How to Scan as a New PDF or Append to an Existing PDF in Adobe Acrobat
Question details
The user needs to know how to control whether a scanned document is saved as a new PDF or appended to an existing PDF.
- Product
- Adobe Acrobat 2017
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Scanning documents directly into Adobe Acrobat when another PDF file is currently open.
- Observed behavior
- Acrobat automatically appends the newly scanned pages to the currently open PDF instead of prompting the user to create a new document.
Ensure your scanner is securely connected to your computer, powered on, and that the latest scanner drivers are installed before initiating a scan in Adobe Acrobat.
Close Open Documents Before Scanning
The most straightforward way to prevent Acrobat from appending scanned pages to an existing document is to ensure no PDFs are open in the background.
Acrobat's scanning workflow often defaults to appending new scans to the active document to speed up multi-page compilation. By removing the active document, you force Acrobat to start fresh.
Click 'File' in the top menu bar and select 'Close' for any PDF documents that are currently open.
Go to 'File' > 'Create' > 'PDF from Scanner' to start your scanning process.
Once the scan completes, Acrobat will open the scanned pages as a brand new, separate PDF. Go to 'File' > 'Save As' to name and store your new file.
Use Output Options in the Create PDF Tool
You can manually specify whether to create a new file or append to an existing one by using the explicit Create PDF tool settings.
Scan Separately and Combine Manually
If your version of Acrobat does not expose a default behavior setting, you can scan as a separate PDF first and combine the files manually when necessary.
Manage, Combine, and Edit PDFs Seamlessly with WPS Office
Avoid frustrating default settings by using WPS Office to manage your documents. WPS PDF makes it incredibly easy to merge files, convert scanned images to new PDFs, or insert pages exactly where you want them with an intuitive interface.
- 1. Open WPS PDF: Launch WPS Office and click on the 'PDF' tab to access the dedicated PDF editor.
- 2. Convert Scans to PDF: Use the 'Picture to PDF' tool to easily convert your scanned images into a brand new PDF file.
- 3. Manage Pages Manually: To append pages, open your existing PDF, navigate to the 'Page' tab, and select 'Insert Pages' to safely add new content without overriding.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does Acrobat automatically append my scanned pages to an open PDF?
In some versions like Acrobat 2017, the default scanning workflow appends new scans to the active document to speed up multi-page document creation. Closing the open document before scanning resolves this.
Can I permanently change the default scan behavior in Acrobat 2017?
Acrobat 2017 may not expose a persistent default setting to stop appending. You often need to manually select 'Create New PDF' in the scanner output options under Tools > Create PDF each time, or simply close open PDFs.
How do I extract pages if I accidentally appended them to the wrong PDF?
Open the PDF with the mistakenly appended pages. Go to Tools > Organize Pages, select the newly appended pages, and click 'Extract' to save them as a separate file. You can then delete those pages from the current document.
