Overview
When the M-Files Client is installed, it will also automatically install a third-party program called PDF-XChange, specifically the PDF-XChange Drivers API. PDF-XChange is used in the M-Files Classic client for PDF-related operations: document preview, annotations, and manual (client-side) PDF conversions (Save as PDF / Convert to PDF). PDF-XChange is required for these operations, so if it is removed the M-Files Classic client will not function correctly.
PDF-XChange is only used in the M-Files Classic client; the New M-Files Client (V-Next) uses the third-party tool Apose for PDF conversion operations.
M-Files does not have a regular update schedule for this component, but when significant vulnerability updates are published to PDF-XChange, our product development team will review the updates. When it is approved, it will be added to the next standard release of M-Files, which will also automatically install any new version of PDF-XChange.
Limitations
If a Word document has hyperlinks and is converted to PDF with the M-Files Classic client, the hyperlinks will break: PDF Conversion in M-Files client breaks link.
When PDF-XChange is updated, older versions of PDF-XChange will remain on the client machine. Similarly, PDF-XChange is also not removed when M-Files is uninstalled. An improvement to automatically uninstall these older versions on M-Files update or uninstallation is being considered, but in the meantime, it is safe to remove these older installations manually.
