Restrict PDF, Limit Print, Edit, or Copy, API Tool

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Request

POST

Headers

Api-Key

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Response-Type

Poll for the status of a request by ID. Request IDs can be found in the JSON response of POST requests sent to any pdfRest endpoint.

Required Parameters

file

File to be uploaded and processed.

Alphanumeric ID (UUID) of existing file on server to be processed.

new_permissions_password

New permissions password. Must be a string between 6 and 128 characters long.

Optional Parameters

current_permissions_password

Existing permissions password

restrictions[]

Document restrictions to be applied. Restricted operations are locked behind the permissions password when interacting with a restricted document.

current_open_password

Existing open password

output

Name of the generated output file, without extension

Code

curl -X POST "https://api.pdfrest.com/restricted-pdf" \ 
  -H "Accept: application/json" \ 
  -H "Content-Type: multipart/form-data" \
  -H "Api-Key: xxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx" \

Response

The response for your API Call will display here.

Once you've sent your POST request and received a valid response, you can download your output file using the output URL.

Build Your Solution

You have document processing problems, we have Solutions. Explore the many ways pdfRest can align your documents with your business objectives.

Browse all solutions

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Secure PDF Documents with Protected Watermarks

Why is pdfRest the best API to apply restrictions to PDF?

pdfRest offers the best solution for restricting PDF documents with a permissions password, because it supports advanced restriction modification, top quality security, and flexible restriction options.

Modifying Existing Restrictions

The Restrict PDF API tool empowers your application with security features that apply to more than just new documents. Existing files and permissions are easily modified, opening your documents to new and expanding audiences.

We often think of security as a one-way workflow, it doesn't need to be. Enhance your security with two-way automation. Incoming documents can be secured with the Restrict PDF tool and processed through the Encrypt PDF tool for secure storage with an additional layer of encryption-at-rest. When the files are ready for distribution and viewing, reverse them through the process to open them to only their intended audience.

All of this and more is ready-built, only with pdfRest.

Top Quality Security

Security is the foundation of every good technology and pdfRest allows you to rest easy knowing that the the industry's best document security has been made so simple to implement with your new and existing projects.

Powered by the Adobe® PDF Library™, pdfRest's Restrict PDF API Tool leverages the same technology and security capabilities found in Adobe Acrobat. pdfRest supports automation that removes human error from implementation of security best-practices.

Flexible Restriction Options

The suite of tools within pdfRest provide flexibility to developers when crafting the unique security solutions their data requires. With calls to the Restrict PDF API, there are over 40,000 distinct permission combinations that can be applied to documents, saving development time and providing maximum value with one easy tool.

Adobe Acrobat security settings such as "Printing Allowed", "Changes Allowed", "Enable copying of text, images...", and their associated permissions passwords are are all fully compatible with Restrict PDF.

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Start from Code Examples

See more code examples in our GitHub repository

Need more help?

Start with a Tutorial for step-by-step guidance

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Customize Your Solution

Learn about the parameters for this tool to create your custom solution.

File

The file parameter allows you to select a local file to be uploaded to pdfRest’s processing server for processing. This is a required field unless you include the id parameter instead.

See Documentation

The id parameter allows you to submit a resource ID for a file already on the processing server. Each of our API Tools assigns a unique resource ID to all uploaded input files and generated output files and returns these IDs in the response to each API Call. This allows you to store the IDs from one call and submit them to the next, chaining requests together without having to download intermediate files between requests.

This is a required field unless you include the file parameter instead.

See Documentation

Output

The output parameter lets you set a filename (without extension) for your restricted or unrestricted PDF.

See Documentation

New Permissions Password

The new_permissions_password parameter allows you to apply a new permissions password to your new PDF. You can use a permissions password to restrict various operations in your PDF such as editing, copying, and printing. Use with restrictions[] to identify restrictions to apply to your output document. By default, the permissions password prevents unauthorized changes to PDF security settings and prevents page extraction.

See Documentation

Current Permissions Password

The current_permissions_password parameter lets you enter a permissions password that has already been applied to your input document.

When restricting: Use with new_permissions_password to change the permissions password on your document. ** When unrestricting**: Use this parameter to verify your document’s permissions password so it can be removed.

See Documentation

Restrictions[]

The restrictions[] parameter lets you indicate the restrictions you would like to apply to your document. Restrictions can include one or more of the following:

print_low
print_high
edit_document_assembly
edit_fill_and_sign_form_fields
edit_annotations
edit_content
copy_content
accessibility_off

See Documentation

Current Open Password

The current_open_password parameter allows you to send an open password that was applied to the input document. Use this parameter to keep encryption on a document when you add, change, or remove the permissions password; otherwise, the open password may be overridden and removed.

See Documentation