PDF-app.net

Use PDF-app.net for document automation covering PDF generation, conversion between PDF, Word, HTML, and image formats, and document security. Agents produce and protect finished documents inside a workflow.

13 actions API key available

PDF-app.net website ↗ Platform Documentation ↗ Capability data verified 2026-08-01

Payroll close publishes the period's earnings records for every employee

Convert HTML to PDF renders each payslip from the saved dashboard layout, filling Handlebars placeholders and looping the deduction lines

Each produced file is checked against its real signature before it is copied into FlowRunner file storage

Manage PDF Password encrypts every document so it cannot be opened without the employee secret

Agent verifies that every record in the run produced exactly one encrypted file and that no employee is missing or duplicated

A distribution manifest posts to the people operations channel with counts by department

People operations confirms the recipient mapping and the encryption policy before the first payslip is sent

What This Integration Enables

PDF-app.net is a generation and conversion toolkit with a document security surface attached, and the security surface is the reason to reach for it. Manage PDF Password encrypts a file so it cannot be opened without the secret, and decrypts one so later steps can read it. Add Watermark stamps text or an image with control over color, opacity, font, size, rotation and horizontal and vertical offsets, limited to a page range, with a custom font supplied by URL when the built-in faces do not cover the script. Outline PDF Text converts every glyph into vector outlines so the document renders identically anywhere without embedded fonts, which is what commercial printers usually require. Three controls, three genuinely different purposes, and they are conflated into "we secured the document" more often than anything else in document automation.

The generation side is equally opinionated. HTML layouts are rendered with Handlebars, so placeholders and {{#each}} loops turn a structured JSON payload into a finished document, and a layout saved in the PDF-app.net dashboard can be reused by Template ID instead of resending markup on every run. That separation matters operationally: the design lives in one place under one owner, and the flow supplies only data. Produced files are validated against their real file signature before being copied into FlowRunner file storage, so an error page cannot be stored as a document. Long-running work can be queued and collected later by job ID, with the credits consumed reported alongside the presigned output URLs, which expire one hour after issue. For teams practicing Orchestration as a Service, that combination lets a sensitive document be generated, protected and distributed inside one governed flow rather than assembled across three tools and an email.

Without FlowRunner

Security is a manual afterthought Somebody remembers to password-protect the sensitive documents, and sometimes somebody does not

Templates live in a document tool Changing an offer letter layout means editing a file, re-uploading it, and hoping the merge fields still match

Long documents block the flow A large batch either times out or forces the whole run to be split by hand

With FlowRunner

Protection is a step with a policy Encryption, watermarking and outlining are explicit actions in the flow, applied the same way on every run

Templates are data-driven markup A layout saved in the dashboard is reused by ID, and Handlebars loops turn structured JSON into finished pages

Large work runs asynchronously Heavy jobs are submitted and collected by job ID, with credit consumption reported alongside the result

Use Case Scenarios

Payslip and Offer Letter Distribution

The layout for a payslip lives in the PDF-app.net dashboard and is referenced by Template ID, so the flow sends only data. Convert HTML to PDF fills the Handlebars placeholders and runs an {{#each}} loop over earnings and deduction lines, producing a document per employee with page numbering in the footer. Manage PDF Password encrypts each file. The signature validation step means a failed render never gets filed as a payslip. Employee records in BambooHR drive the recipient mapping, and delivery goes out through Outlook with the manifest archived for the period.

Reopening a Finished Document for a Review Cycle

A contract exists only as a signed PDF and the original source file is gone, which normally means retyping it. Manage PDF Password decrypts the file if it is protected, Convert PDF to Word returns an editable .docx with layout, text and formatting preserved as closely as the source allows, and the revised version goes back through Convert Word to PDF to lock the layout again before it is sent for signature. Add Watermark stamps DRAFT across the intermediate versions at low opacity so an in-progress copy is never mistaken for the executed one.

Assembling and Compressing a Heavy Document Set

Month-end reporting produces dozens of section files that need to become one document per recipient. Merge PDFs combines them in the order the URLs are listed, drawing straight on the FlowRunner file URLs from earlier steps. Split PDF then breaks the consolidated file into per-recipient statements using Pages Per Split, and Compress PDF reduces each one with the quality preset plus the three image resolution settings and JPEG quality for finer control over how aggressively artwork is downsampled. Heavy runs are submitted with Process Asynchronously enabled and collected later with Get Async Job Result, which reports status, credits consumed and the presigned output URLs.

Human-in-Loop Highlight

Outline PDF Text is the operation on this connector that people reach for when they mean something else. It converts every glyph into vector outlines, which stops text being trivially copied or reflowed and guarantees the file prints identically without the original fonts. It is a print fidelity control, and it is frequently mistaken for a privacy control. It does not encrypt anything, so the words are still perfectly readable on screen by anyone holding the file. It also runs in one direction only: once the text is artwork there is no search, no accessibility layer, no text extraction, and Convert PDF to Word on an outlined file returns pictures of sentences. So when a flow is about to replace an archived master with an outlined version, the agent stops and asks the document owner: "This flow will outline [document] before filing it. Outlining flattens text to artwork permanently. The result cannot be searched, extracted, made accessible, or reopened in Word, and it is not encrypted, so the content is still readable by anyone with the file. Keep the searchable source as the archived master and file the outlined copy alongside it, or replace the master?" That question takes a person ten seconds and cannot be answered by the connector, which is exactly the shape of decision a human-in-the-loop gate exists to hold.

