This chapter describes troubleshooting measures for Oracle WebCenter Content: Inbound Refinery.
The following topics are discussed in this chapter:
Inbound Refinery can convert native files to PDF by either exporting to PDF directly using Oracle Outside In PDF Export (included with Inbound Refinery) or by using third-party applications to output the native file to PostScript and then using a third-party PDF distiller engine to convert the PostScript file to PDF. PDF conversions require the following components to be installed and enabled on the Inbound Refinery server:
This section discusses the following topics:
The vast majority of PDF conversion issues fall into one of the following categories:
When a file is checked into the Content Server, a PDF is not generated.
A PDF is generated, but there are problems with the output.
When troubleshooting PDF conversion issues, you should first try to identify if the issue is related to just one specific file, all files of that type, or all files. For example, if you are having problems converting a Microsoft Excel document to PDF, try checking in other Microsoft Excel documents; preferably files that are smaller and less complex. If the problem is specific to a single file, the problem is most likely related to something within the file itself, such as file corruption, file setup and formatting, and so forth.
PDF not generated:
If a PDF is not generated when a file is checked into the Content Server, follow basic troubleshooting:
Look at the Inbound Refinery and agent logs and identify which step of the conversion process failed (printing to PostScript, PostScript to PDF conversion, etc.). For more information about viewing Inbound Refinery and agent logs and enabling verbose logging for agents, see Chapter 23.
If the file is timing out during conversion, first try checking in another, smaller, less complex file of the same type. If multiple files are timing out, adjust your timeout values and re-submit the files for conversion. For more information about configuring timeout values, see Chapter 23.
If the file is failing to print to PostScript, try printing the file to PostScript manually. Most failure to print to PostScript issues are related to the following possible causes:
The IDC PDF Converter PostScript printer is not installed.
The IDC PDF Converter PostScrpt printer is not named or set up properly.
If the file is printing to PostScript successfully but failing to convert to PDF, again first try checking in another, smaller, less complex file of the same type. If the problem is not specific to a single file, or you cannot identify a problem within the files that is causing the conversion to fail, the problem is most likely related to the distiller engine that you are using.
Content items are often converted incorrectly, or not at all, for the following reasons:
Information within the document is outside of the document's print area: Depending on the native application used to create the document and how your system is set up, a document is sometimes printed to a PostScript file, and the PostScript file is then converted to PDF. Therefore, any information in the document that is outside of the document's print area will not be included in the generated PDF.
Inbound Refinery is trying to convert a file that is not appropriate for the conversion engine: For example, if a file from an application other than Microsoft Word has the extension doc, the document is opened in Microsoft Word, which is not correct. The conversion will then fail.
The third-party application that is used for conversion starts up with items that require user interaction, such as startup dialogs, tip wizards, or update notices: This prevents Inbound Refinery from processing and converting the files correctly, and the conversion will time out. Always turn off all such features before using a third-party application for conversion purposes.
The Inbound Refinery's Java Virtual Machine (JVM) is frozen: This is usually associated with failed attempts to convert invalid file formats. Restarting Inbound Refinery will usually fix this problem.
Inbound Refinery did not have enough time to process the file: You can detect this by filtering for the conversion status PassThru in Repository Manager. You can also look at the Inbound Refinery and agent log files. Prevent future occurrences of this problem by increasing the appropriate conversion factor on the Timeout Settings page in the Inbound Refinery administration interface.
The content item was converted correctly but you cannot view the generated PDF file in Adobe Acrobat or Acrobat Reader. You might be using an old Acrobat version. In order to ensure that you can view all generated PDF files correctly, you should always use the latest version of Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader.
A Microsoft Office file and a link within that file does not convert correctly. It is possible that the link is not formatted correctly or is not supported by Inbound Refinery.
