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Version: Version 1.6

Pdftools SDK Shell Tool

Learn how to use the Pdftools SDK and the Toolbox add-on from the command line with the Pdftools SDK Shell Tool.

Prerequisites

The Pdftools SDK Shell Tool is available as:

  • Self-contained .NET distribution.
  • Framework-dependent .NET distribution.

Use the self-contained distribution if you do not have the .NET framework installed. The framework-dependent distribution of the Pdftools SDK Shell Tool requires you to install .NET 6.0 or higher.

Download

Download the latest version of the Pdftools SDK shell tool for the following platforms:

PlatformSelf-contained distributionFramework-dependent distribution
linux-x64PdfToolsSDK_Shell-latest-linux-x64-self-contained.zipPdfToolsSDK_Shell-latest-linux-x64.zip
osx-x64PdfToolsSDK_Shell-latest-osx-x64-self-contained.zipPdfToolsSDK_Shell-latest-osx-x64.zip
osx-arm64PdfToolsSDK_Shell-latest-osx-arm64-self-contained.zipPdfToolsSDK_Shell-latest-osx-arm64.zip
win-x64PdfToolsSDK_Shell-latest-win-x64-self-contained.zipPdfToolsSDK_Shell-latest-win-x64.zip
Older Linux systems

Separate binary files are available that support older Linux distributions using glibc2.12+. You can download these binary files from PdfToolsSDK_glibc2.12-latest.zip.

Features

note

As of this version, the Pdftools SDK Shell Tool supports the following features of the Pdftools SDK. Support for additional features will be added soon.

FeatureDescriptionSupport as of version
Image to PDFConvert images to single PDF or PDF/A1.0.0 +
PDF to PDF/AValidate PDF conformance; Convert documents to PDF/A1.2.0 +
Compression and optimizationCompress and optimize PDF documents for web, archiving, printing or file size1.0.0 +
SecuritySign, certify PDF documents; Validate signatures in PDF documents1.4.0+
RenderingRender PDF documents to images for fax, archive, or viewing1.1.0+
Merging and splittingMerge and split PDF documents to assemble new output documents1.1.0+

Usage

The general usage is

> pdf [sdk_options] <input> [input_options] <command> [: <command>] [<output> [output_options]]

Chaining commands

tip

You can chain multiple commands using :. This way you can apply multiple operations without the need to store each result to an intermediate file.

Example:

> pdf input.jpg import : optimize-web out.pdf

Detailed help

For the full reference of commands and features of the Pdftools SDK Shell Tool use the built-in help by executing:

# For all commands and features
pdf help

# For specific commands
pdf help <command>

Use of license key

To use a license key and remove the watermarked results, insert the license key using the -lk parameter:

> pdf -lk "<your-license-key>" <inputPath> <command> <outputPath>

Substitute:

  • <your-license-key> with the value of your license key.
  • <inputPath> with a path to the input file.
  • <command> with a specific command.
  • <outputPath> with a path to the output file.

For example:

> pdf -lk "<your-license-key>" input.jpg import : optimize-web out.pdf