was a bug: the PDF/A conversion failed when no PDF/A color profile was given. This is fixed since version 11.31.0. With the current version this works:

"C:\Program Files\PDF24\pdf24-DocTool.exe" -applyProfile -profile default/best -profileParam pdf-standard a-2 -silent -outputFile "C:\out\file.pdf" "C:\in\file.pdf"

Possible values for pdf-standard are a-1, a-2, a-3, a-4 and a-4f (PDF/A), x-3 (PDF/X-3) and 1.2 to 1.7. With -silent (also since 11.31.0) no window is shown; errors are reported via the exit code.

Details in the manual:

• https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#1114-apply-a-profile-to-input-files
• https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#1111-general-format-and-options

Single files can also be converted online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/pdf-to-pdfa

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

sorry for the late reply. Yes, you don't need the page mode of the Creator for this. Use the tool "Extract PDF pages" in PDF24 Toolbox:

1. Open PDF24 Toolbox, choose "Extract PDF pages" and add your PDF.
2. Click the first page of the range, then hold Shift and click the last page. All pages in between are marked.
3. Click "Extract pages" to save them as a new PDF.

With the next version, the tool also gets a field "Pages" where you simply type the range, e.g. 1-5, 8, 11-13, without scrolling through a large file. "Split PDF" gets the same in the mode "Custom" (field "Split after pages", e.g. 3, 7, 12).

The online tool already has this field: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/extract-pdf-pages

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

$fileDir in the "Output Directory" of auto save is replaced with the folder of the original file only if the program you print from sends the full file path as the document name of the print job. Many programs only send the file name or a window title. Then PDF24 does not know the folder, and $fileDir stays empty.

Without auto save, "Save" in the PDF24 Assistant (the window that opens after printing) opens in the folder of the original file if the program sent the path, unless a "Fixed save directory" is set on the "Assistant" page of the settings.

Better handling for this case, for example falling back to a set folder when no path is sent, is on our to-do list.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

an update for readers of this topic: since version 11.31.0, the EXE and the MSI setup preselect WebView2 only if no WebView2 Runtime is installed on the computer. If the Runtime is already installed, PDF24 uses it, and you need no extra option.

Please note:

• In versions 11.31.0 and 11.31.1, pdf24-creator.exe /COMPONENTS=!webview2 deselects all components, not only WebView2. The fix will come with the next version.
• With the MSI package, leave out ADDLOCAL=ALL: it selects all features, including the fax printer.

All setup options: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#2-exe-installer and https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#3-msi-installer

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

pdf24-DocTool.exe has no time limit per file yet (command line: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#111-command-line). Thank you for the suggestion, we will add it to our list.

A file should not make the processing hang, though. Please try it with the current version of PDF24 Creator: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/creator

If it still hangs, please tell us the command you use. So that we can reproduce this, please send us a file where it happens with this button:

Send a file to the PDF24 team

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

this works in two steps with the PDF24 Toolbox:

1. Images to PDF: creates one PDF from your images, one image per page. If you have images and PDF pages mixed, you can combine them into one PDF with Merge PDF instead (online it accepts images and PDF files together).
2. Pages per sheet: puts 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 12 or 16 pages of this PDF on each sheet. You can choose the page size, the margins, the direction (left to right or right to left) and whether borders are drawn around the pages.

The pages are arranged in a regular grid, and the orientation of the sheet is chosen automatically. Choosing the orientation yourself is on our to-do list.

Both steps also work online:

• Images to PDF: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/images-to-pdf
• Merge PDF: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/merge-pdf
• Pages per sheet: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/pages-per-sheet

If you want to place the items freely on a page, use the online PDF editor: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/edit-pdf. In the mode "Insert" you can add images with "Insert image" and place them on the page yourself.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

sorry for the late reply. The difference most likely comes from a change in version 11.8.0: since then, the DocTool converts Excel files with Excel's own PDF export instead of printing them to the PDF24 printer. This gives better results (for example, links are kept), but the PDF can be larger. Since version 11.9.0 the Excel file is also opened read-only and closed without saving, which is why the "file has changed" prompt is gone.

