Activating PDF/A-2 and PDF/A-3 Conversion in APEX Office Print

PDF to PDF/A Conversion with Oracle APEX Office Print and dragon.PDF

The dragon.PDF Converter from manage.it GmbH enables companies to reliably transform standard PDF documents into PDF/A-2 or PDF/A-3 compliant files. This ensures legally secure, long-term archiving in accordance with ISO standards – seamlessly integrated with Oracle APEX Office Print (AOP).

Whether you need PDF/A-2b for long-term storage or PDF/A-3b for invoices with embedded XML (ZUGFeRD / XRechnung), dragon.PDF provides a powerful and automated solution for enterprises that work with Oracle technologies.

Why PDF/A Compliance Matters

  • Legal security: Audit-proof archiving according to ISO 19005 standard
  • Future-proof: Guarantees long-term readability independent of software versions
  • Finance & Government: Required for electronic invoicing (ZUGFeRD, XRechnung)
  • Integration: Directly compatible with Oracle APEX, APEX Office Print, and existing ERP systems

Installation & Setup of dragon.PDF Converter

1. Oracle Webservice User Requirement

Before activating the service, create a dedicated Oracle database user with minimal rights for secure communication. Use the included web_service_user.sql script to provision this user.

Example:

CREATE USER "WEB_SERVICE_USER" IDENTIFIED BY "password";
GRANT CONNECT TO "WEB_SERVICE_USER";
GRANT CREATE SYNONYM TO "WEB_SERVICE_USER";

Refer to the provided script for full privilege and synonym creation.

2. System Prerequisites

  • Operating System: Linux (x86_64)
  • Memory: Minimum 512 MB RAM
  • Disk: 100 MB free space
  • Database: Oracle 19c/21c
  • Dependencies: Ghostscript (/usr/bin/gs)

Install Ghostscript:

sudo apt-get install ghostscript      # Ubuntu/Debian
sudo yum install ghostscript          # RHEL/CentOS/Oracle Linux

3. License Activation

  1. Run the binary to generate an activation code: ./dragon-pdf-converter
  2. Send code to manage.it GmbH and receive your license file
  3. Place license.lic in the installation directory

4. Installation Steps

cd /path/to/installation
chmod +x install-service.sh
sudo ./install-service.sh

Interactive configuration will prompt for:

  • Database host, port, service name, user, password
  • Ghostscript path
  • Service port (default: 6548)

After installation, dragon.PDF runs as a systemd service.

Once the dragon.PDF Converter service is installed and running:

  1. Configure AOP Output
    In your APEX Office Print (AOP) configuration, set the output format to PDF/A. Example: aop_api.print( p_data => :P1_DATA, p_template => :P1_TEMPLATE, p_output => 'pdfa-2b' ); or aop_api.print( p_data => :P1_DATA, p_template => :P1_TEMPLATE, p_output => 'pdfa-3b' );
  2. Service Call to dragon.PDF
    AOP automatically forwards the generated PDF to the dragon.PDF Converter service, which applies Ghostscript to convert into the requested PDF/A level.
  3. Resulting File
    The final output is a standards-compliant PDF/A-2 or PDF/A-3 document, ready for secure storage or submission to government authorities.

Service Management

  • Start service: sudo systemctl start dragon-pdf-converter
  • Stop service: sudo systemctl stop dragon-pdf-converter
  • Logs: sudo journalctl -u dragon-pdf-converter -f

Benefits of Using dragon.PDF with AOP

✔ Automated PDF/A compliance for all Oracle APEX generated documents
✔ Seamless integration with AOP print workflows
✔ Enterprise-ready systemd service with logging and monitoring
✔ Flexible support for PDF/A-2b and PDF/A-3b
✔ Backed by manage.it GmbH expertise in Oracle and enterprise IT

Unlock PDF/A compliance for AOP

Apex Office Print (AOP) is the leading solution for generating documents directly from Oracle APEX. But there’s a gap:
👉 AOP does not natively support PDF/A-2 or PDF/A-3 conversion – a critical requirement for long-term archiving and e-invoicing (ZUGFeRD, XRechnung).

This is where dragon.PDF Converter from manage.it GmbH comes in.
It extends AOP by converting any generated PDF into PDF/A-2b or PDF/A-3b – fully automatically, standards-compliant, and seamlessly integrated.

Why you need PDF/A-2 and PDF/A-3

  • Legal Archiving: ISO 19005 compliance for revisionssichere Dokumente
  • E-Invoicing: Mandatory for electronic invoices with embedded XML (ZUGFeRD, XRechnung)
  • Future-Proofing: Guaranteed readability in decades to come
  • Oracle Ecosystem: Works natively with AOP and Oracle Database

How it Works – AOP + dragon.PDF

  1. Generate PDF with AOP
    Your APEX application uses AOP as usual to create a PDF (standard output).
  2. Forward to dragon.PDF Converter
    The generated PDF is automatically sent to the dragon.PDF systemd service.
  3. Ghostscript Processing
    dragon.PDF applies Ghostscript conversion rules to transform the file into PDF/A-2b or PDF/A-3b.
  4. Compliant Output
    The resulting file is 100% PDF/A compliant and ready for archiving or submission.

Technical Integration Example

In your PL/SQL AOP API call, you keep the normal PDF output:

aop_api.print(
   p_data     => :P1_DATA,
   p_template => :P1_TEMPLATE,
   p_output   => 'pdf'
);

Instead of delivering this file directly to the end-user, configure your workflow to pass the PDF into dragon.PDF Converter, which upgrades it:

curl -X POST http://dragonpdfserver:6548/convert \
     -F "format=pdfa-3b" \
     -F "file=@/tmp/aop_output.pdf" \
     -o /tmp/final_output.pdf
  • pdfa-2b or pdfa-3b are supported conversion formats.
  • dragon.PDF returns the compliant file, ready for storage or distribution.

Benefits of dragon.PDF with AOP

✔ Add PDF/A-2b and PDF/A-3b support to AOP instantly
✔ No changes in your AOP templates – integration is transparent
✔ Runs as a secure Linux service with Oracle DB connectivity
✔ Fully automated and enterprise-ready
✔ Essential for industries requiring compliant e-archiving

Installation in Brief

  • Install dragon.PDF Converter on Linux (systemd service)
  • Configure Oracle Webservice User with included web_service_user.sql
  • Install Ghostscript as PDF processing engine
  • Activate license from manage.it GmbH
  • Connect your AOP output pipeline to the dragon.PDF service

Request a Demo

Discover how dragon.PDF simplifies compliance and archiving in your Oracle environment.
👉 Request a Demo today and ensure your documents are future-proof, legally compliant, and fully automated.