Trim, bleed and document checks

These checks look at the page: its boxes and bleed, how close text comes to the edge, its size and count, and what else the file carries besides artwork. Each table shows a check's settings in the five presets.

Page, bleed and safety#

The product edge is the die outline, holes included, when the page has a die; else the TrimBox; else the visible page. See what counts as artwork.

Bleed#

Artwork that touches the product edge must continue past it by the bleed, so a slightly off cut never shows a white edge, and the page boxes must describe it. Every 2 pt along the edge, preflight looks at the printing inks just inside the edge and at the bleed distance outside it, over the whole page (MediaBox): a file cropped to its trim still has its bleed checked. Technical and finishing inks don't count as artwork there.

With a die, the same findings speak of the die instead of the trim. The first four offer Set page boxes (see Preflight fixes). The last three are reported when they cover more than 3 % of the edge the artwork touches, so a few stray points are not.

Two places are not short although no ink reaches the bleed:

• a concave corner, such as where a glue flap meets the body of a carton: the bleed there belongs to the other edge, and an unprinted flap needs none;

• a finishing or technical shape (spot UV, foil, glue) that starts at the edge and knocks the print out: it continues the design into the bleed. A flood varnish over print that stops at the trim still counts as short.

• Bleed: how far artwork must run past the edge. 9 pt is about 3 mm. 0 skips the bleed measurement; the box findings still apply.

• Require a TrimBox: flag pages without a TrimBox (pages with a die never need one).

Safety margin#

Text too close to the product edge can be cut off or look unbalanced. Visible text that reaches within Margin of the trim or die (including the edges of holes) is flagged: "Text within 9 pt (3.2 mm) of the edge (closest 4 pt)." Text wholly outside the product, in the slug, is not. Images and graphics are not checked. 0 turns the check off.

Page size#

The trim size of every page (the TrimBox, else the visible page) against the ordered size, such as 612 × 792 pt for US Letter or 595.3 × 841.9 pt for A4: "Trim size is 612 × 792 pt (215.9 × 279.4 mm); expected 595.3 × 841.9 pt (210 × 297 mm)."

• Width and Height: the ordered trim size. With either at 0 any size is accepted, and pages of different sizes in one file are a note instead.
• Tolerance: how far each side may differ.
• Accept rotated: a landscape page matches a portrait size, and the other way round.

No preset sets a size. Digital print and Offset commercial only report mixed page sizes, and the other presets don't run this check; set the size in a profile for a job with a known size.

Page count#

The number of pages against the order: "The file has 6 pages; 4 were expected."

• Pages: the expected count. 0 accepts any.
• Multiple of: the count must be a multiple of this, such as 4 for saddle stitching. 0 turns it off.

No preset runs this check: turn it on in a profile.

Document#

These checks look at the whole file.

JavaScript#

Scripts in the document, its pages, links or form fields: "JavaScript found (annotation, document)." Print files must not contain any. Remove comments, forms and scripts removes them (see Preflight fixes).

Comments and form fields#

Comments, markup and form fields sit on top of the artwork and may or may not print: "Comments or markup: highlight, sticky note." and "Form fields." Links are not flagged. Remove comments, forms and scripts merges those set to print into the page and removes the rest.

Encryption#

An encrypted file (one that opens, but carries permission limits) may refuse printing or editing in prepress tools: "The file is encrypted." Remove encryption saves it without them. A file that needs a password to open can't be checked at all: the report ends with an error.

PDF version and output intent#

• Oldest version: flag files older than this PDF version, "PDF 1.3 is older than 1.4." The version is the file header's, raised by the version the document itself declares. Any turns it off.
• Require an output intent: flag files that don't state their print condition, as PDF/X files do: "No output intent: the file does not state its print condition (PDF/X)."