Save non-savable PDF files

Jun 16, '09 07:30:00AM

Contributed by: Anonymous

Occasionally one has to use an annoying PDF that one can't re-save, but can only print. My sister had this situation dealing with some obnoxious state-run Microsoft system that didn't allow the user to save a completed form, only to print it from a browser. The individual administering the system apparently flipped the wrong bit, as last year, the form could be saved.

Here's a workaround, various versions of which can allow you to save the PDF:

  1. Turn off the print queue for the printer by going to Printer Setup Utility.
  2. Print the file, but don't reactivate the printer -- choose the Add to Queue option.
  3. Go into the terminal and su to root. (If you haven't enabled root, use sudo -s to start a root shell.)
  4. Type cd /var/spool/cups, then identify the file you just printed. Do this by matching the queued file's time stamp to the time you printed the file (ls -l; the file of interest should be at the bottom).
  5. Copy (don't move) that file out of the spool folder: cp filename ~/Desktop. I don't know what a move (mv) will do to the print system.
  6. Type cd ~/Desktop to move to your user's Desktop folder.
  7. Type chown myaccount:myaccount filename to make sure the Finder in your user space will play nicely with the file.
  8. Peek inside the file and determine whether it's a postscript or PDF file -- you can drop it on TextEdit to see its contents. If it's a postscript file, rename the file to filename.ps. If it's a PDF file, rename it to filename.pdf.
  9. Confirm the above by dropping the file on Preview. If the file is a postscript file, you can then save it as a PDF file from Preview.
[robg adds: I haven't tested this one. This older hint suggests an alternative method of saving a non-savable PDF from Safari by dragging the page's fav icon to Safari's Downloads window.]

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