If you prefer the old way, set the DWORD value docTool.forceExcelPrint to 1 under HKCU\SOFTWARE\PDF24 (or HKLM\SOFTWARE\PDF24 for all users). Then the DocTool prints Excel files to the PDF printer again as before 11.8.0. Description in the manual: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#411-registry-settings-related-to-pdf24-doctool

If the file is still much larger than you expect, please send us an Excel file where it happens with this button:

Send a file to the PDF24 team

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

if the PDF looks right but copied or searched text shows strange characters: Chrome-based browsers such as Chrome and Edge pass the text to the printer without the mapping to the actual characters. The PDF therefore looks correct, but copying, searching or reading the text returns only strange characters. This also affects other PDF printers. Text recognition (OCR) does not reliably help either, because these pages already contain text.

We are looking into this, it is on our to-do list. Until then, "Save as PDF" in the browser's print dialog is the way that keeps the text intact.

If the characters are already wrong on the page itself, please tell us which program you printed from. So that we can reproduce this, please send us a file where it happens with this button:

Send a file to the PDF24 team

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

this is solved in the meantime. Since version 11.31.0, PDF24 Reader has its own print dialog with a live page preview. Printing from PDF24 Creator and the Assistant also uses this dialog now. Please update to the current version: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/creator

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

in the PDF editor of the PDF24 Toolbox, undo and redo only cover the changes on the page that is currently shown. The buttons become active after a change on that page, and the history is cleared when you switch to another page. Ctrl+Z and Ctrl+Y work the same way.

The online editor has one history for all pages and tools: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/edit-pdf

If the buttons stay inactive right after a change on the same page in the current version, please tell us what you changed (e.g. added text, drew a shape), then we will look into it.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

the question from 2010 concerns a very old version. For the case from 2023: whether the text can be copied depends on the program you print from. Chrome-based browsers such as Chrome and Edge pass the text to the printer without the information which character each letter stands for. The PDF looks right, but copying or searching only gives garbage characters. This also affects other PDF printers. We are looking into it, it is on our to-do list. Until then, "Save as PDF" in the print dialog of the browser keeps the text.

If it happens with other programs too, please tell us which program you print from. So that we can reproduce this, please send us a file where it happens with this button:

Send a file to the PDF24 team

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

since version 11.31.0, PDF24 Creator converts EPUB files to PDF with a new converter of its own. Please try again with the current version. The conversion is also available online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/epub-to-pdf

If the right side is still cut off, so that we can reproduce this, please send us a file where it happens with this button:

Send a file to the PDF24 team

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

sorry for the late reply. For this, please don't use an output profile. The DocTool has its own command for compressing, with the same settings as the compress tool: -compress together with -dpi, -imageQuality and -colorModel. For your settings, use -dpi 150 and -imageQuality 75; leave out -colorModel so that the colors are not changed. With -outputFile or -outputDir you set where the result is saved. All parameters are described in the manual: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#11118-compress-pdf-files

Your screenshot shows the online tool (https://tools.pdf24.org/en/compress-pdf). If the file from the command line is still clearly larger than the one from the online tool with the same settings, please send us the file, so that we can compare it, with this button:

Send a file to the PDF24 team

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

yes, this works online with Sign PDF: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/sign-pdf

1. Place your signature on the first page where you need it.
2. Click the signature. In the small bar above it, click the button Copy to pages.
3. All other pages are already entered (you can change this, e.g. 2-4, 6). Click Insert.

The signature is then placed at the same spot on these pages. Then save the PDF as usual.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

this is available now. Since version 11.31.0, the PDF24 Toolbox tool Crop PDF has a Visual mode: you drag the edges of the crop frame on a page preview, can switch between pages and open a full-size view. The frame and the margin fields are linked, so you see the result before saving. Please update to the current version: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/creator

This also works online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/crop-pdf (the switch Visual mode appears once a PDF is added).