Agent processes routinely

Detects exception requiring judgment

Clear match Continues automatically

Ambiguous Routes to human via preferred channel

Human decides

Agent resumes with decision

Agent Capabilities

13 actions

Document Generation

Convert HTML to PDF Renders an HTML layout into a PDF and stores it in FlowRunner file storage. The markup is a Handlebars template, so values supplied in Content Data fill placeholders such as {{invoiceNumber}} and drive {{#each}} loops for line items, which makes this the action for invoices, quotes, certificates, payslips and reports. A layout saved in the PDF-app.net dashboard can be reused by passing its Template ID instead of resending markup on every run. Header and footer templates support page numbering, and paper size, orientation, margins and background graphics are all configurable.

Document Assembly

Merge PDFs Combines several PDF documents into a single file in the order the URLs are listed and stores the result in FlowRunner file storage. Every source URL must be publicly downloadable, so a FlowRunner file URL produced by an earlier step works directly. Used to consolidate invoices into one statement, attach a cover page to a generated report, or assemble an archive document.
Split PDF Divides a PDF into several documents and stores every produced part in FlowRunner file storage. Pages Per Split controls how many pages each output file holds, while Page Ranges limits the operation to a section such as 1-2. Used to break a batch document into per-customer statements, extract a chapter or isolate a signature page.
Compress PDF Reduces the file size of a PDF and stores the optimized document in FlowRunner file storage. The quality preset sets the overall trade-off between size and fidelity, and three image resolution settings plus JPEG quality give finer control over how aggressively embedded artwork is downsampled. Use a lighter preset for documents that must stay print-sharp and a stronger one for email attachments.

Document Security

Manage PDF Password Adds or removes password protection on a PDF and stores the resulting document in FlowRunner file storage. Adding a password encrypts the file so it cannot be opened without the secret, which is the step to run before emailing contracts, payslips or reports. Removing a password decrypts a protected file so later steps such as merging, splitting or text extraction can read it.
Add Watermark Stamps a text or image watermark onto a PDF and stores the marked document in FlowRunner file storage. Color, opacity, font, font size, rotation and horizontal and vertical offsets control exactly how the mark sits on the page, and a page range limits it to a section. Text watermarks apply to PDFs only, while image watermarks work on both PDFs and images. A custom font can be supplied as a downloadable font file URL when the built-in faces do not cover the required script.
Outline PDF Text Converts every glyph in a PDF into vector outlines and stores the flattened document in FlowRunner file storage. Because the text becomes artwork, the file renders identically everywhere without needing the original fonts installed or embedded, which is what commercial printers usually require, and it stops text from being trivially copied or reflowed. The conversion is one way: the flattened document can no longer be searched, extracted or reopened as editable text.

Format Conversion

Convert PDF to Images Rasterizes each page of one or more PDFs into image files and stores every page in FlowRunner file storage. Use it to build page thumbnails, publish document previews on platforms that only accept images, or hand pages to an image-based review step. Output format and rendering resolution are both configurable, so the same action covers small previews and print-grade renders.
Convert Images to PDF Packs one or more images into a single PDF document and stores it in FlowRunner file storage, accepting JPEG, PNG, HEIC, HEIF, TIFF, WebP and BMP sources. Use it to turn scanned photos, receipts or signed pages into one document that is easy to email, archive and submit, since PDF is accepted almost everywhere images are not.
Convert PDF to Word Converts a PDF into an editable Word document and stores the DOCX in FlowRunner file storage, preserving layout, text and formatting as closely as the source allows. This is the action for reopening a finished document for edits, review cycles or content reuse when the original file is no longer available.
Convert Word to PDF Converts a Word document into a PDF and stores it in FlowRunner file storage. Use it to lock a drafted document into a fixed, universally readable format before it is emailed, archived or sent for signature, so recipients see the layout that was authored regardless of the software they use.
Convert PDF to HTML Converts a PDF into a single HTML file that preserves the original layout and content, then stores it in FlowRunner file storage. The result can be embedded in a web page or an email, indexed for search, or used as the starting point for an HTML template that is later fed back into Convert HTML to PDF.

Job Handling

Get Async Job Result Retrieves the outcome of a job submitted with Process Asynchronously enabled, returning current status together with the presigned output URLs, the credits the job consumed and any extraction or translation results once processing has finished. Poll it after an asynchronous submission, allowing for several minutes on large documents, and collect the output before the presigned links expire one hour after issue.

Frequently Asked Questions

What can FlowRunner do with PDF-app.net?

FlowRunner agents can run Convert HTML to PDF, Merge PDFs, and Split PDF in PDF-app.net, plus 10 more actions.

Does connecting PDF-app.net to FlowRunner require OAuth?

No. PDF-app.net connects to FlowRunner with an API key, no OAuth flow required.

Can PDF-app.net trigger a FlowRunner workflow automatically?

PDF-app.net doesn't currently expose triggers in FlowRunner. It connects as an action step inside workflows started by another trigger.

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