PdfCrowd Integration with SmythOS

Need to convert documents and web pages within your workflows? Connect PdfCrowd to SmythOS and empower your agents to automatically convert HTML, images, and PDFs with a professional, cloud-based service.

TL;DR

Securely link your PdfCrowd account to SmythOS by providing a Base64 encoded string of your username:api_key. Then, use our components to automate all your document conversion needs.

List of PdfCrowd Components

Quickly compare PdfCrowd components by what they do and their key I/O. Click any component name to jump directly to its detailed guide.

Component	Action	What it Does	Inputs	Key Outputs	Use Case
HTML to PDF	Convert	Converts a live webpage or HTML file into a PDF document.	required webpage/file_url	url	Archiving a webpage or generating a PDF report from an HTML template.
Image to PDF	Convert	Converts an image file (e.g., JPG, PNG) into a PDF document.	required file_url	url	Combining multiple scanned image receipts into a single PDF expense report.
PDF to Text	Extract	Extracts the plain text content from a PDF document.	required file_url	Response (text)	Analyzing the content of a PDF for keywords or summarization.
PDF to HTML	Convert	Converts a PDF document back into an HTML file.	required file_url	Response (HTML)	Making the content of a PDF web-viewable or easier to parse.

INFO

Why Integrate PdfCrowd with Your Agent?

PdfCrowd is a robust API for handling document conversions. Integrating it with SmythOS allows you to build powerful agents that can create, process, and extract information from various document formats.

• Automate Report Generation: Create agents that gather data, render it into an HTML template, and then use the HTML to PDF component to generate a professional, shareable PDF report.
• Content Archiving: Build a workflow that takes a list of important URLs and automatically creates PDF snapshots of each page for a permanent, offline archive.
• Data Extraction: Use the PDF to Text component to extract text from invoices, contracts, or research papers. An agent can then parse this text to find key information, feed it into a database, or pass it to an LLM for analysis.
• Streamline Document Workflows: Automatically convert user-uploaded images into a standardized PDF format for consistent document management and storage.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, please ensure you have the following:

• An active SmythOS account. (Sign up here).
• A PdfCrowd account.
• Your PdfCrowd Username and API Key.

Getting Started With PdfCrowd

The connection between SmythOS and PdfCrowd is configured using your Username and API Key, which must be Base64 encoded.

Step 1: Get Your PdfCrowd Credentials

1. Sign up for a PdfCrowd account.
2. Your Username is the email you used to register.
3. Navigate to your Account page to find your API Key.

Step 2: Base64 Encode Your Credentials

The API uses Basic Authentication. You need to combine your credentials and Base64 encode them.

1. Combine your credentials into a single string with a colon in between: YOUR_USERNAME:YOUR_API_KEY.
2. Use a Base64 encoding tool (like the "Encode/Decode" component in SmythOS) to encode this entire string.
3. Copy the resulting Base64 encoded string.

Step 3: Store Your Encoded Key in SmythOS Vault

Your encoded key is a sensitive credential. Use the SmythOS Vault to store it securely.

1. In your SmythOS dashboard, navigate to the Vault.
2. Create a new secret and paste your Base64 encoded string as the value. Give it a memorable name, like pdfcrowd_base64_auth.
3. For more details, see the Vault Documentation.

Step 4: Configure a PdfCrowd Component

1. In your SmythOS agent graph, drag and drop any PdfCrowd component.
2. Click the component to open its Settings panel.
3. In the authentication field (e.g., Base64 Encoded Username and API Key), select the secret you saved in the Vault.
4. Your connection is now configured for that component.

Heads-up

You must add the Base64 encoded secret from the Vault to each PdfCrowd component you use. This ensures all your API calls are properly authenticated.

Which PdfCrowd Component Should I Use?

If you need to…	Target	Use this Component	Why this one?
Create a PDF snapshot of a website	A URL	HTML to PDF	The standard way to convert any live webpage into a PDF document.
Combine images into a single PDF	An image file URL	Image to PDF	Specifically designed to take image formats and convert them to PDF.
Extract all the text from a PDF report	A PDF file URL	PDF to Text	The best way to get clean, plain text from a PDF for further processing.
Make a PDF's content editable as HTML	A PDF file URL	PDF to HTML	Converts the PDF structure back into HTML code.

Component Details

This section provides detailed information for each PdfCrowd component.

HTML to PDF

Converts a webpage or raw HTML file, accessible via a URL, into a PDF document.

INFO

This component requires Base64 encoded credentials for authentication, as detailed in the Getting Started section.

Inputs

Field	Type	Required	Notes
webpage/file_url	string	Yes	The public URL of the webpage or HTML file to convert.

