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How to ensure PDF/A compliance

This is a collection of resources started as part of the PVLDB Vol 16 Publication Process. It outlines various resources and how-tos regarding achieving PDF/A compliance. This is a live document, so please come back for updated content and feel free to contribute as well.

LaTeX configuration to embed all fonts

  • Ensure that the options pdftexDownloadBase14 and dvipsDownloadBase35 are set to true in your updmap.cfg file. In order to ensure that that you are editing the correct file run first updmap -sys to see which files are used.

LaTeX packages to ensure PDF/A

  • Modify the documentclass to include pdfa, for example:
\documentclass[sigconf, nonacm, pdfa]{acmart}

\usepackage[a-2b]{pdfx})

Adobe Acrobat for PDF/A

Adobe Acrobat can also save as PDF/A, however, note that this does not always mean that the file is compliant. Rather, it means that the file claims to be compliant. More checking is typically necessary.

  • If you use File > Save as Other > Archival PDF (PDF/A) this will not ensure PDF/A compliance. In fact most of the time this will not be sufficient.

Adobe Acrobat Preflight for PDF/A

  • If you use Adobe Preflight to run a "Convert to PDF/A" profile and the process succeeds this will be sufficient.
    • In the Creative Cloud Suite, this can be found in Adobe Acrobat under Edit > Preflight where you can select the profile "Convert to PDF/A-2b" and click on "Analyze and fix". This will open a new dialogue box that will ask you to give the desired output filename.

How to test for PDF/A and font compliance.

OK, so you have followed all the above guidelines to make your file compliant. Can you verify with the same tools as the PVLDB Publication Process? To do that, we add below a simple version of the testing suite used during publication.

PVLDB Vol 16 Testing Scripts

  • Before you start, follow the guidelines in _tools/INSTALL_TOOLS.md to install the necessary tools.
  • Once the tools are installed, you can run the two scripts check_fonts_pdfa.py to check fonts and PDF/A compliance and check_format.py to check other common formatting errors.
  • Note that these are not exhaustive!
  • Give python check_fonts_pdfa.py --dir <directory with pdf files to check> and all files in that folder will be checked for PDF/A and font compliance.
  • Give python check_format.py --dir <directory with pdf files to check> and all files in that folder will be checked for common formatting errors.

Online tools

Online tools to check for PDF/A compliance

Online tools to convert to PDF/A

Removing Type 3 fonts (this is a best-effort collection of online links)

Note that typically, if you ensure PDF/A compliance there should be no Type 3 fonts. Just in case, below we have a collection of links solely about removing Type 3 fonts in a more ad hoc manner.