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M.Hasanin
Inspiring
November 27, 2017
Answered

Why Adobe Disabled the JavaScript Submit button When Secure a document with password ?

  • November 27, 2017
  • 1 reply
  • 2511 views

Hi,

I Just wonder why adobe prevent developers that write submit javascript code (Acrobat Pro DC) from distributing secured pdf document with working (Submit Button) ? what they getting at ? what the reason? can't figure why.

This topic has been closed for replies.
Correct answer Thom Parker

yes, only small groups for about 4 or 6 users will benefit from this feature, so what do you suggest for workaround ? i will cancel the security and distribute the form so they will not accidentally change the document but i think mailing to server maybe will be the solution


There are a couple of different ways to approach a solution. One method is to have the users manually save the form and email it back to you. This works on most platforms, even on mobile.  It works because Acrobat Reader can save a filled form, and its the user's problem to get it in the email.

The other method is to submit to a server, which requires something on the server end to catch the data. There are ways to write a simple server script that converts the form data into an email attachment and send it to you. I like this one for small setups because you don't have to muck around with managing data on the server.  But it's also outside the scope of this forum.

There are also services such as Form Router that do all the backend stuff for you.

You can also submit directly to google sheets, but this is tricky to setup.  The idea is to create a google form connected to a sheet, then name all your form fields for fields in the google form. Basically trick google into thinking its' the gform that's doing the submit

A better way to connect to google sheets is to write a google app to do it. This is something I've been meaning to do, but I'll get to some time

Data handling can be a pain because it requires some kind of external entity to handle the data transfer. You either have to spend some time working on it or pay someone else.

1 reply

Thom Parker
Adobe Expert
November 27, 2017

Are you using the "Distribute Form" feature in Acrobat?  This is a highly controlled workflow with specific requirements. Any change you make to a PDF form in this workflow will cause issues.

Other than this. Securing documents can block all kinds of actions.  The type of security you applied might disable form filling for example. How is your document secured?

Thom Parker - Software Developer at PDFScriptingUse the Acrobat JavaScript Reference early and often
M.Hasanin
M.HasaninAuthor
Inspiring
November 27, 2017

also i want to add that my form can be filled completely with no problem, i choose to develop a button that will submit the FDF file - Data only not all the PDF- everything was working fine and after many tests i decide to protect my PDF form and i shocked!, the submit button doesn't work!

BestMohammad Hasanin
Thom Parker
Adobe Expert
November 27, 2017

Look at the document properties for the protected form. On the security Tab, are any features listed as "restricted"?  The type of protection you choose determines the types of restrictions. This is after all the purpose of protection. How did you protect the PDF?

The fact is that you cannot protect a document that will be used. In order for someone to view the PDF, it has to be open to them, so they can always save a copy.

The best protection is to only distribute the form to trusted users. In this case you can encrypt the PDF with a Public/Private key scheme. i.e. a digital signature/certificate.  The user's hold the private key, and you encrypt with the public key. Only these users will be able to view and submit the form. This doesn't work for generally distributed PDFs.

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