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Guided workflow variation

Coming soon for Windows. Feature preview.

A preflight report thecustomer can act on.

Save reports writes an HTML and a PDF report for each checked file: verdict first, page-linked findings, the profile name, and the SHA-256 that ties the record to that exact file.

Instead of writing a rejection email from memory, send the saved report: it states the verdict, the profile, and each problem with its page.

Coming soon No telemetry Local-first

coming soon for Windows

If this sounds like your week

A vague rejection email starts a long thread.

When artwork misses spec, the customer usually gets a short message: resolution too low, please resend. They reply asking which picture, on which page, and what number counts as high enough. The designer exports again, guesses, and sends a version with the same fault, while the delivery date gets closer.

Where tooling usually breaks

Without a record, every resend is a debate.

Weeks later, when a reprint is disputed, nobody can say exactly which version was approved, what rules applied, or what the shop told the client at the time. Notes in an inbox do not name the file precisely, and two attachments called final-v3.pdf can hold different artwork.

Where Print Preflight Desk lands

Send the findings, not a summary of them.

Save reports writes both formats to a folder you pick once. Each opens with PASS, PASS WITH WARNINGS, or FAIL, then lists the file, its SHA-256, size, page count, PDF version, profile, and timestamp. Findings follow with counts of errors, warnings, and notes, and each row gives severity, check, pages, and the reason in plain words.

Join the Print Preflight Desk waitlist Explore the product preview

coming soon for Windows

What you get

Feature highlights

Named shop profiles

one profile per press, product, or customer, holding trim size, tolerance, minimum bleed, colour, grey, and 1-bit resolution limits, colour policy, spot colours with allowed names, transparency, and output intent.

Every check with page numbers

page size, TrimBox, CropBox, box nesting, bleed, effective ppi, fonts, colour spaces, transparency, spot colours, and output intent, each finding with its severity and pages.

A preview with the boxes drawn

the page renders with its Trim, Bleed, and Art boxes outlined and their sizes in points, and selecting a finding jumps to its page.

Reports to send back

a self-contained HTML report and a PDF report with the verdict first, the file’s SHA-256, the profile, and every finding with its pages.

A fixed copy for boxes and rotation

Save fixed copy writes the TrimBox and BleedBox from the profile and normalises the Rotate value in a new PDF, listing every change.

Original only read, nothing uploaded

reports and fixed copies are new files, colour, fonts, and transparency stay as supplied, and the app makes no network connections.

Especially when

  • Check every customer PDF against the shop’s own rules for that press, product, or customer, instead of judging it by eye at the counter
  • Get the same pass or fail answer on the same file whoever is on shift, from named profiles with every threshold written down
  • Send the customer a report that lists each problem with its page and the profile’s limit, instead of a rejection email written from memory
  • Correct missing or wrong TrimBox and BleedBox entries in a new copy, leaving the customer’s artwork and original file untouched

Who benefits

Real-world scenarios

Sending a fail back to a designer

A freelance designer sent a brochure with an unembedded font and one photo below the shop's resolution floor, and needs to know exactly what to change before a print date two days away.

The PDF report goes back with the reply. It shows FAIL, names the font and the pages it is used on, and gives the photo's effective ppi, its placed size, and the profile's limit, so the designer fixes both on the first try.

Keeping a record in the job folder

The shop wants every approved job to carry a record of the file that was checked, the rules it met, and when, in case a reprint is questioned months later.

Save reports writes the HTML and PDF reports, named after the customer's file, into the job folder. Each carries the file's SHA-256, the profile name, and the check time, so the approved artwork can be matched to its record.

A pass with warnings, explained

A file passes, but with a warning for an image between the warning and error limits, and the account manager wants the client to decide whether to supply a sharper photo or print as is.

The report shows PASS WITH WARNINGS and the warning row with the page, the image's effective ppi, and the recommended level. The client reads the same facts the shop sees and makes the call.

Deep dive

What the report contains, section by section

Header and verdict. Each report opens with the product name, the title Preflight report, and the verdict in a coloured block: PASS, PASS WITH WARNINGS, or FAIL. The HTML file's page title starts with the verdict and the file name, so it reads clearly in a browser tab or an email attachment list.

The facts table. File, SHA-256, Size, Pages, PDF version, and, when the file has them, Title, Producer, and Creator, followed by Profile, Checked (the date, time, and time zone), and Engine (the app version). The Producer and Creator lines often tell you which program made the file, which helps when you write to the designer.

