So, you have a new Flipbook ready to go, but the processing failed, and you have received the dreaded Custom Link Import produced no links notification to your inbox?
Do not worry, we have all been there... Let's see what could have happened and what can be done to troubleshoot it.
Possible causes
There is a whole plethora of possible causes which could have triggered the processing failure, let's outline the most common challenges.
The following guide will be divided into two different parts, troubleshoot of data and PDF file.
Troubleshooting the data file
1. Product data is not matching between the data source and PDF
Always make sure, that the product ID's are matching between the PDF and the data source (in this case, an Excel Sheet).
2. Data header names are not the same as defined in the automation.
In order for the automation to recognize the data, it is important that the header names are consistently named, so in case the automation processed successfully with the previous data source, but now is failing with a new one. Make sure that the header names did not change.
3. Header names are not placed in the correct row.
By default, automation will always be looking for header names at row 1 unless specified differently in the automation setup.
4. Incorrect Excel Worksheet
Make sure that the data used for the automation is located in the first worksheet, unless specified differently in the automation settings.
Troubleshooting the PDF
1. Check for editable text to make sure it is not a scanned image.
In order for the automation to work, the PDF must have native (selectable) text and not be a simple scanned image. As the automation will not be able to find the ID's thus will fail to process the Flipbook.
2. Check for hidden layers in the PDF.
If the automation was configured to search for ID's in an additional hidden layer, make sure that the layer name of the ID layer matches the one defined in the automation window.
3. Check for artifacts in the text
From time to time, we can stumble upon artifacts in the PDF text. This might be caused by an exotic font, corrupted export, clever use of spacing. It might not look noticeable by just looking at the PDF, so make to make sure the ID's are recognized correctly visit the Flipbook --> Edit Pages --> Select Page --> Investigate the indexed text.
4. PDF is protected by a password.
If the PDF is protected by a password, make sure to enter the correct credentials in the advanced options' menu before processing.
5. Unsupported PDF version
⚠️ iPaper supports PDF version 1.7 and below, but we recommend exporting to PDF 1.5 to ensure maximum compatibility.
Conclusion
As you can see, there are quite a few challenges which might cause a failed processing.
If you checked out and tried everything from above and still getting that failure notification, reach out in the chat, our customer care team will be more than happy to assist!
Happy processing!