Slow processing and getting opening errors/warnings

Question

I've modified the PDF Binder sample to get a plugin that would open PDF's and Tif files, and save them as PDF/A-1b (code below).
It's working. The problem: it's processing too slow (compared with the Actions batch processing)... and I've been getting warnings/and errors about "The imput file is corrupt or of an unknown/unsupported type" type. This is stopping my batch process until I click OK, and the it continues.
I am trying to process a few thousand of tif files now. I tried first to use the Batch processing capability built in the Acrobat X... an it works, but only with the first 255 documents in the folder... then gives an "insufficient disk space" message for the rest of the files in the directory.
So, 2 questions: Does anyone knows why it is so slow processing the tiff files and... how I can make my code "silent" so it does not wait for the OK after the message??
Thanks in advance.
The code:
ADOBE SYSTEMS INCORPORATED
Copyright (C) 1998-2006 Adobe Systems Incorporated
All rights reserved.
NOTICE: Adobe permits you to use, modify, and distribute this file
in accordance with the terms of the Adobe license agreement
accompanying it. If you have received this file from a source other
than Adobe, then your use, modification, or distribution of it
requires the prior written permission of Adobe.
  \file PDFBinder.cpp
- Implements a method to convert multiple files into PDFs and bind the PDFs
into one PDF file. The code shows how to use AVConversionToPDFHandler to
convert files to PDF and how to use PDDocInsertPages() to combind PDF files.
// Headers.
#include <stdio.h>
#include <ctype.h>
#ifndef MAC_PLATFORM
#include <direct.h>
#include "PIHeaders.h"
#endif
// Defines ----------
// Define this flag to show AVConversionToPDFEnumHandler info. in log file.
#define SHOW_TOPDF_HANDLER_TYPES   
// define this flag to use file type filter 
#define USE_FILE_FILTER   
    Constants/Declarations
// Message display control.  Ture: display
ASBool bEcho = true;
// File location. User can change the following filenames.
#if WIN_PLATFORM
    const char* STRING_PDFBinderFolder = "C:\\Fairfax\\Adobe\\in";
    const char* STRING_PDFOutputFolder = "C:\\Fairfax\\Adobe\\PDFA";
    const char* FOLDERSYMBOL="\\";
#endif
#if MAC_PLATFORM
    const char* STRING_PDFBinderFolder = "/PDFBinder";
    const char* FOLDERSYMBOL="/";
#endif
char* OutputPdfFileName = "PDFBinderOutput.pdf";
char* LogFileName = "PDFProcessLog.txt";
static ASInt32 gNumToPDFExt;
static ASInt32 gNumFromPDFExt;
static AVConversionFromPDFHandler RightHandler;
const int MAX_FILENAME_LENGTH = 256;
char sLogFileName[MAX_FILENAME_LENGTH];
// Filter -----------
// Filter is a list of file types which can be converted to PDF in this program.
// Use a filter may fit user's specific needs and ensure a smooth automation process.
// Of course, the user can turn off the filter in two ways:
//   (1) gPDFBinderFileFilter = "";
//   (2) comment out //USE_FILE_FILTER 
// The filter should be consistent with the Acrobat viewer's menu capability:
//   Create PDF from multiple files ...
// Here we put the types which have been tested, but user can expand it.
const char* gPDFBinderFileFilter = "pdf,tif,tiff,PDF,TIF,TIFF";
const int MAX_STRING_LENGTH = 2048;
AVConversionToPDFHandler gHandler;
// functions in this file.
int    ConvertAndInsertFileToPDF(ASPathName aspItem, char* aFileName, PDDoc  PDFfile);
void BindingFileToPDF(ASPathName aPathName, char* aFilename, ASFileSysItemPropsRec nFileAttrb, PDDoc targetPDdDoc, ASPathName outputPathName, int *ipTotal, int *ipConverted);
ASBool PassPDFBinderFileFilter(char* filename);
int    ConvertAndSavePDFInTargetFolder(ASPathName aPathName, char* aFileName, PDDoc PDFfile, ASPathName outputPathName);
char* NewFileName(char *& aFileName);
// callbacks
ACCB1 ASBool ACCB2 MyAVConversionToPDFEnumProc(AVConversionToPDFHandler handler, AVConversionEnumProcData data);
ACCB1 ASBool ACCB2 AVConversionToPDFEnumFindHandler(AVConversionToPDFHandler handler, AVConversionEnumProcData data);
static ACCB1 ASBool ACCB2 myAVConversionFromPDFEnumProc(AVConversionFromPDFHandler handler, AVConversionEnumProcData data);
    Implementation
/**    This sample implements a method to convert multiple files into PDF
  and bind the PDFs into one PDF file .