Outputs

Field	Type	Description
url	string	A temporary URL to download the generated PDF file.
size	integer	The size of the generated PDF in bytes.
mimetype	string	The MIME type of the output file (application/pdf).
Response	object	The raw JSON response from the PdfCrowd API.

Use Case

An agent generates a dynamic invoice using an HTML template, hosts it temporarily, and then uses this component to convert that HTML page into a final PDF invoice to be sent to a customer.

{
  "component": "pdfcrowd.htmlToPdf",
  "webpage/file_url": "[https://www.example.com](https://www.example.com)"
}

Image to PDF

Converts an image file, accessible via a URL, into a PDF document.

INFO

This component requires Base64 encoded credentials for authentication, as detailed in the Getting Started section.

Inputs

Field	Type	Required	Notes
file_url	string	Yes	The public URL of the image file (e.g., PNG, JPG) to convert.

Outputs

Field	Type	Description
url	string	A temporary URL to download the generated PDF file.
size	integer	The size of the generated PDF in bytes.
mimetype	string	The MIME type of the output file (application/pdf).
Response	object	The raw JSON response from the PdfCrowd API.

Use Case

An agent processes user-submitted ID photos. It uses this component to convert each JPG photo into a separate, standardized PDF file for archival.

PDF to Text

Extracts plain text content from a PDF document accessible via a URL.

INFO

This component requires Base64 encoded credentials for authentication, as detailed in the Getting Started section.

Inputs

Field	Type	Required	Notes
file_url	string	Yes	The public URL of the PDF file to extract text from.

Outputs

Field	Type	Description
Response	string	The extracted plain text content from the PDF.
Headers	object	The HTTP headers from the API response.

Use Case

An agent receives a PDF invoice via email attachment. It gets the file URL, uses this component to extract the text, and then parses the text to find the invoice number, amount, and due date.

PDF to HTML

Converts a PDF document, accessible via a URL, into an HTML document.

INFO

This component requires Base64 encoded credentials for authentication, as detailed in the Getting Started section.

Inputs

Field	Type	Required	Notes
file_url	string	Yes	The public URL of the PDF file to convert.

Outputs

Field	Type	Description
Response	string	The converted HTML content.
Headers	object	The HTTP headers from the API response.

Use Case

To make a legacy PDF manual searchable on a website, an agent uses this component to convert the PDF to HTML, which can then be indexed or embedded into a webpage.

Best Practices & Advanced Tips

• Secure Your Credentials: Always store your Base64-encoded username:api_key string in the SmythOS Vault.
• Use Public URLs: All input URLs (file_url, webpage/file_url) must be publicly accessible over the internet for PdfCrowd's servers to be able to fetch them.
• Handle Large Files: Document conversion, especially for large or complex files, can take time. Design your agent workflows to account for potential delays.
• Error Handling: Check the Headers output for HTTP status codes. A 200 OK indicates success, while codes like 400 or 500 indicate an error. The Response body will often contain a detailed error message.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

• Error: 401 Unauthorized

  • Cause: The Base64 encoded credentials are incorrect, or your PdfCrowd account has an issue (e.g., out of credits).
  • Solution: Carefully re-create and re-encode your username:api_key string. Log in to your PdfCrowd account to check your status and credit balance.

• Error: 400 Bad Request

  • Cause: The input file_url is invalid, inaccessible, or points to an unsupported file type.
  • Solution: Verify that the URL is correct and publicly accessible. You can test this by trying to open the URL in an incognito browser window. Ensure the file format is supported by the specific conversion component.

• Conversion Fails or Times Out

  • Cause: The source file may be extremely large, complex, or corrupted. There could also be a temporary issue with the PdfCrowd service.
  • Solution: Try converting a smaller, simpler file to confirm your setup is correct. Check the PdfCrowd status page for any reported outages.

What's Next?

You are now ready to build powerful document processing pipelines with the SmythOS PdfCrowd Integration!

Consider these ideas:

• Build an Agent That...

  • Acts as a "Webpage Archiver." It takes a URL from a user, uses the HTML to PDF component to create a PDF snapshot, and then saves the file to OneDrive.
  • Creates a "Report Summarizer." The agent receives a PDF report, uses PDF to Text to extract the content, and then feeds the text to an LLM component to generate a concise summary.
  • Manages receipts. An agent takes user-submitted photos of receipts, uses the Image to PDF component to standardize them, and then stores them for expense reporting.

• Explore Other Integrations:

  • Combine PdfCrowd with a web scraping tool. Scrape data from multiple pages, have your agent format it into a single HTML report, and then use HTML to PDF to create a final document.
  • After converting a document, use the SendGrid Integration to email the generated PDF or text file as an attachment.