Online PDF Conversion (PDF )

From TIFF to PDF/A on demand...

Nowadays, the PDF/A standard became accepted for the long-term preservation of documents. In most SAP® archives many documents are still stored in the TIFF format. The TIFF specification has different versions, for example single page TIFF and multi-page TIFF. In particular the usage of the single page TIFF format, where the pages of a scanned document are stored in the archive as single components, constitutes a problem of its own. A capable viewer application is required, in order to retrieve or print all pages of a document in one step. Not only here, the standardized document format PDF/A provides the advantage, that all documents can be retrieved conveniently with a PDF viewer.

Savento has developed the Online PDF Converter as a solution package for the conversion of already archived TIFF documents to PDF/A, where the original (TIFF) is preserved and the PDF version is only generated on demand for document retrieval. This conversion solution is integrated into SAP® and has been optimized regarding the following requirements:

  • Ease of use by the customer with the option to retrieve either the original TIFF document or the PDF version
  • The generated PDF documents do not increase the archive volume as they are only created for document retrieval and display
  • Flexible authorization concept
  • Sophisticated security mechanism
  • Support for multiple operating system platforms
  • High speed conversion and low resource consumption
  • No dedicated server required
  • Works with any ArchiveLink® compliant archiving system

This solution package is integrated into SAP® which means that the user can choose whether the original TIFF document or the PDF version will be displayed. Therewith this solution package is of interest for all scenarios, where the access to stored TIFF documents needs to be more comfortable by using the PDF format – all without increasing the archive volume or deleting the originals in the TIFF format after the conversion.

The Online PDF Converter has been implemented in Java and supports the common Unix and Linux derivatives. On Windows it can be used as a service. It runs outside the SAP system on a simple workstation and can even be operated on the archive server itself.

Transparent and perfectly integrated!

The conversion procedure consists of an SAP® component, which is integrated as a plug-in into the standard SAP document display. The Savento Online PDF Converter receives from the SAP system the information, which archive document needs to be downloaded and converted. The conversion process is sketched in the following figure:

Online-PDF-Conversion of documents

This solution package reflects the many years of experience Savento has accumulated in numerous SAP® archiving projects. It extends beyond the immediate document conversion process and also includes consultancy advice on worthwhile measures in the customer-specific situation.

Savento is your partner for the professional and efficient implementation of archiving projects. We look forward to receiving your requests and shall be pleased to help you by adjusting the coverage and content of the solution package to meet your requirements.

SAP and ArchiveLink are registered trademarks of SAP AG.

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