    This sample shows developers how to grammatically implement To-PDF file
  converson functionality.  Basically, the code uses AVConversionToPDFHandler
  to convert files to PDF and PDDocInsertPages()to combine PDF files.
  This plug-in is designed to run from a menu item, and by setting bEcho = false
  it may be run without any graphics user interface on the screen. Therefore, it 
  can be executed from other programs such as C IAC, VB IAC, and JavaScript
  to meet enterprise workflow needs.
    How to run it :
    - This sample adds a menu item "PDF Binder" under the Acrobat SDK submenu. Two ways to
    execute it: 1) click the menu item to run the program using a fixed file location
    hard coded; 2) press the shift key and click the menu item to choose a folder where
    files to be converted are located.
    - Without folder selection, this original code is to convert and bind files in a
    directory    C\test\PDFBinder for Win, or a folder   MacHD:test:PDFBinder for Mac.
    You can copy the test files in the project's testfiles folder to the appropriate location 
    for testing. You may locate files to be converted in another directory/folder, and
    specify the location in the string variable PDFBinderFolder in the code.
    - When you have the files to be converted ready in the specified location,
    run Acrobat 6 menu Advanced->AcrobatSDK->PDF Binder to start the operation.  There are
    echo messages informing you of the operation start and end, but you can change and
    rebuild the code to turn off the display on screen.
    - An output file PDFBinderOutput.pdf in the same location is created
    when the program succeeds. A text log file  PDFBinderLog.txt in the same
    location records the process and results.
    -  You can set bEch = false in the code to turn off any display on the screen.
    This is necessary when you  call the menu function from within other programs
    of C IAC, VB IAC, JavaScript. 
    -  An optional file filter is used to pre-process the files. The filter only allows
    the files with predefined types to be processed. You can change the file type list
    as you wish. Using a filter may ensure a smooth automation process, since you can put
    only well-tested file types in the filter. To turn off the filter, you can set
    gPDFBinderFileFilter = "" or not to define USE_FILE_FILTER 
    - Note this is a sample only, developers need to make further improvement for
    their actual use. For example, you can set up a list of files to use the method for
    the conversion and binding. And you can add code to handle special file types.
      @see AVConversionConvertToPDFWithHandler
    @see AVConversionEnumToPDFConverters
    @see ASFileSysDestroyFolderIterator
    @see PDDocOpen
    @see PDDocClose
    @see PDDocInsertPages
    @see PDDocCreatePage
    @see PDDocDeletePages
    @see PDPageRelease
    @see ASFileSysCreatePathName
    @see ASFileSysFirstFolderItem
    @see ASFileSysNextFolderItem
    @see ASFileSysGetNameFromPath
    @see ASFileSysReleasePath
ACCB1 void ACCB2 PDFBinderCommand(void*)
    // if the menu item clicked with Shift key pressed down, go to interactive mode.
    // let the user to choose a folder and process all the file in the folder.