The following are symptoms of Inbound Refinery setup and run issues when converting PDF:
Inbound Refinery has been installed, but no files are being converted.
| Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|
|
File formats and conversion methods not set up for file type in the Content Server. |
Use the File Formats Wizard or Configuration Manager in the Content Server to set up the file formats and conversion methods for PDF conversion. For more information, see Chapter 23. |
The IDC PDF Converter Printer is missing from the list of local printers and documents are stuck in GENWWW. Rebooting the server did not resolve the issue.
| Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|
|
The Print Spooler service might not be running. |
This service ensures that all installed printers are available, including the IDC PDF Converter printer. Check in the Windows services console (accessible by choosing Control Panel, then Administrative Tools, then Services) to verify this service is running and set to start automatically. If the service is not running, the Inbound Refinery cannot locate and use the IDC PDF Converter printer and documents will be stuck in GENWWW. With the startup type of the Printer Spooler service set to Automatic, this service starts every time the computer boots. After starting the Print Spooler service, you can use Repository Manager to resubmit the documents stuck in GENWWW. Assuming that there are no other conversion issues, the system should now be able to convert documents to PDF successfully. |
Inbound Refinery is not converting any files to PDF, and the following error message appears in the Inbound Refinery log:
Unable to convert. The printer 'IDC PDF Converter Printer' is not installed.
| Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|
|
The IDC PDF Converter printer is not installed. |
Install the IDC PDF Converter printer. |
Inbound Refinery is not converting any files to PDF, and the following error appears in the Inbound Refinery log:
Step MSOfficeToPostscript forced conversion failure passthru by conversion engine with error: ''Unable to convert. The printer 'IDC PDF Converter' is not printing to 'c:/temp/idcoutput.ps'.''
| Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|
|
The IDC PDF Converter printer is not printing to the correct port. |
The IDC PDF Converter printer must be set to print to the correct port. The default port is The default port can be changed by adding the |
Inbound Refinery conversions keep timing out.
| Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|
|
Files are password protected. |
Password-protected files will bring up a dialog window during conversion, which will cause the conversion to time out if the dialog is not cleared manually. Remove password protection from files before checking them in. |
|
Your timeout settings are not sufficient. |
Adjust your timeout settings. For more information about configuring timeout values, see Chapter 23 |
Microsoft Word files fail to convert.
| Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|
|
Automatic spell checking and grammar checking are causing the conversions to time out. |
Turn off the Excel options to perform spell checking and grammar checking automatically. |
|
You are using Word and your security level is too high and is causing the conversions to time out. |
Set the Word security level to low so Word does not prompt to enable/disable macros when a file with macros is opened. |
|
You are using Word 2003 and the Customer Experience Improvement Program is causing the conversions to time out. |
Turn off Show content and links from Microsoft Online on the Tools, Options, General tab under the Online category, and opt out of the Customer Experience Improvement Program on the Tools, Options, General tab under the Customer Feedback category. |
Note:
For more information about converting Microsoft Word files, see Section 25.1.4.
Microsoft Excel files fail to convert.
| Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|
|
Automatic calculations are causing the conversions to time out. |
Turn off the Excel option to perform calculations automatically. |
|
Automatic spell checking and grammar checking are causing the conversions to time out. |
Turn off the Excel options to perform spell checking and grammar checking automatically. |
|
You are using Excel and your security level is too high and is causing the conversions to time out. |
Set the Excel security level to low so Excel does not prompt to enable/disable macros when a file with macros is opened. |
|
You are using Excel and the Customer Experience Improvement Program is causing the conversions to time out. |
Turn off Show content and links from Microsoft Online on the Tools, Options, General tab under the Online category, and opt out of the Customer Experience Improvement Program on the Tools, Options, General tab under the Customer Feedback category. |
Note:
For more information about converting Microsoft Excel files, see Section 25.1.4.
Microsoft PowerPoint files fail to convert.
| Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|
|
Automatic spell checking and grammar checking are causing the conversions to time out. |
Turn off the PowerPoint options to perform spell checking and grammar checking automatically. |
|
You are using PowerPoint and your security level is too high and is causing the conversions to time out. |
Set the PowerPoint security level to low so PowerPoint does not prompt to enable/disable macros when a file with macros is opened. |
|
You are using PowerPoint and the Customer Experience Improvement Program is causing the conversions to time out. |
Turn off Show content and links from Microsoft Online on the Tools, Options, General tab under the Online category, and opt out of the Customer Experience Improvement Program on the Tools, Options, General tab under the Customer Feedback category. |
Note:
For more information about converting Microsoft PowerPoint files, see Section 25.1.4.
