pdfa-parser 1.1.1

Convert PDFs to PDF/A using GhostScript and validate compliance with VeraPDF.

pdfa-parser

Convert PDFs to PDF/A using GhostScript and validate compliance with VeraPDF — zero-config, batteries included.

pdfa-parser is a Python library (Python ≥ 3.10) that wraps GhostScript for PDF → PDF/A conversion and VeraPDF for conformance validation. All external tools are downloaded automatically on first use — just pip install and go.

from pdfa_parser import create_parser

parser = create_parser()
parser.convert("input.pdf", "output.pdf")

result = parser.validate("output.pdf")
print(result.compliant)  # True

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Features

• PDF → PDF/A conversion via GhostScript (levels 1, 2, 3).
• PDF/A validation via VeraPDF (flavours 1a/1b, 2a/2b, 3a/3b, …).
• Zero config — GhostScript, Java (JRE), and VeraPDF are resolved automatically (system PATH → apt-get → binary download).
• Works in Docker — pip install pdfa-parser in a bare python:3.x-slim image is all you need.
• Sync & async — every public method has an a_ async counterpart.
• Factory function (create_parser()) for instant quick start.
• Adapter pattern — swap GhostScript / VeraPDF for any CLI tool by implementing IBaseAdapter.
• CLI — pdfa-parser input.pdf output.pdf or python -m pdfa_parser.
• Typed — ships with py.typed marker and full type annotations.

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Installation

pip install pdfa-parser

That's it. No system packages to install, no manual binary setup.

Development install (with test dependencies):

pip install -e ".[dev]"

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Quick start

Python API

from pdfa_parser import create_parser

# Create a parser (GhostScript + VeraPDF are auto-resolved)
parser = create_parser()

# Convert a PDF to PDF/A-2
parser.convert("input.pdf", "output_pdfa.pdf")

# Validate a file
result = parser.validate("output_pdfa.pdf", flavour="2b")
print(result.compliant)   # True / False
print(result.profile)     # "PDF/A-2B validation profile"

# One-shot: convert then validate
result = parser.convert_and_validate("input.pdf", "output_pdfa.pdf")
assert result.compliant

Tip: PdfaParser is a convenience alias for PdfParser — both work:

from pdfa_parser import PdfaParser          # alias
from pdfa_parser import PdfParser           # canonical name
from pdfa_parser import create_parser       # recommended factory

Conversion only (no VeraPDF)

parser = create_parser(with_verapdf=False)
parser.convert("input.pdf", "output.pdf")

Async API

Every method has an a_ prefixed async twin:

import asyncio
from pdfa_parser import create_parser

async def main():
    parser = create_parser()
    await parser.a_convert("input.pdf", "output.pdf")
    result = await parser.a_validate("output.pdf")
    print(result.compliant)

asyncio.run(main())

CLI

# Basic conversion
pdfa-parser input.pdf output.pdf

# With validation
pdfa-parser input.pdf output.pdf --validate

# PDF/A level 1, flavour 1b
pdfa-parser input.pdf output.pdf --level 1 --validate --flavour 1b

# Also works as a module
python -m pdfa_parser input.pdf output.pdf --validate

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How dependency resolution works

On first use, the library checks for each tool in this order:

Tool	1. System PATH	2. Package manager	3. Download
GhostScript	gs / gswin64c	apt-get install ghostscript	GitHub archive (fallback)
Java (JRE)	java	—	Adoptium Temurin 21
VeraPDF	—	—	Maven Central JAR

• Binaries are stored in ~/.local/share/pdfa-parser/bin/ (or src/bin/ during development).
• The JRE and VeraPDF JAR are downloaded once and reused across runs.
• You can force a specific binary by setting the adapter path manually (see Advanced usage).

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Public API reference

Top-level imports

from pdfa_parser import (
    create_parser,      # Factory — recommended entry point
    PdfParser,          # Core class (canonical name)
    PdfaParser,         # Alias for PdfParser
    ValidationResult,   # Dataclass returned by validate()
    DependencyManager,  # Manual dependency orchestration
    # For custom adapters:
    IBaseAdapter,
    BinaryExecuter,
    GhostScriptAdapter,
    VeraPDFAdapter,
)

create_parser(**kwargs) → PdfParser

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
pdfa_level	int	2	PDF/A conformance level (1, 2, 3)
with_verapdf	bool	True	Attach VeraPDF for validation
extra_gs_args	tuple[str,...]	()	Extra flags for every GhostScript call

PdfParser methods

Method	Returns	Description
convert(input, output)	Path	Convert PDF to PDF/A
validate(file, *, flavour)	ValidationResult	Check PDF/A compliance via VeraPDF
convert_and_validate(…)	ValidationResult	Convert then validate in one call
a_convert(…)	Path	Async convert
a_validate(…)	ValidationResult	Async validate
a_convert_and_validate(…)	ValidationResult	Async convert + validate

All path parameters accept both str and pathlib.Path.