    ASText dispText = ASTextNew();
    char PDFBinderFolder[MAX_STRING_LENGTH];
    ASBool shiftKeyIsDown = ((AVSysGetModifiers() & AV_SHIFT) != 0);
    if(shiftKeyIsDown) {
        AVOpenSaveDialogParamsRec dialogParams;
        // Configure the dialog box parameters.
        memset (&dialogParams, 0, sizeof (AVOpenSaveDialogParamsRec));
        dialogParams.size = sizeof(AVOpenSaveDialogParamsRec);
        dialogParams.windowTitle = ASTextFromScriptText("Choose folder with files to bind",kASRomanScript);
        dialogParams.flags |= kAVOpenSaveAllowForeignFileSystems;
        dialogParams.initialFileSys = ASGetDefaultUnicodeFileSys();
        ASPathName thePath;
        ASFileSys fileSys;
        AVAppBeginModal(NULL);
        if(ASBoolToBool(AVAppChooseFolderDialog(&dialogParams, &fileSys, &thePath)) != true){
            AVAppEndModal();
            //AVAlertNote("Failed to select the folder");
            return;
        AVAppEndModal();
#ifdef WIN_PLATFORM       
        ASFileSysDisplayASTextFromPath(ASGetDefaultUnicodeFileSys(), thePath, dispText);
        ASHostEncoding bestEnc = ASTextGetBestEncoding(dispText, (ASHostEncoding)PDGetHostEncoding());
        strncpy(PDFBinderFolder, ASTextGetEncoded(dispText, bestEnc), MAX_STRING_LENGTH - 1);
#else       
        ASPlatformPath aspPath;
        ASFileSysAcquirePlatformPath(fileSys, thePath, ASAtomFromString("POSIXPath"), &aspPath);
        strncpy(PDFBinderFolder, (char *)ASPlatformPathGetPOSIXPathPtr(aspPath), MAX_STRING_LENGTH - 1);
        ASFileSysReleasePlatformPath(fileSys, aspPath);
        // remove extra path separator
        char e = PDFBinderFolder[strlen(PDFBinderFolder)-1];
        if(e == ':' || e == '/')
            PDFBinderFolder[strlen(PDFBinderFolder)-1]='\0';
        dispText = ASTextFromScriptText(PDFBinderFolder, kASEUnicodeScript);
#endif
        ASFileSysReleasePath(fileSys, thePath);
    // Otherwise, the hard coded file path will be used.
    else {
        strcpy(PDFBinderFolder, STRING_PDFBinderFolder);
        dispText = ASTextFromScriptText(PDFBinderFolder, kASRomanScript);
    // instruction message
    char strMsg[MAX_STRING_LENGTH] = "";
    sprintf(strMsg, "This function will convert and process Tiff and PDF files in the selected directory. ");
    strcat(strMsg, " You need to copy your files in C:\\Fairfax\\Adobe\\in directory." );
    strcat(strMsg, " Files will be processed into C:\\Fairfax\\Adobe\\PDFA directory." );
    strcat(strMsg, " If you are ready, click OK to continue, or click Cancel to quit. " );
    strcat(strMsg, " \nNote you can press down Shift key and click the menu item to have a folder selection. " );
    strcat(strMsg, " \nNote you can turn off the echo message by setting bEcho = false and rebuild the code. " );
    if(ASBoolToBool(bEcho)==true){
        ASInt32 choice = AVAlert(ALERT_CAUTION, strMsg, "OK", "Cancel", NULL, true);
        if(choice==2) {
            return;
    // create a new target pdf file with one empty page
    PDDoc TargetPDF = PDDocCreate();
    ASFixedRect mediaBox = { fixedZero, ASInt32ToFixed(792), ASInt32ToFixed(612), fixedZero };
    PDPage emptyPage = PDDocCreatePage (TargetPDF, PDBeforeFirstPage, mediaBox);
    PDPageRelease (emptyPage);
    //     get available headlers and set our file filter
    char ValidExt[MAX_STRING_LENGTH];
    memset(ValidExt, 0, MAX_STRING_LENGTH);
#ifdef SHOW_TOPDF_HANDLER_TYPES   
    // enumerate AVConversioToPDF handlers to get all available file
    // types which can be converted to PDF.
