Auto Increment Alphanumeric Unique ID Field on Creation

Question

Hello,

My company has used FileMaker to auto-generate a alphanumeric unique id in a field, which was easy because the program didn't need manual scripting to do so, just followed a similar process as outlined here: Resetting-an-auto-enter-serial-number-in-FileMaker. We are phasing out FileMaker, so I'm trying to see if it's possible to replicate the same auto-generated alphanumeric field on creation of a fillable form in Adobe Acrobat Pro DC.

My company used FileMaker form to track procurement purchases. The FileMaker form was accessible to customers via the web, and everytime someone opened the .fmp file, the form would auto-generate a "Ticket Number", which our financial office used to track each individual purchase order in another system (see screenshot example).

I'm wondering if there is some script/setting in Adobe Acrobat Pro DC that can be set to auto-generate this alphanumeric number within the following parameters:

- 6 character limit (1 letter and 5 digit number)

- when the number reaches max 99999 (max 5 digits), then the letter increments to next letter in alphabet and the number starts back at 00001

- Lock field so customer cannot change

I'm a total beginner at JavaScript or knowing how to use fillable forms in Adobe Acrobat Pro DC, so instructions on where to copy and paste script and/or settings to would also be very helpful.

Thank you!

Keisha

Thom Parker · Answer

This is possible with PDF, but there is no built-in or automatic methodolgy for it. At least not within Acrobat DC Pro. There are a number of form services provided by Adobe and third party vendors. I would hope that one or more of these would provide such a feature, seeing as how this same question has come up constantly for years.

If you do not want to buy into a vendor solution, then you'll need to implement your own scheme. This can be done with or without any scripting in Acrobat. The basic methodolgy is to use a server side script to manage the generated IDs. All that is needed on the PDF side is a button that sends a form submit to the server, which then returns a PDF compatible data file containing the generated ID. There are of course more details and variations, but thats that general idea.

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