Merge Format

A type of Export Format that generates a single output file by merging content from the children of a Batch Folder.

Remarks

Merge Formats are used to combine multiple Batch Pages or child items within a Batch Folder into a single exported file, such as a multi-page PDF or TIFF.

Overview

• A Merge Format defines how child content is selected, ordered, and combined during export.
• Commonly used for document assembly, archival, or delivery workflows where a single file per folder or document is required.
• Supports options for skipping pages, controlling overwrite behavior, and customizing merge logic.

Usage Scenarios

• Document Assembly:
  Merge all pages of a document into a single PDF or TIFF for delivery or storage.
• Batch Export:
  Export each Batch Folder as a consolidated file, combining all its child pages or attachments.
• Custom Output:
  Implement specialized merging logic by extending Merge Format for proprietary or advanced export needs.

Configuration Guidance

• Set 'Page Skip Count' to exclude leading pages (such as cover sheets) from the merged output.
• Use 'Always Build' to control whether existing output files are overwritten during export.
• Extend this class to implement custom merge strategies or file formats as needed.

> Tip:
> When configuring export activities, select a Merge Format when you need to produce a single file from multiple child items in a Batch Folder.

Properties

Name	Type		Description
Always Build	Boolean	►	If enabled, the output file will always be generated, overwriting any existing file with the same name. DefaultFalse The 'Always Build' property controls whether the export process should generate a file, even if a file of the appropriate export format already exists.. Usage Enable this option to ensure that the most current content is always exported, regardless of whether a file already exists. Disable to skip export if the output file is already present, which can improve performance in incremental or repeat export scenarios. > Note: > Overwriting files may impact downstream systems or integrations that rely on file timestamps or versioning.
Page Skip Count	Int32	►	The number of leading pages to skip when generating the merged output file. Default0 The 'Page Skip Count' property specifies how many pages, starting from the first child, will be excluded from the merged export. Usage Use this option to remove cover sheets, separator pages, or other non-essential content from the beginning of the output file. Set to 0 to include all pages; set to a positive integer to skip that number of leading pages. Example: If a Batch Folder contains 10 pages and 'Page Skip Count' is set to 2, only pages 3–10 will be included in the merged file.

Derived Types

There are 4 implementations of Merge Format.

PDF Format	Exports a Grooper document or folder as a PDF file, supporting advanced options for searchability, compression, compliance, and viewer preferences.
TIF Format	Exports a Batch Folder or Batch Page as a multi-page TIFF (TIF) file, supporting PDF rendering and image merging.
XML Format	Generates an XML document using the data stored on a Grooper document.
ZIP Format	Exports a Batch Folder as a ZIP archive containing all file attachments and images from descendant objects.

Used By

Merge