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

sorry for the late reply. Since version 11.11.0, PDF24 Creator requires at least Windows 10, and the installer checks this when it starts. Windows Server 2012 R2 is based on Windows 8.1 and is therefore no longer supported; the current version cannot be installed there. 11.10.2 was the last version that could be installed on it.

Please use PDF24 on a newer Windows version. Without installation, the PDF tools are also available online in any browser: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

the tool PDF Overlay (in the PDF24 Toolbox and online) has no setting for the position on the page. If the overlay page is smaller than the pages of your document, it is placed in the center of each page without scaling.

To get the logo exactly where you want it, make the overlay PDF the same page size as your documents (for example A4) and place the logo in the bottom left corner of that page. The overlay is then laid over the page 1:1 and the logo appears at that spot. This also works online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/overlay-pdf

With the next version of PDF24 Creator, the Toolbox tool Add watermark can also use an image, with a position (for example "bottom, left") and a size in percent of the page width. That will be the easier way for a logo.

Thank you for the suggestion to choose the position in PDF Overlay, we will add it to our list.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

sorry for the late reply. The command line tool pdf24-DocTool.exe (compression with -compress) is a Windows program with a graphical interface. When such a program is started directly in PowerShell, PowerShell does not wait for it to finish. The next command starts right away, and $? only tells you that the program could be started.

To wait, start the DocTool with Start-Process and the parameters -Wait and -PassThru. PowerShell then waits until the compression has finished, and the ExitCode property of the returned process tells you the result. In a batch file, start /wait does the same.

Meaningful exit codes require the switch -silent, available since version 11.31.0, so please update first if necessary. In silent mode no dialogs are shown, errors are written to stderr, and the exit code is 0 on success and another value on error, e.g. 4 = no output location, 6 = the operation failed. Without -silent, the DocTool always returns 0 and reports errors in a dialog. In silent mode please give the output folder with -outputDir and set the compression with -dpi, -imageQuality and -colorModel (-useCompressionParamsDialog is not available there).

• Compress PDF files: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#11118-compress-pdf-files
• Exit codes: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#11119-exit-codes

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

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

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

So please update to the current version of PDF24 Creator. Then:

1. Right-click the PDF24 icon in the taskbar and choose Screen Capture with the target PDF Printer.
2. The capture opens as a PDF in the PDF24 Assistant.
3. Click Print there. The print dialog with the page preview opens.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

sorry for the late reply. This message came from older versions of PDF24, which needed another program to print HTML files. Current versions convert HTML files to PDF themselves, so please update first: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/creator

Then you can convert all files in one go:

• In the PDF24 Toolbox, choose "Convert to PDF", add all HTML files at once and click "Convert to PDF".
• Or from the command line with the PDF24 DocTool: -convertToPDF converts the files, and with -expandDirs and -includeFileExtensions .html,.htm you can pass a whole folder. Details: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#11110-convert-to-pdf and https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#1111-general-format-and-options

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

a late answer for everyone who finds this topic: the comparison result can now be saved directly in the tool: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/compare-pdf

When the comparison has finished, click Export in the toolbar and choose the format:

• Annotated PDF: the revised PDF with the changes marked
• Side-by-side report (PDF)
• Change list (CSV) or Change list (TXT)
• Current view (PNG)

The comparison and the export run in your browser, the files are not uploaded.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

sorry for the late reply. When PDF24 Creator is uninstalled, the uninstaller first copies itself into the Windows temp folder (a file like _iu14D2N.tmp) and runs from there. If this copy is missing, it was usually deleted or blocked right after it was created, often by security software.

What usually helps:

1. If security software is installed, check whether it has blocked or quarantined this file.
2. Download the current PDF24 Creator from https://tools.pdf24.org/en/creator and install it over the existing installation. This also installs a new uninstaller.
3. Then uninstall PDF24 Creator again in the Windows settings under Apps.