ValidationResult

Field	Type	Description
compliant	bool	True if the PDF satisfies the profile
profile	str	Profile name (e.g. "PDF/A-2B …")
details	str	Raw XML snippet for debugging

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Advanced usage

Custom adapters

from pdfa_parser import IBaseAdapter, BinaryExecuter, PdfParser
from pathlib import Path

class MyGSAdapter(IBaseAdapter):
    def get_binary_path(self) -> Path:
        return Path("/opt/gs-10/bin/gs")

parser = PdfParser(
    gs_executer=BinaryExecuter(MyGSAdapter()),
    pdfa_level=3,
    extra_gs_args=("-dQUIET",),
)

Manual dependency management

from pdfa_parser import DependencyManager

m = DependencyManager()

# Check availability without downloading
print(m.ghostscript.is_available())  # True / False
print(m.verapdf.is_available())

# Force download / resolution
gs_path = m.ensure_ghostscript()
verapdf_path = m.ensure_verapdf()

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Project structure

pdfa-parser/
├── src/pdfa_parser/
│   ├── __init__.py             # Public API, create_parser(), PdfaParser alias
│   ├── __main__.py             # python -m pdfa_parser
│   ├── main.py                 # CLI entry-point
│   ├── pdf_parser.py           # PdfParser – convert / validate
│   ├── settings.py             # Lazy binary-path resolution
│   ├── data/
│   │   ├── PDFA_def.ps         # Bundled PostScript for PDF/A OutputIntent
│   │   └── srgb.icc            # Bundled sRGB ICC profile
│   ├── dependencies/
│   │   ├── _base.py            # Dependency / ResolutionStrategy ABCs
│   │   ├── _ghostscript.py     # GhostScript strategies
│   │   ├── _jre.py             # JRE (Adoptium) strategies
│   │   ├── _verapdf.py         # VeraPDF (Maven JAR) strategies
│   │   └── _manager.py         # DependencyManager orchestrator
│   ├── interfaces/
│   │   ├── base_adapter.py     # IBaseAdapter (ABC)
│   │   └── binary_executer.py  # BinaryExecuter (facade)
│   └── implementations/
│       ├── ghostscript_adapter.py
│       └── verapdf_adapter.py
├── tests/
│   ├── conftest.py             # Fixtures, skip markers, PDF generation
│   ├── test_unit.py            # Unit tests (no binaries needed)
│   ├── test_integration.py     # Integration tests (real binaries)
│   ├── test_sample_files.py    # Tests for bundled sample PDFs
│   ├── test_dependencies.py    # Dependency resolution tests
│   └── files/
│       ├── sample_pdf.pdf      # Regular PDF sample
│       └── sample_pdfa.pdf     # PDF/A sample
├── pyproject.toml
├── LICENSE
└── README.md

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Testing

# Everything (integration tests auto-skip if binaries are missing)
pytest -v

# Unit tests only (no binaries required)
pytest tests/test_unit.py -v

# Integration + sample file tests
pytest tests/test_integration.py tests/test_sample_files.py -v

Test suites

Suite	Tests	Requires binaries	What it covers
test_unit.py	26	No	Helpers, XML parsing, arg building, mocked convert/validate, async, factory
test_dependencies.py	38	No	Dependency resolution strategies, DependencyManager, backward-compat shim
test_integration.py	20	Yes	Real GS conversion, VeraPDF validation, round-trip, async, multiple PDF types
test_sample_files.py	7	Yes	Bundled sample PDFs: conversion, validation, round-trip (sync + async)

Integration tests generate PDFs using reportlab (portrait, landscape, coloured shapes, multi-page, text-heavy) and run them through the full GhostScript → VeraPDF pipeline. Tests are auto-skipped when binaries are not available.

Docker smoke test

# Build the wheel
uv build --wheel

# Run in a clean Python container
docker run --rm \
  -v $PWD/dist:/dist \
  -v $PWD/tests:/tests \
  python:3.13-slim \
  bash -c "pip install /dist/*.whl && python /tests/docker_smoke_test.py"

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Requirements

Requirement	Version	Notes
Python	≥ 3.10	No runtime dependencies beyond the standard library
GhostScript	any	Auto-installed via apt-get or system PATH
Java (JRE)	≥ 11	Auto-downloaded from Adoptium if missing
VeraPDF	1.26.5	Auto-downloaded from Maven Central

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License

GPLv3+