    AVConversionEnumToPDFConverters(MyAVConversionToPDFEnumProc, (AVConversionEnumProcData) ValidExt);
    //AVAlertNote("Converters Defined");
    //AVAlertNote(ValidExt);
    //AVAlertNote(gPDFBinderFileFilter);
#endif
#ifdef USE_FILE_FILTER    
    // set File filter
    strcpy(ValidExt, gPDFBinderFileFilter);
    //AVAlertNote(ValidExt);
#endif
    // process all files in the directory
    int iNumFiles = 0;
    int iNumFilesConverted = 0;
    char* Done = "Converted";
    char* NotDone = " - ";
    char fileName[MAX_FILENAME_LENGTH+1];
    ASFileSysItemPropsRec props;
    ASFolderIterator iter;
    ASPathName aspItem = NULL;
    memset(&props, 0, sizeof(props));
    props.size = sizeof(props);
    //AVAlertNote("Props Defined");
    ASPathName theFolder = NULL;
    ASFileSys fileSys = NULL;
    DURING
#ifdef WIN_PLATFORM   
    fileSys = ASGetDefaultFileSysForPath(ASAtomFromString("ASTextPath"), dispText);
    theFolder = ASFileSysCreatePathName (fileSys, ASAtomFromString("ASTextPath"), dispText, 0);
    //AVAlertNote("FileSys and Folder Defined");
#else
    fileSys = ASGetDefaultFileSysForPath(ASAtomFromString("POSIXPath"), PDFBinderFolder);
    theFolder = ASFileSysCreatePathName (fileSys,
                            ASAtomFromString("POSIXPath"), PDFBinderFolder, 0);
#endif
    if (theFolder==NULL) {
        //AVAlertNote("Fail to create ASPathName for the selected folder.");
        E_RTRN_VOID
    // Find first file in current directory
    if((iter = ASFileSysFirstFolderItem(fileSys, theFolder, &props, &aspItem))==FALSE) {
        //AVAlertNote("This is either an invalid folder or the folder contains no files.");
        E_RTRN_VOID
    ASFileSysReleasePath(fileSys, theFolder);
    //AVAlertNote("Folder Released");
    // get filename only
    if(ASFileSysGetNameFromPath(fileSys, aspItem, fileName, sizeof(fileName))) {
        E_RTRN_VOID
    HANDLER   
        // exception handling
        char errorMsg[256];
        ASGetErrorString (ASGetExceptionErrorCode(), errorMsg, 256);
        if(aspItem!=NULL) ASFileSysReleasePath(fileSys, aspItem);
        if(theFolder!=NULL) ASFileSysReleasePath(fileSys, theFolder);
        // display an error message.
        if(ASBoolToBool(bEcho)==true) {
            AVAlertNote (errorMsg);
        return;
    END_HANDLER
    //AVAlertNote(fileName);
    // go to binding if it's a valid type of file
    if(props.type == kASFileSysFile && PassPDFBinderFileFilter(fileName)) {
        char outFileName[] = "";
        //strcat(outFileName, STRING_PDFOutputFolder);
        //strcat(outFileName, FOLDERSYMBOL);
        //strcat(outFileName, fileName);
        strcat(outFileName, STRING_PDFOutputFolder);
        strcat(outFileName, FOLDERSYMBOL);
        strcat(outFileName, fileName);
        //AVAlertNote(outFileName);
        ASPathName outputFileName = ASFileSysCreatePathName (ASGetDefaultFileSys(), ASAtomFromString("Cstring"), outFileName, 0);
        BindingFileToPDF(aspItem, fileName, props, TargetPDF, outputFileName ,&iNumFiles, &iNumFilesConverted);
        //AVAlertNote("File Processed");
    ASFileSysReleasePath(fileSys, aspItem);
    // process all other files 
    while(ASFileSysNextFolderItem(fileSys, iter, &props, &aspItem)) {
        // get filename only
        if(ASFileSysGetNameFromPath(fileSys, aspItem, fileName, sizeof(fileName))) {
            return;
        // go to binding if it's a valid type of file
        if(props.type == kASFileSysFile && PassPDFBinderFileFilter(fileName))  {
            char outFileName[] = "";
            //strcat(outFileName, STRING_PDFOutputFolder);
