Indesign Server 2024 pdf export of big content

[Sim�nGV]

Hello,

We are trying to export a book of almost 7000 pages, this one is divided in 24 indd, the thing is, when is time to export the book:
book.exportFile (ExportFormat.PDF_TYPE, {filePath});

It takes 25+ hours, so i am not sure if this is normal behavior or if its something needed to improve this exportation time.

[Eugene Tyson]

No, it definitely shouldn't take 25 hours that's far too long, even for 7000 pages.

First, make sure the Book panel is open before running your script. Sometimes it helps kick the export into gear properly.

If it’s still slow, try exporting directly from the Book file manually, not via script, to see if it's a scripting issue or just the book itself causing trouble.

If the lag persists, divide and conquer:

Try exporting the first 12 documents together

Then try the last 12

If one half is noticeably slower, you're narrowing it down.

Keep breaking it into smaller batches until you pinpoint the troublesome file. Sometimes it's one image, a corrupt text frame, or even an overset table causing chaos. Once you isolate it, fixing or replacing the culprit usually solves the whole thing.

Also, check for

High-res linked images (especially TIFFs or bloated PSDs)

Long anchored object chains

Live preflight errors

Fonts loaded via cloud that might be lagging

Let us know what you find we’ve all been there.

[Vamitul - ks]

It thoroughly depends on what is in the 7000 pages. 

If it's just plain text, it's way, way too much. But if you have tons of cross-references, heavy use of GREP styles, anchored objects, big or complex linked assets, and so on, than it makes sense.

One more thing to watch out, if the linked assets are not on the local machine (either a mapped network drive, DAM folder etc) it can badly affect performance. 

[Sim�nGV]

hi again,

Thanks for the responses, i launched the generation with indesign desktop and with the book generated with the server, this server generation was divided in 47 indds and lasted 14h while the desktop was 1h, dont know if this difference is just from the scripting or if its normal to be big differences in time generations on server and desktop.

[Abhishek Rao]

Hi @Sim�nGV,

Thanks for following up and sharing your test results. You're right, a 14-hour export on InDesign Server compared to just 1 hour on the desktop is a significant difference. This usually isn't expected unless there are major differences in how the two environments are configured.

One key thing to check is whether the InDesign Server has the same fonts, scripts, and linked assets locally available as the desktop version. If the server is referencing assets over a network or cloud drive, or if it's missing fonts and relying on fallbacks, that can slow things down considerably.

Could you please confirm the version of InDesign Server you're using, as well as the OS it's running on? It would also help to know if all the assets (fonts, images, etc.) are stored locally on the server or pulled from a network.

If possible, please try running a smaller export from the same setup and let me know if the time difference is still this drastic. You can also explore this article for further help tailored to enterprise users: Adobe Enterprise Support.

Looking forward to your update.

Abhishek