Findings. Three counts sit above the table: errors, warnings, and notes. Each row gives the severity, the check (for example image-resolution, font-embedding, color-space, bleed, or spot-colors), the pages, and the finding in plain words, with a detail line where it helps. A clean file reads "Every check passed under this profile."

Pages. One row per page with its MediaBox, TrimBox, BleedBox, Rotate value, and finished trim size, so box problems can be read side by side.

Images, fonts, and colour. The Images table lists each placed image with its page, pixel size, placed size, effective ppi, colour space, bits per component, and soft mask. The Fonts table lists every font with its type, whether it is embedded or subset, and its pages. The Colour table lists each colour space with what it was used for and where, plus every spot colour by name.

Transparency and output intent. Live transparency is listed by page and kind, with the group colour space, and the output intent section shows the declared condition and the number of components in its destination profile.

Two formats, one result. The HTML report is one self-contained file with no scripts and no external requests, so it opens offline in any browser. The PDF report carries the same content, paginated and with embedded fonts, for email and print. Both are named after the customer's file, as name.report.html and name.report.pdf.

Saving them. The first Save reports asks for a folder and remembers it; later saves go straight there, and a second report for the same file is saved alongside as name.report (2).html rather than replacing the first. The status line confirms both file names and the folder.

Matching a file to its report. The SHA-256 in the report identifies the exact file checked. Get-FileHash in Windows PowerShell computes SHA-256 for any copy; when the two values match, ignoring letter case, it is the same file.

Feature preview

Explore the intended workflow

Named shop profiles

one profile per press, product, or customer, holding trim size, tolerance, minimum bleed, colour, grey, and 1-bit resolution limits, colour policy, spot colours with allowed names, transparency, and output intent.

Every check with page numbers

page size, TrimBox, CropBox, box nesting, bleed, effective ppi, fonts, colour spaces, transparency, spot colours, and output intent, each finding with its severity and pages.

A preview with the boxes drawn

the page renders with its Trim, Bleed, and Art boxes outlined and their sizes in points, and selecting a finding jumps to its page.

Head-to-head

How Print Preflight Desk compares

Feature Print Preflight Desk report Email written by hand Marked-up screenshot
States the verdict PASS, PASS WITH WARNINGS, or FAIL, at the top In whatever words the sender chooses Implied by the markup
Names the pages Every finding lists its page numbers When the sender remembers to One page per image
Names the rules used The shop profile name, and the limit in each finding Rarely Rarely
Identifies the exact file File name and SHA-256 The file name, if quoted Not usually
Formats Self-contained HTML and a PDF Email text An image

FAQ

Straight answers—no glossary dump

What goes in a preflight report for a customer?

The verdict, the file it applies to, the rules it was checked against, and each problem with its page. Print Preflight Desk reports open with PASS, PASS WITH WARNINGS, or FAIL, then the file name, SHA-256, size, page count, profile, and check time, then every finding with severity, check, pages, and the reason, followed by tables of pages, images, fonts, colour, transparency, and output intent.

Which formats does Print Preflight Desk save?

Two at once: a self-contained HTML report and a PDF report with the same content. The HTML file has no scripts and makes no external requests, so it opens offline in any browser. The PDF report is paginated with embedded fonts, so it reads the same on the customer's screen as on yours and attaches to any email.

Where are the reports saved, and what are they called?

In a folder you pick the first time you choose Save reports; the app remembers it for every later save. Each report is named after the customer's file, for example spring-flyer.report.html and spring-flyer.report.pdf. Saving again for the same file adds a number, such as (2), so earlier reports stay in place. The status line names both files and the folder.

What does the SHA-256 in the report show?

It is a fingerprint of the exact file that was checked, also shown on the status line in the app. Run Get-FileHash in Windows PowerShell on any copy of the PDF; if its SHA-256 matches the report, ignoring letter case, it is the same file the report describes. A resent file with any change gets a different value.

Where do customer files go, and how do I get Print Preflight Desk?

Print Preflight Desk is coming soon to the Microsoft Store for Windows and is not available to download or purchase yet. Use the email form on its product page to join the waitlist, then confirm your email address. We will send launch updates when there is news. No payment is taken.

Related pages

Check each customer PDF against the job's print specs. Preflight software built for the print shop counter. Set the TrimBox and BleedBox from your shop profile.

Print Preflight Desk is coming soon.

Join the waitlist for launch updates. The app is not available to download or purchase yet. No payment is taken.

Join the Print Preflight Desk waitlist
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Ghent Workgroup and GWG are names of the Ghent Workgroup. Print Preflight Desk is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Ghent Workgroup.