            //strcat(outFileName, FOLDERSYMBOL);
            //strcat(outFileName, fileName);
            strcat(outFileName, STRING_PDFOutputFolder);
            strcat(outFileName, FOLDERSYMBOL);
            strcat(outFileName, fileName);
            //AVAlertNote(outFileName);
            ASPathName outputFileName = ASFileSysCreatePathName (ASGetDefaultFileSys(), ASAtomFromString("Cstring"), outFileName, 0);
            BindingFileToPDF(aspItem, fileName, props, TargetPDF, outputFileName, &iNumFiles, &iNumFilesConverted);
            //AVAlertNote("File Processed");
        ASFileSysReleasePath(fileSys, aspItem);
    ASPathName pdfPathName = NULL;
    DURING
    // close the findfile
    ASFileSysDestroyFolderIterator(fileSys, iter);
    // save and close the output pdf file
    // create path
    ASText pathText = ASTextNew();
    ASTextCatMany(
        pathText,
        dispText,
        ASTextFromScriptText(FOLDERSYMBOL, kASRomanScript),
        ASTextFromScriptText(OutputPdfFileName, kASRomanScript),
        NULL);
#ifdef WIN_PLATFORM
    ASFileSys fileSys = ASGetDefaultFileSysForPath(ASAtomFromString("ASTextPath"), pathText);
    pdfPathName = ASFileSysCreatePathName (fileSys,
                            ASAtomFromString("ASTextPath"), pathText, 0);
#else
    char path[MAX_STRING_LENGTH];
    strncpy(path, ASTextGetEncoded(pathText,
        ASTextGetBestEncoding(pathText, (ASHostEncoding)PDGetHostEncoding())), MAX_STRING_LENGTH - 1);
    ASFileSys fileSys = ASGetDefaultFileSysForPath(ASAtomFromString("POSIXPath"), path);
    pdfPathName = ASFileSysCreatePathName (fileSys,
                            ASAtomFromString("POSIXPath"), path, 0);   
#endif
    if(pdfPathName==NULL) {
        E_RTRN_VOID
    // delete the empty page
    if(PDDocGetNumPages(TargetPDF)>1) {
        PDDocDeletePages (TargetPDF, 0,0,NULL, NULL);
    // save
    //PDDocSave (TargetPDF, PDSaveFull | PDSaveCollectGarbage | PDSaveLinearized,
    //            pdfPathName, ASGetDefaultUnicodeFileSys(),    NULL, NULL);
    PDDocClose (TargetPDF);
    //ASFileSysReleasePath(fileSys, pdfPathName);
    HANDLER   
        // exception handling
        char errorMsg[256];
        ASGetErrorString (ASGetExceptionErrorCode(), errorMsg, 256);
        if(pdfPathName!=NULL) ASFileSysReleasePath(fileSys, pdfPathName);
        // display an error message.
        if(ASBoolToBool(bEcho)==true) {
            AVAlertNote (errorMsg);
        return;
    END_HANDLER
    // use this line to show the massage on screen if you need
    //if(ASBoolToBool(bEcho)==true) {
    AVAlertNote ("Folder Completed. PDF/A Output files generated.");
    return;
/* ConvertAndInsertFileToPDF
/** Internal function \n
** Convert a file to PDF, then insert it to target PDF file.
** @param aFileName IN  char string, filename.
** @param PDFfile IN/OUT PDDoc of the target PDF file.
** @return 0 if OK, 1 if failed.
int    ConvertAndInsertFileToPDF(ASPathName aPathName, char* aFileName, PDDoc PDFfile)
    PDDoc tempPDF;
    char* Ext;
    DURING
        // get file extention
        Ext = strrchr(aFileName,'.');
        if(Ext) {
            Ext++;
        else {
            E_RETURN (1);
        // if the file is PDF, open PDDoc
        if(strcmp(Ext,"PDF")==0 || strcmp(Ext,"pdf")==0) {
            tempPDF = PDDocOpen (aPathName, ASGetDefaultFileSys(), NULL, true);
            if(tempPDF==NULL) {
                PDDocClose(tempPDF);
                E_RETURN (1);
        // else convert it to PDF
        else
            // let it automatically find right handler for the file and do the job.