Microsoft Visio files fail to convert.
| Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|
|
You are using Visio and the Customer Experience Improvement Program is causing the conversions to time out. |
Turn off Show content and links from Microsoft Online on the Tools, Options, General tab under the Online category, and opt out of the Customer Experience Improvement Program on the Tools, Options, General tab under the Customer Feedback category. |
Note:
For more information about converting Microsoft Visio files, see Section 25.1.4.
FrameMaker files fail to convert.
| Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|
|
The files are structured FrameMaker files. |
Structured FrameMaker files are most likely fail to convert. A dialog box is displayed when a structured FrameMaker file is opened, which will cause the conversion to time out unless the dialog box is cleared manually. |
WordPerfect files fail to convert.
| Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|
|
The files are old WordPerfect files. |
WordPerfect files created in versions prior to version 6 might not be processed effectively. Convert these files to a more recent version of WordPerfect before checking them in. |
The following are symptoms of display issues for PDF files generated by Inbound Refinery:
When attempting to open PDF files in Microsoft Internet Explorer, a blank PDF file is displayed.
| Possible Causes | Solutions (refer to:) |
|---|---|
|
An old version of Adobe Acrobat Reader is being used that does not support in-place activation. |
|
|
You have a slow connection, the server has a high load, or the PDF file is very large. |
|
|
The ActiveX control is corrupt. For Adobe Acrobat Reader 4 to use in place activation with Internet Explorer, the |
When attempting to open a PDF file in a web browser, you receive the following error message:
"...File does not begin with '%PDF-'"
| Possible Causes | Solutions (refer to:) |
|---|---|
|
The PDF file has an .mme file extension rather than a |
|
|
The PDF file has an .mme file extension rather than a |
When viewing PDF files generated by Inbound Refinery through a web browser, the PDF files do not open within the browser window.
| Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|
|
Settings in Adobe Acrobat Reader or Acrobat. |
In Acrobat Reader or Acrobat, verify that Preferences are set for Web Browser Integration/Display PDF in Browser. The exact setting depends of version of Acrobat Reader or Acrobat that you are using. |
When you try to print a PDF, the document will not print and the following message is displayed: Could not start print job.
| Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|
|
You have Adobe Acrobat 6.0 installed. Adobe Acrobat 6.0 is unable to print a PDF when a file name and URL has more than 256 characters. URLs in workflow and subscription email notifications can easily exceed 256 characters. |
Adobe has fixed this problem in Adobe Acrobat 6.0.1. Download and install Adobe Acrobat 6.0.1 or higher to solve this problem. |
When you view a PDF file, internal thumbnails (thumbnails of the pages within the PDF file) do not display properly. They might display with poor quality, display as grey rectangles, or not display at all.
| Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|
|
You are using Adobe Acrobat Reader 5 or 6, and the PDF file is being byte served from the web server. As of Acrobat 5, internal thumbnails can be embedded in the PDF by the creating application, or the viewing application can attempt to create thumbnails dynamically from the rendered pages. If the thumbnail is being generated in Acrobat Reader dynamically, the PDF is being byte served from the web server, and the internal thumbnails are not embedded in the PDF, certain versions of Reader might not be able to render the internal thumbnails properly. This is because the full image data for a given page is on the web server and not available on the client to render the thumbnail image. It is also possible that certain versions of Acrobat Reader might not display internal thumbnails for any PDF that are byte served from the web server. |
Possible solutions include: Use Acrobat Reader 7 or higher. This issue appears to be fixed in Acrobat Reader 7. Configure the application that is creating your PDFs (your PostScript to PDF distiller engine or other third-party application) to embed internal thumbnails. Disable byte serving of PDF files on the web server. |
This section discusses the following topics regarding problems encountered during Tiff conversion:
The following table lists common problems with installing Inbound Refinery, possible causes, and solutions.
| Problem | Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|---|
|
Refinery or Content Server would not start after Tiff Converter components are installed |
Wrong component installed on content server/refinery. |
Uninstall the components and reinstall the components on the correct location. |
The following table lists general Inbound Refinery conversion problems, possible causes, and solutions.
