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Morazan
Morazan
Known Participant
April 15, 2021
解決済み

PDFs Exported from Multi-Artboard AI Contain All Artboards When Opened in AI

  • April 15, 2021
  • 返信数 4.
  • 5607 ビュー

I know how to export multiple artboards as separate PDFs. However, when I open each separate PDF in Illustrator, each contains all of the other artboards, and I haven't found a combination of settings to avoid this, nor have I found anything in the forums (yet), meaning I have to manually delete all the extra artboards. This also happens when I save the AI file as a multi-page PDF and then extract the pages in Acrobat as separate files. Does anyone have any advice? Thanks!

解決に役立った回答 Ton Frederiks

If you use Export for Screens... and select PDF, you will use one of the PDF presets.

Most Presets have the "Illustrator Editing Capabilities" option checked, which will cause all the artboards included when the PDF is opened in Illustrator.

Save a PDF preset (Edit menu > PDF Presets...) that does not include that option and use that during export (click the cogwheel in the export dialog to change export settings).

返信数 4

E
Eli31711213c9fv
Participant
February 24, 2025

I'm experiencing the same issue. When I export an artboard and open it in any PDF viewer, it appears normal. However, when I open the same file in Illustrator, it displays all the project’s artboards instead of just the one I exported. I only want to export a specific artboard along with its layers.

Additionally, if I export it as a scene, it merges everything into a single layer, which is not what I want.

Ton Frederiks
Community Expert
Ton FrederiksCommunity Expert
Community Expert
February 24, 2025

Did you create your own preset? See the correct answer above.

    Mike_Gondek10189183
    Community Expert
    Mike_Gondek10189183Community Expert
    Community Expert
    April 16, 2021

    Your method is good Morazan of using Acrobat extract pages. The problem is extract pages leaves the data of other pages in the pdf, just hides the pages. Though their rip will likely see these as 1page file your file sizes are huge for transfer.

     

    You will need to do advanced optimization. unfortunately you can not run the on multiple files like reduce file size. Maybe there is a way to change the default reduce file size. 

     

     

      Mike_Gondek10189183
      Community Expert
      Mike_Gondek10189183Community Expert
      Community Expert
      April 17, 2021

      You can make an action to reduce file size, which allows you to add multiple files then you have access to this. Use New Action to create one.

       

       

       

       

        Morazan
        Morazan作成者
        Known Participant
        April 17, 2021

        I appreciate your replies. I'll give that a try.

         

        As mentioned in another of my replies above, using the suggestion of saving the AI artboards as a multipage PDF with X-4 settings, then extracting the pages of the resulting PDF as separate files in Acrobat, results in individual PDFs that don't contain the other artboards when opened in AI. 

          Ton Frederiks
          Community Expert
          Ton FrederiksCommunity Expert
          Community Expert
          April 16, 2021

          Maybe in 2 steps:

          Do a save as .ai and check save each artboard to a separate file.

          Save the separate files as pdf (you can set up an action and batch the process).

            Morazan
            Morazan作成者
            Known Participant
            April 16, 2021

            Thanks. I'm working in AI on a file with multiple (72) artboards and exporting as separate PDFs. As mentioned above, the only reason I opened the exported PDFs in Illustrator again was because I noticed the file size of each was larger than expected, leading to my discovery that each exported graphic contains all of the other 71 artboards.

             

            Is this something that AI does on purpose, and if so, what is that purpose? Or is Adobe not aware of this?

            Ton Frederiks
            Community Expert
            Ton FrederiksCommunity Expert解決！
            Community Expert
            April 16, 2021

            If you use Export for Screens... and select PDF, you will use one of the PDF presets.

            Most Presets have the "Illustrator Editing Capabilities" option checked, which will cause all the artboards included when the PDF is opened in Illustrator.

            Save a PDF preset (Edit menu > PDF Presets...) that does not include that option and use that during export (click the cogwheel in the export dialog to change export settings).

              c.pfaffenbichler
              Community Expert
              c.pfaffenbichlerCommunity Expert
              Community Expert
              April 16, 2021

              Why do you need to convert the pdfs with Illustrator? 

              How exactly did you create the pdfs and what were the pdf settings you used? 

                Morazan
                Morazan作成者
                Known Participant
                April 16, 2021

                I'm creating artwork in Illustrator in a file with multiple artboards which I'm then exporting to pdf for the client, whose company policy calls for separate graphics files when submitting for review. For the review process I'm using the Press Quality settings.

                c.pfaffenbichler
                Community Expert
                c.pfaffenbichlerCommunity Expert
                Community Expert
                April 16, 2021

                But why do you open the pdfs in Illustrator? 

                 

                How exactly did you create the pdfs? 

                 

                »I'm using the Press Quality settings.«

                Have you tried X-4? 

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