            AVConversionStatus stat = AVConversionConvertToPDF
                (kAVConversionAsyncOkay, //kAVConversionNoFlags
                  aPathName, ASGetDefaultFileSys(), &tempPDF, NULL);
            // check if successful
            if(stat != kAVConversionSuccess) {
                //AVAlertNote("Cannot convert the file.");
                E_RETURN (1);
    HANDLER   
        // exception handling
        char errorMsg[256];
        ASGetErrorString (ASGetExceptionErrorCode(), errorMsg, 256);
        // display an error message.
        if(ASBoolToBool(bEcho) == true) {
            AVAlertNote (errorMsg);
        return 1;
    END_HANDLER
    // insert new PDF into target PDF
    DURING
        // insert all pages of new pdfc to TargetPDFfile.
        PDDocInsertPages(PDFfile, PDLastPage, tempPDF, 0,
                        PDAllPages, PDInsertAll, NULL, NULL, NULL, NULL);
        PDDocClose(tempPDF);
    HANDLER
         char errorMsg[256];
        ASGetErrorString (ASGetExceptionErrorCode(), errorMsg, 256);
        if(ASBoolToBool(bEcho)==true) {
            AVAlertNote(errorMsg);
    END_HANDLER
        if(strcmp(Ext,"doc")==0) {
            char fname[40];
            sprintf(fname,"%s.pdf",aFileName);
            remove(fname);
        return 0;
/* MyAVConversionToPDFEnumProc
/** Internal callback function \n
** called for every AVConversionToPDFHandler.
** get the valid type (file extention) for the conversion. 
** @return true.
ACCB1 ASBool ACCB2 MyAVConversionToPDFEnumProc(AVConversionToPDFHandler handler,
                                             AVConversionEnumProcData data)
    ASUns16 numFileExt = handler->convFilter.numFileDescs;
    for (int i = 0; i < numFileExt; i++) {
        char* ext = handler->convFilter.fileDescs[i].extension;
        if(strlen(ext)>0) {
            strcat((char*) data, ext);
            strcat((char*) data, ",");
    return true;
/* this is alternative code to get right conversion handler for a specific file
   to be converted. It works with function AVConversionConvertToPDFWithHandler.
   It's not used now, but kept for user's reference.
ACCB1 ASBool ACCB2 AVConversionToPDFEnumFindHandler(AVConversionToPDFHandler handler,
                                             AVConversionEnumProcData data)
    ASUns16 numFileExt = handler->convFilter.numFileDescs;
    for ( int i = 0; i < numFileExt; i++)
        char* ext = handler->convFilter.fileDescs[i].extension;
        if(strlen(ext)) {
            if(!strcmp((char*) data, ext)) {
                gHandler = handler;
                return false;
    return true;
/* BindingFileToPDF
/** Internal callback function for binding process \n
** IN: char* aFilename, ASFileSysItemPropsRec nFileAttrb \n
**     PDDoc targetPDdDoc, int *ipTotal, \n
**     int *ipConverted, FILE *logfile \n
** OUT: int *ipTotal, int *ipConverted. \n
void BindingFileToPDF(ASPathName aPathName, char* aFilename, ASFileSysItemPropsRec nFileAttrb, PDDoc targetPDdDoc, ASPathName outputPathName, int *ipTotal, int *ipConverted)
    // ignore system, hidden files, and our target PDF and log file.
    if( nFileAttrb.isHidden 
        || (strcmp(aFilename,".")==0) || (strcmp(aFilename,".." )==0)
        || (strcmp(aFilename,OutputPdfFileName)==0) || (strcmp(aFilename,LogFileName)==0)) {
            return;
    (*ipTotal)++;
    char msg[MAX_STRING_LENGTH] = "";
    char* Done = "Converted";
    char* NotDone = " - ";
    // try to convert and insert it to target PDF file.
