FDFMerge Command Line Option Reference
Introduction
This chapter describes the fdfmerge command syntax and summarizes the options you can use with the fdfmerge command. Command-line syntax in the tables below refer to a path to any input or output file. In the Windows environment directory paths use a back slash “\” character. In the UNIX environment directory paths use a forward slash “/” character. Examples in the tables below show a Windows type path.
The following is an example of paths to the default installation directory for FDFMerge:
Windows
> C:\Appligent\FDFMerge\
UNIX/Mac OS X
$ /Appligent/FDFMerge/
Command Syntax
$fdfmergeapp [options] -o outputFile.pdf inputFile.pdf inputFile.fdf
Product Information Options
The following table describes options you can use to obtain information about the FDFMerge product. For more detailed information about these options, see General Options.
| Option | Function | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| -v | Show version information | Displays the version of FDFMerge you are running. | fdfmerge -v |
| -h or -help |
Show help | Displays all available command-line options, plus version information. | fdfmerge -h fdfmerge -help |
Input and Output Options
The following table describes the options for managing file input and output. For more detailed information about these options, see General Options.
| Option | Function | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| -o <outFilename> | Output filename | Specifies an output file. The PDF file name, including the path, must immediately follow the -o option. Directories in paths must exist, the FDFMerge will not create a new directory. | fdfmerge [options] -o path\outputFile.pdf path\inputFile.pdf path\inputFile.fdf |
| -i | Save using incremental save | An incremental save appends changed information to the end of the file. This is faster than a full save, but may result in a larger file. | fdfmerge -i [options] -o path\outputFile.pdf path\inputFile.pdf path\inputFile.fdf |
| -w | Linearize the PDF file upon save | Save the output file as a linearized document. Linearization reorganizes the file to make it more efficient for web delivery. | fdfmerge -w [options] -o path\outputFile.pdf path\inputFile.pdf path\inputFile.fdf |
| -optimize | Optimize output file | This option will try to reduce the file size of the output PDF. | fdfmerge -optimize [options] -o path\outputFile.pdf path\inputFile.pdf path\inputFile.fdf |
| -iso32000 | Set file for ISO 32000 compliance | Creates an output PDF file that is version 1.7 | fdfmerge -iso32000 [options] -o path\outputFile.pdf path\inputFile.pdf path\inputFile.fdf |
Reporting Options
The following table describes the options for reporting progress and error messages. These options are helpful for debugging and understanding how FDFMerge works. For more detailed information about these options, see General Options.
| Option | Function | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| -p | Show progress | Write progress messages to the screen (STDOUT—the standard output of your system). This option is helpful for debugging and for understanding how the software works. | fdfmerge -p [options] -o path\outputFile.pdf path\inputFile.pdf path\inputFile.pdf |
| -l <logfile> | Write progress and error messages to the given log file name | Saves the progress and error messages to a user-specified text file instead of the default log file, fdfmerge.log. | fdfmerge -l path\mylogfile.txt [options] -o path\outputFile.pdf path\inputFile.pdf path\inputFile.fdf |
| -p and -l combined | Write progress and error messages to the given log file name | If the -p and -l options are both specified, progress and error messages will be written to the file that you specify. | fdfmerge -p -l path\mylogfile.txt [options] -o path\outputFile.pdf path\inputFile.pdf path\inputFile.fdf |
Registration Number
The following table describes how to supply the registration number to FDFMerge. For more detailed information about this, see General Options.
Note: Do not call the fdfmerge script from another script or application. Call fdfmergeapp directly with the registration number option flag, as shown in the examples below.
| Option | Function | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| -r <RegNum> | FDFMerge registration number | Use this option to supply your registration number when you call FDFMerge from a script or another application. | fdfmergeapp -r XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX [options] -o path\outputFile.pdf path\inputFile.pdf path\inputFile.fdf |
Merging Options
The following table describes the merging options available for FDFMerge, for more detailed information see FDFMerge Options.
| Option | Function | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| -x | Input is an XFDF file | Specifies that the input data file is an XFDF file, which is an XML version of an FDF file. Required if using an XFDF input file instead of an FDF file. | fdfmerge -x [options] -o path\outputFile.pdf path\inputFile.pdf path\inputFile.xfdf |
| -s | Replace fields with stamps | Flattens a form, changing active form fields into static text or images. | fdfmerge -s [options] -o path\outputFile.pdf path\inputFile.pdf path\inputFile.fdf |
| -stampnewvalues | Stamp fields with new values | Partially flatten form fields passed in using FDF and XFDF files. When this option is present on the command line, all unfilled fields will remain active | fdfmerge -stampnewvalues -o path\outputFile.pdf path\inputFile.pdf path\inputFile.fdf |
| -reverse | Make FDF file come first followed by multiple PDF files | Processes multiple PDF forms with a single FDF file. An output directory must be used with -reverse.
The FDF file should appear before the PDF files on the command line. |
fdfmerge -s [options] -o path\outdirectoryname -reverse path\inputFile.fdf path\inputFile1.pdf path\inputFile2.pdf… |
| -norebuild | Don’t rebuild appearances | Specifies that Acrobat, rather than FDFMerge builds the form appearances for an output PDF form. | fdfmerge -norebuild [options] -o path\outputFile.pdf path\inputFile.pdf path\inputFile.fdf |
| -f <FormInfo.txt> | Field information file for field customization | Specifies that a FormInfo file be used for flattening, customizing form fields, or stamping them with JPEG, TIF, or PDF images. | fdfmerge -f path\FormInfo.txt [options] -o path\outputFile.pdf path\inputFile.pdf path\inputFile.pdf |
| -cmds <CmdFile.txt> | Allow user to run multiple commands and process multiple files at one time | Process a collection of files. Allows user to process multiple command and files at one time. Note: Compatible with -l, -p, -r, -h or -help, and -n. |
fdfmerge -p -l path\logfile.txt -cmds path\CommandFile.txt |