If uninstalling still fails, please tell us the exact message and your Windows version.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

sorry for the late reply. Yes, with an output profile that contains the overlay:

1. Open the PDF24 Toolbox, choose "Manage output profiles" and create your own profile. On the page "Overlay" of the profile, enable "Use overlay" and choose your overlay PDF.
2. Apply this profile with the DocTool:

pdf24-DocTool.exe -applyProfile -profile user/NAME -outputDir C:\Output C:\Input\file.pdf

NAME is the name of your profile. Details: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#1114-apply-a-profile-to-input-files

Alternatively, the "PDF Overlay" tool of the PDF24 Toolbox can be run from the command line with a job file: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#912-process-a-job

This is also possible online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/overlay-pdf

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

thank you for sharing your solution. For other readers, these are the matching tools:

1. Remove the wrong page: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/remove-pdf-pages
2. Merge the PDF with the new page: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/merge-pdf
3. Move the new page to the right position: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/rearrange-pdf-pages

In the PDF24 Toolbox the same tools are called Remove PDF pages, Merge PDF and Sort PDF pages.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

Copying text works directly in the PDF24 Reader:

1. Drag the mouse over the text you want, e.g. the amount. Over text the mouse pointer becomes a text cursor. If dragging moves the page instead, choose Select text in the Interactive tools dropdown in the toolbar first.
2. Press Ctrl+C, or right-click the selection and choose Copy text. The small bar that appears next to the selection also has Copy text.

If no text can be selected, the page is an image (e.g. a scan). Then make the text selectable with OCR first: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/ocr-pdf

Changing existing text: Editing existing content is in the works and will be released with one of the upcoming versions once it is finished. Until then you can replace text 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. The text under the box is removed when saving, the area stays white.
2. Open the saved PDF in https://tools.pdf24.org/en/edit-pdf (in the PDF24 Toolbox: Edit PDF) and add your new text at the same place.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

you can log in to your PDF24 account here: https://account.pdf24.org/en/login

If your password does not work, click "Forgot your password?" on that page to reset it.

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

sorry for the late reply. This was a bug in version 11.12.0: if one of the installed fonts had no family name, the list of fonts could not be created, and saving in Edit PDF stopped at that point. It has been fixed since version 11.12.1. Please update to the current version of PDF24 Creator.

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

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

sorry for the late reply. In your batch, -outputFile only gets a file name without a folder ("SO 03-Mar_ocred.pdf"). pdf24-Ocr.exe then saves the result in the current folder of the command prompt, not in the folder of the input file. According to your output, that is C:\Users\dolez\Desktop (the folder shown before "pause"), so please look for the files there. The files in AppData\Local\Temp\PDF24 are only temporary and are deleted at the end.

To save the result in a specific place, give the full path, for example:

"C:\Program Files\PDF24\pdf24-Ocr.exe" -outputFile "C:\Users\dolez\Desktop\SO 03\Mar_ocred.pdf" -language ces -dpi 300 -deskew -autoRotatePages "C:\Users\dolez\Desktop\SO 03\Mar.pdf"

If there is still no output file with a full path, please post the exact command line and the output.

One more note from your output: "Skipping page 1; images collected: 9" means that -deskew only straightens pages that consist of a single image. Your pages contain several images, so they were not deskewed; the text recognition still runs.

Processing a whole folder including subfolders directly in the OCR tool is on our to-do list. All command line options are in the manual: https://creator.pdf24.org/manual/11/#101-command-line

Text recognition is also available online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/ocr-pdf

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

we have answered this in your own topic: https://help.pdf24.org/en/?p=63211

[PDF24 Support]

Hello,

sorry for the late reply. Chinese text is only recognized if Chinese is selected as the language. In the PDF24 OCR tool, select "Chinese-Simpl." or "Chinese-Trad." under "Language"; with "English" alone, Chinese characters are not recognized. The language file is downloaded once, the first time you use the language.

Please also update to the current version. If "Type of models" is set to "BEST", the recognition of Chinese currently stops with an error about a missing file chi_sim_vert.traineddata or chi_tra_vert.traineddata. The fix will come with the next version; until then, please keep "Default" there.

If Chinese is selected and the text is still not recognized, so that we can reproduce this, please send us a file where it happens with this button:

Send a file to the PDF24 team

Text recognition is also available online: https://tools.pdf24.org/en/ocr-pdf

[Author]

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