    // rc would be 0 for success, otherwise 1.
    int rc = ConvertAndSavePDFInTargetFolder(aPathName, aFilename, targetPDdDoc, outputPathName);
    // if converted
    if(rc==0) {
        (*ipConverted)++;
/* PassPDFBinderFileFilter
/** Internal callback function for binding process
** @return true if the IN aFilename is a valid file for PDF conversion,
** otherwise false.
ASBool PassPDFBinderFileFilter(char* aFilename)
#ifdef USE_FILE_FILTER
    // if the filter is empty, any file will pass.
    if(strlen(gPDFBinderFileFilter)==0)
        return true;
    char* Ext = strrchr(aFilename,'.');
    if(Ext!=NULL) {
        Ext++;
        if(strstr(gPDFBinderFileFilter, Ext)) {
            return true;
    return false;
#else
        // not use filter, any file will pass.
        return true;
#endif
/* ConvertAndInsertFileToPDF
/** Internal function \n
** Convert a file to PDF, then insert it to target PDF file.
** @param aFileName IN  char string, filename.
** @param PDFfile IN/OUT PDDoc of the target PDF file.
** @return 0 if OK, 1 if failed.
int    ConvertAndSavePDFInTargetFolder(ASPathName aPathName, char* aFileName, PDDoc PDFfile, ASPathName outputPathName)
    PDDoc tempPDF;
    char* Ext;
    DURING
        // get file extention
        Ext = strrchr(aFileName,'.');
        if(Ext) {
            Ext++;
        else {
            E_RETURN (1);
        // if the file is PDF, open PDDoc
        if(strcmp(Ext,"PDF")==0 || strcmp(Ext,"pdf")==0) {
            tempPDF = PDDocOpen (aPathName, ASGetDefaultFileSys(), NULL, true);
            if(tempPDF==NULL) {
                PDDocClose(tempPDF);
                E_RETURN (1);
        // else convert it to PDF
        else
            // let it automatically find right handler for the file and do the job.
            AVConversionStatus stat = AVConversionConvertToPDF
                (kAVConversionAsyncOkay, //kAVConversionNoFlags
                  aPathName, ASGetDefaultFileSys(), &tempPDF, NULL);
            // check if successful
            if(stat != kAVConversionSuccess) {
                //AVAlertNote("Cannot convert the file.");
                E_RETURN (1);
            else {
                //change Extension
                ASText asTmp = ASTextNew();
                ASFileSysDisplayASTextFromPath(ASGetDefaultUnicodeFileSys(), outputPathName, asTmp);
                //AVAlertNote(ASTextGetScriptText(asTmp, kASRomanScript));
                if(strcmp(Ext,"TIF")==0 || strcmp(Ext,"tif")==0){
                    ASTextReplace(asTmp, ASTextFromScriptText(".tif", kASRomanScript), ASTextFromScriptText(".pdf", kASRomanScript));
                } else {
                    ASTextReplace(asTmp, ASTextFromScriptText(".tiff", kASRomanScript), ASTextFromScriptText(".pdf", kASRomanScript));
                //AVAlertNote(ASTextGetScriptText(asTmp, kASRomanScript));
                outputPathName = ASFileSysCreatePathName (ASGetDefaultUnicodeFileSys(), ASAtomFromString("ASTextPath"), asTmp, 0);
    HANDLER   
        // exception handling
        char errorMsg[256];
        ASGetErrorString (ASGetExceptionErrorCode(), errorMsg, 256);
        // display an error message.
