Workflow Builder

Create custom multi-step PDF processing pipelines.

Overview

The Workflow Builder is a visual editor that lets you assemble a sequence of PDF operations into a reusable workflow. Each step in the workflow takes the output of the previous step as its input, forming a processing pipeline. Once saved, you can run the workflow on any set of input files with a single click.

Creating a Workflow

1. Navigate to Workflows from the main menu.
2. Click New Workflow to open the Workflow Builder.
3. Enter a name for your workflow. Choose something descriptive so you can identify it later (e.g., “Monthly Report Builder”).
4. Optionally add a description explaining what the workflow does.

Adding Steps

Each step in a workflow corresponds to a single PDF operation. There are two ways to add a step:

• Click an operation in the left sidebar to add it to the pipeline.
• Drag an operation from the sidebar and drop it onto the canvas.

Operations are grouped by category in the sidebar:

• Conversion — Convert to PDF, Convert to Word, Convert to Images, etc.
• Page Management — Merge, Split, Extract Pages, Rotate, etc.
• Content — Add Watermark, Add Page Numbers, Edit Metadata, etc.
• Security — Protect, Redact
• Optimisation — Compress, Repair, Linearise, Flatten, etc.
• Extraction — Extract Text, Extract Images, Export Form Data, etc.
• Analysis — Analyse PDF, Get PDF Version, Compare, etc.

Use the search box at the top of the sidebar to quickly find an operation by name.

Inserting between existing steps

To insert a new step between two connected steps, drag an operation from the sidebar and drop it onto the connection line (arrow) between them. The line highlights green to show where the step will be inserted. You can also right-click a connection line and choose Insert step here to pick from a searchable list.

Branching workflows

You can create branching workflows where one step feeds into multiple independent operations. For example, you might want to take a PDF and simultaneously convert it to PDF/X for printing and PDF/A for archiving — each using the original PDF as input, not each other’s output.

To create a branch, simply draw a second connection from any step to a new step. Each branch receives a copy of the source step’s output and processes it independently. When the workflow executes, all branch outputs are collected into a single zip download.

Steps are numbered to show the branch structure: 1. Convert → 2a. PDF/X, 2b. PDF/A.

Configuring Step Parameters

Click on any step in the canvas to open the Properties panel on the right. The panel shows the step name, operation type, and any configurable parameters specific to that operation. For example:

Step	Configurable Parameters
Add Watermark	Watermark text, font size, opacity, rotation angle, colour
Compress PDF	Compression level (Default, Light, Extreme)
Convert to PDF/A	Conformance level (PDF/A-1b, PDF/A-2b, PDF/A-3b)
Rotate Pages	Rotation angle (90°, 180°, 270°), page range
Add Page Numbers	Position, starting number, numbering format
Protect PDF	Owner/user passwords, printing, copy, and editing permissions
Extract Pages	Page range (e.g., 1,3,5-7)
Redact PDF	Toggle credit card, phone, and email detection; custom regex patterns
Resize Page	Page size (A4, Letter, Legal, A3, A5)

Parameters that are left at their defaults will use the same default values as the standalone tool. Operations without configurable parameters (such as Merge PDFs, Repair PDF, or Flatten Annotations) show only the step name.

Reordering & Removing Steps

Right-click any step in the canvas to open a context menu with the following options:

• Move up — swap the step with the one before it in the pipeline.
• Move down — swap the step with the one after it.
• Delete step — remove the step from the workflow. If the step is in the middle of the pipeline, the surrounding steps are automatically reconnected.

You can also drag steps to reposition them visually on the canvas. Use Ctrl+Z to undo and Ctrl+Y to redo any changes (up to 50 levels).

Batch Processing & Zip Files

Workflows support batch processing via zip files:

• Upload a zip file — when you run a workflow and upload a .zip file, each file inside the zip is extracted and processed through the pipeline independently.
• Multiple outputs — if the workflow produces multiple output files (from batch input or operations like Split PDF), the results are bundled into a single zip download.
• Nested zips — if a step produces a zip (e.g., Extract Images), that zip is included in the output bundle.
• Merge with batch input — use a Merge PDFs step at the start of a workflow to combine all files from a zip into a single document before further processing.

Saving a Workflow

When you are satisfied with your workflow configuration:

1. Review all steps and their parameters.
2. Click Save Workflow.
3. The workflow appears in your workflow list and is ready to run.

Saved workflows can be edited, duplicated, or deleted at any time from the Workflow Management page.

Tips & Best Practices

• Start from a template — click Load in the toolbar and choose from the Templates tab to start with a pre-built workflow.
• Name workflows clearly — use descriptive names that indicate what the workflow does and when it is used.
• Watch for warnings — the builder highlights connections in orange when a step produces a non-PDF format that the next step can’t accept. End-of-process operations (like Convert to PDF/A or Extract Text) show a warning if they are not the final step.
• Place compression last — if your workflow includes a Compress step, put it at the end so it optimises the final output.
• Use watermarks and page numbers after merging — this ensures consistent formatting across the entire document.
• Set error handling per step — click a step and set On Error to “Skip this step” or “Retry once” if you want the pipeline to continue even when a step fails.
• Export and share — use the Export button (or Ctrl+Shift+S) to save your workflow as a JSON file. See the JSON Format Reference for details.
• Duplicate steps — right-click a step and choose Duplicate, or press Ctrl+D.
• Dark mode — click the Dark button in the toolbar to switch to a dark theme. Your preference is saved automatically.
• Test with sample files first — run your workflow on a small set of test files before using it on production documents.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Shortcut	Action
Ctrl+Z	Undo
Ctrl+Y / Ctrl+Shift+Z	Redo
Ctrl+S	Save workflow
Ctrl+Shift+S	Export workflow as JSON
Ctrl+N	New workflow
Ctrl+D	Duplicate selected step
Ctrl+E	Execute workflow
Delete	Delete selected step (with auto-reconnect)
Arrow Up/Down	Navigate between steps
Escape	Cancel current operation

Running Workflows via API

Saved workflows can be executed programmatically using the REST API. This is useful for automation, scheduling, and integrating with other systems.

Execute a workflow

curl -X POST "https://pdf.mapsoft.com/api/pdf/workflow/{id}/execute" \
  -H "X-Api-Key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "X-Api-Secret: YOUR_API_SECRET" \
  -F "inputFiles=@document.pdf"

Check execution status

curl "https://pdf.mapsoft.com/api/pdf/workflow/{id}/execution/{executionId}" \
  -H "X-Api-Key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "X-Api-Secret: YOUR_API_SECRET"

Download results

curl -O "https://pdf.mapsoft.com/api/pdf/workflow/{id}/execution/{executionId}/download" \
  -H "X-Api-Key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "X-Api-Secret: YOUR_API_SECRET"

PowerShell example

$headers = @{ "X-Api-Key" = "YOUR_KEY"; "X-Api-Secret" = "YOUR_SECRET" }
$form = @{ inputFiles = Get-Item "report.pdf" }
$result = Invoke-RestMethod -Uri "https://pdf.mapsoft.com/api/pdf/workflow/1/execute" `
    -Method Post -Headers $headers -Form $form
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://pdf.mapsoft.com/api/pdf/workflow/1/execution/$($result.executionId)/download" `
    -Headers $headers -OutFile "result.pdf"

Next: Managing Workflows