Generate Adobe PDF in background

• on 24 Oct 2020
• By Attila Berencsi
• ABAP

Generate Adobe PDF in background

Sometimes you need to generate an Adobe PDF in the background, for example to send it as attachment or store it on a remote storage.

Info:to be able to generate the PDF in the background, the J2EE engine / Adobe Server must be set up and connected to the ABAP stack properly. This example is about programming, and not about the configuration.

When you know the name of the Adobe PDF to be generated, you can execute the printing job programmatically and get the pdf as raw data. You need to fill the PDF interface with the required input and set language and local properties.

    DATA:
      ls_address          TYPE bapiaddr3,
      lv_printer          TYPE rs38l_fnam,
      ls_prm_form         TYPE sfpdocparams,
      ls_prm_output       TYPE sfpoutputparams,
      ls_pdf              TYPE fpformoutput,      
      lt_message          TYPE bapirettab.

    "Print paremeters
    ls_prm_output-getpdf = abap_true."I want print to rawdata (instead of dialog processing)
    ls_prm_form-langu = sy-langu.
    
    CALL FUNCTION 'BAPI_USER_GET_DETAIL'
      EXPORTING
        username = sy-uname
      IMPORTING
        address  = ls_address
      TABLES
        return   = lt_message.

    IF ls_address-country IS NOT INITIAL.
      ls_prm_form-country = ls_address-country.
    ELSE.
      ls_prm_form-country = 'HU'.
    ENDIF.

    "PDF generation
    CALL FUNCTION 'FP_JOB_OPEN'
      CHANGING
        ie_outputparams = ls_prm_output
      EXCEPTIONS
        cancel          = 1
        usage_error     = 2
        system_error    = 3
        internal_error  = 4
        OTHERS          = 5.

    IF sy-subrc NE 0.
      RETURN.
    ENDIF.

    CALL FUNCTION 'FP_FUNCTION_MODULE_NAME'
      EXPORTING
        i_name     = 'HERE COMES THE NAME OF THE ADOBE FORM'
      IMPORTING
        e_funcname = lv_printer.

    IF sy-subrc NE 0.
      RETURN.
    ENDIF.

    CALL FUNCTION lv_printer
      EXPORTING
        /1bcdwb/docparams  = ls_prm_form
        "HERE PASS THE ADOBE FORM INTERFACE PARAMETERS,you can get it from tx.: SFP, entering the Adobe Form name
      IMPORTING
        /1bcdwb/formoutput = ls_pdf
      EXCEPTIONS
        usage_error        = 1
        system_error       = 2
        internal_error     = 3.

    IF sy-subrc NE 0.
      RETURN.
    ENDIF.

    CALL FUNCTION 'FP_JOB_CLOSE'
      EXCEPTIONS
        usage_error    = 1
        system_error   = 2
        internal_error = 3
        OTHERS         = 4.

    IF sy-subrc NE 0.
      RETURN.
    ENDIF.

    "Rawdata can be found in ls_pdf-pdf.