        if(ASBoolToBool(bEcho) == true) {
            AVAlertNote (errorMsg);
        return 1;
    END_HANDLER
    // Run OCR and Save new PDF into target PDF
    DURING
        //    OCR
        ASAtom cmdName;
        AVCommand cmd;
        cmdName=ASAtomFromString("PaperCapture");
        cmd=AVCommandNew(cmdName);
        ASCab config = ASCabNew();
        ASCabPutInt (config, "UIPolicy", kAVCommandUISilent);       //hide the interface
        if (kAVCommandReady ==     AVCommandSetConfig (cmd, config)) {
            //AVAlertNote("Config Ready");
        ASCab inputs = ASCabNew();
        ASCabPutPointer (inputs, kAVCommandKeyPDDoc, PDDoc, tempPDF, NULL);
        if (kAVCommandReady == AVCommandSetInputs (cmd, inputs)) {
            //AVAlertNote("Input Ready");
        ASCabDestroy (inputs);
        AVCommandStatus status = AVCommandExecute(cmd);
                    //switch (status) {
                    //    case kAVCommandReady :
                    //        AVAlertNote("Not working, but ready to work.");
                    //        break;
                    //    case kAVCommandWorking :
                    //        AVAlertNote("Still working");
                    //        break;   
                    //    case kAVCommandDone :
                    //        AVAlertNote("Done working");
                    //        break;   
                    //    case kAVCommandInError :
                    //        AVAlertNote("In Error");
                    //        break;       
                    //    case kAVCommandNotExecuted :
                    //        AVAlertNote("Command not executed due to lack of objects on which the command to be executed");
                    //        break;
        AVCommandDestroy(cmd);
        //Save
        //PDDocSave (tempPDF, PDSaveFull | PDSaveCollectGarbage | PDSaveLinearized, outputPathName, ASGetDefaultUnicodeFileSys(),    NULL, NULL);
        //ClosePDF
        //PDDocClose(tempPDF);
        //Convert to PDF/A Compliance
        //Select the right handler
        AVConversionEnumFromPDFConverters(myAVConversionFromPDFEnumProc, NULL);
        // do conversion
        AVConversionStatus stat = AVConversionConvertFromPDFWithHandler(RightHandler, NULL, kAVConversionAsyncOkay, tempPDF, outputPathName,  ASGetDefaultFileSys(), NULL);
        // check the returned status and show message
        //if (stat == kAVConversionSuccess)
        //                AVAlertNote( "The PDF/A file was saved in output folder." );
        //else if (stat == kAVConversionFailed)
        //                AVAlertNote( "The PDF/A conversion failed." );
        //else if (stat == kAVConversionSuccessAsync)
        //                AVAlertNote( "The conversion will continue asynchronously." );
        //else if (stat == kAVConversionCancelled)
        //                AVAlertNote( "The conversion was cancelled." );
        //Save
        //PDDocSave (tempPDF, PDSaveFull | PDSaveCollectGarbage | PDSaveLinearized, outputPathName, ASGetDefaultUnicodeFileSys(), NULL, NULL);
        //ClosePDF
        PDDocClose(tempPDF);
        ASFileSysReleasePath(ASGetDefaultFileSys(), outputPathName);
    HANDLER
         char errorMsg[256];
        ASGetErrorString (ASGetExceptionErrorCode(), errorMsg, 256);
        if(ASBoolToBool(bEcho)==true) {
            AVAlertNote(errorMsg);
    END_HANDLER
        if(strcmp(Ext,"doc")==0) {
            char fname[40];
            sprintf(fname,"%s.pdf",aFileName);
            remove(fname);
        return 0;
//Select the appropiate handler for the PDF/A conversion
static ACCB1 ASBool ACCB2 myAVConversionFromPDFEnumProc(AVConversionFromPDFHandler handler, AVConversionEnumProcData data)
    AVFileFilterRec filter = handler->convFilter;
    ASUns16 numFileExt = filter.numFileDescs;
    char *kUniqueID = handler->uniqueID;
    // go through the conversion handlers to find a handler for PDF extension files and the unique key matches the PDF/A one.
    for  (ASInt32  i = 0; i < numFileExt; i++)
        if  (strlen(handler->convFilter.fileDescs[i].extension)>0)
            // found it, fill in the handler and return false to stop going on.
            if (!strcmp(handler->convFilter.fileDescs[i].extension, "pdf") && !strcmp(kUniqueID,"com.callas.preflight.pdfa")) {
                RightHandler = handler;
                return  false ;
    return true;

Answer 1

There are some options for various APIs to run "kinda silent" - but again, Acrobat is designed for INTERACTIVE use…so "completely silent" isn't really an option.
As for speed – you'd need to be MUCH MORE specific about where your slow downs are.  Have you profiled?
From: Adobe Forums <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>>
Reply-To: "[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>" <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>>
Date: Mon, 12 Dec 2011 07:39:08 -0800
To: Leonard Rosenthol <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>>
Subject: Slow processing and getting opening errors/warnings
Re: Slow processing and getting opening errors/warnings
created by FFX-ER<http://forums.adobe.com/people/FFX-ER> in Acrobat SDK - View the full discussion<http://forums.adobe.com/message/4079175#4079175