Flattening a completed Adobe XML Form

Forum|Forum|6 years ago
March 23, 2020
2 replies
4401 views

I've seen similar posts, but I need a definitive answer or solution to my issue. I have a completed Adobe form, one with digital signatures, completed form fields and attachments. I'm working with Adobe Acrobat Pro, but also have access to LiveCycle Designer.

Is there a method, other than "Print to PDF", to "flatten" the completed Adobe XML form, retaining the content, image of digital signatures, and attachments? Retaining signature data isn't as important as retaining the attachments and an image of the signature. This would be to facilitate wide distribution of a document with attachments.

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Thom Parker

Community Expert

Print to postscript, then reload the postscript file to convert it back to PDF. This will essentially flatten an XFA form. Will not save any features, other than visible content. File attachemnts will need to be put on after this process.

Thom Parker - Software Developer at PDFScriptingUse the Acrobat JavaScript Reference early and often

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Test Screen Name

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Certainly, you absolutely MUST be destroying the signatures. It would be a huge fail if you could flatten the file and keep them. And print to PDF is just an image of printing. No kind of special flattening magic. And anything that wouldn't be printed is lost (such as attachments). What is your actual aim? What can't you do if you don't flatten? (Given that an XFA form already has to be opened in Adobe software and not at all on any mobile device).

A

Anonymous

The aim is to be able to distribute the pdf (with attachments) to various users. Once in our system to distribute, it doesn't matter if the digital signature data is retained - just so that others can visually see that digital signature (flattened signature is fine). Looking for a conversion option though to retain chain-of-custody from signed form with attachments to the distributable, flattened version.

Our distribution system is retaining the attachments, but the signatures are getting stripped out completely (our distribution system is also adding cover pages and system markings). I've contacted the author of our forms, and they intimated that this feature might could be built into the form. Anyone have ideas on that?

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