SpiderFolio
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Docs

Self-hosting

Gotenberg (PDF)

Turn on the pdf profile to generate the PDF of controlled pages, and what happens if you don't.

Gotenberg is a service that turns HTML into PDF. SpiderFolio uses it for one thing only: generating the controlled PDF of pages that are controlled documents. It’s optional.

What it generates

When a controlled page is published, the worker builds its PDF with a header (logo, code, title, version, effective date and who prepared, reviewed and approved it) and a “Page X of Y” footer. Every download adds the uncontrolled-copy watermark, with who downloaded it and when; obsolete versions also carry an “OBSOLETE” stamp.

  • PDF files uploaded as controlled documents don’t need Gotenberg: their control sheet and watermark are added anyway.
  • The page’s images travel inside the HTML: Gotenberg doesn’t need internet access.
  • The PDF uses the company language (in Management › Security).

More about the flow in Controlled documents.

Turn it on

  1. In deploy/.env:

    GOTENBERG_URL=http://gotenberg:3000

  2. Start with the pdf profile (alongside https if you use it):

    docker compose --profile https --profile pdf up -d

    Or add COMPOSE_PROFILES=https,pdf to .env and just run docker compose up -d.

  3. Check the container is running: docker compose ps gotenberg.

Gotenberg needs about 1 GB of RAM. Its port isn’t published: only the app and the worker can reach it inside the Docker network. Don’t expose it to the internet: it converts any HTML it receives.

If you already run your own Gotenberg (version 8) on your internal network, you can point GOTENBERG_URL at it instead of using the profile.

What happens without Gotenberg

All of SpiderFolio works the same, except the PDF of controlled pages:

  • The PDF isn’t generated on publishing.
  • In the controlled document dialog, under Version history, this notice appears: “This server doesn’t generate the PDF for controlled pages (Gotenberg is missing); it does for PDF files. Whoever manages the installation can turn it on.”
  • Approvals, required reading, QR codes and the current version in the app don’t change.
The controlled document dialog, with its version historyThe controlled document dialog, with its version history

If you turn it on later, there’s no need to republish anything: each version’s PDF is generated the first time someone downloads it.