| Problem | Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|---|
|
TIFF files are not being converted (they are being passed through in their native format). |
File formats and conversion methods for Inbound Refinery have not been set up properly in Content Server. |
Set up file formats and conversion methods for Inbound Refinery. For details, see Section 25.2. |
|
TIFF files are not being converted (they are being passed through in their native format). |
The conversions are taking too long, and Inbound Refinery is timing out. |
Change your Inbound Refinery timeout settings. For details, see Section 25.2.2.2. |
|
TIFF files are not being converted (they are being passed through in their native format). |
Inbound Refinery is failing to launch CVista PdfCompressor. |
Ensure that the PdfCompressor path is correct. For details, see Section 25.2.3.2. |
|
Zipped TIFF files are not being processed by Inbound Refinery when they are checked in. |
File formats and conversion methods for Inbound Refinery have not been set up properly in Content Server. |
Change how zip files are processed. For details, see Section 25.2.2.2. |
|
The TIFF Conversion conversion method is not available in the Content Server Configuration Manager. |
The TiffConverterSupport component has not been uploaded and enabled. |
Upload and enable the TiffConverterSupport component using either the Component Wizard or the Component Manager. This component is included on the Inbound Refinery distribution media. |
|
The TIFF Conversion conversion method is not available in the Content Server Configuration Manager. |
The TiffConverterSupport component is enabled, but Content Server has not been restarted. |
Restart Content Server. |
The following table lists common conversion problems when using CVISION CVista PdfCompressor, possible causes, and solutions.
| Problem | Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|---|
|
Inbound Refinery is failing to launch CVista PdfCompressor. |
The path to the CVista |
Ensure that the PdfCompressor path is correct. For details, see Section 25.2.3.2. |
|
I have used the CVista PdfCompressor user interface to change conversion settings, but this has had no effect on how TIFF files are being processed. |
Changes made in the CVista PdfCompressor user interface will not affect how CVista PdfCompressor functions when called by Inbound Refinery. |
Change the CVista PdfCompressor configuration settings using the Inbound Refinery user interface. For details, see Section 25.2.3.2. |
|
CVista PdfCompressor is only performing OCR on English text. |
By default, CVista PdfCompressor uses only an English OCR dictionary. Other OCR languages must be set up. |
Set up multiple OCR languages for CVista PdfCompressor. For details, see Section 25.2.3.2. |
The following table lists common problems with creating thumbnails for and viewing the PDF files that are generated by Inbound Refinery, possible causes, and solutions.
| Problem | Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|---|
|
No thumbnails are being created for PDF files generated by Inbound Refinery. |
Thumbnailing is not enabled in Inbound Refinery. |
Enable thumbnailing in Inbound Refinery. |
|
When viewing PDF files generated by Inbound Refinery in Adobe Acrobat Reader, there are lines or other artifacts on the screen. |
Acrobat Reader 4 is being used to view the files. |
When viewing PDF files generated by Inbound Refinery, use Adobe Acrobat Reader 6.0.1 or higher for the best results. |
Two areas have been identified as possible problems when converting XML.
After installing Inbound Refinery, a Content Server or refinery instance will not start or is not functioning properly.
| Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|
|
The XMLConverter component has been installed on a Content Server, or the XMLConverterSupport component has been installed on a refinery. |
The XMLConverter component must be installed on refineries, and the XMLConverterSupport component must be installed on Content Servers. If you install the wrong component, complete the following:
|
XML Converter has been installed, but no files are being converted.
| Possible Causes | Solutions |
|---|---|
|
File formats and conversion methods not set up for file type in the Content Server. |
Use the File Formats Wizard or Configuration Manager in the Content Server to set up the file formats and conversion methods for XML conversion. For details, see Section 23.4. |
|
The refinery has not been configured to accept the conversion. |
Configure the refinery to accept the conversion. For details, see Section 23.6.2. |
|
The refinery has not been configured to create XML files as the primary web-viewable rendition or an additional rendition. |
For details, see Section 25.3.2 and Section 25.3.3. |