To add a PDF Report Record, Manager level access for the Reports module is required (see Access Levels).
See here for how to check your current access level. See here for how to apply for a change in access level.
Once you have created and approved a Report object you can upload a PDF version of the document to be viewed and downloaded by other Users.
This is split into two stages:
Prepare the PDF for upload, using the PDF toolkit (offline)
Upload the PDF Report Record (Manager).
Only packaged PDFs are supported. Informal files associated with specific objects can be uploaded in other formats as Attached Files (e.g. photos of a GAD Condition Item).
PDF Report Records are available for view and download by all users on GDMS by default. Uploading PDFs is generally encouraged to share information across the community, however you should confirm the document does not contain any sensitive information which would make this inappropriate.
In particular, if a document is classified as OFFICIAL-SENSITIVE, you should not upload a PDF Report Record.
Prior to upload PDF Report Records need to be prepared in a format that satisfies the UK Government requirements for long-term records management. This is an offline process (i.e. undertaken by the user outside of the GDMS system) and ensures that:
Reports contain searchable text. For scanned documents this may require processing with Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Reports contain bookmarks for different sections so it can be easily navigated by the reader.
Very large documents are split into parts with a manageable file size (5MB). The location of divisions between parts can be automatic or controlled by the user.
The PDF Report Record is properly linked with the Report object on the GDMS system.
A software package specifically to assist with this process, called PDF Toolkit is available from the GDMS downloads page, alongside a specific user guidance document describing the steps to follow in detail.
The output from PDF Toolkit is a Package file (.PKG), suitable for upload to the GDMS system.
The PDF Toolkit embeds some details of the GDMS Report object into the PDF Report Record package during preparation. This ensures the link between the two is permanently formed and reduces the chances of duplicate reports appearing on the system.
You can enter these details into the PDF Toolkit manually, however it is much better to export them directly from the GDMS system as an XML file.
To do this navigate to the details page for the Report, and click Download XML on the command bar.
You can then open this XML file in the PDF Toolkit and the link will be created.
It is recommended that you don't download the XML file until the GDMS Report object is approved.
The PDF upload will fail if the details embedded in the PDF Package do not match exactly with those on GDMS, for example if the details were edited after you downloaded the XML file.
To upload a PDF Report Package, first navigate to the details page of the Report.
Click Upload Package on the command bar, and a dialog box will appear for you to select the Package file (.pkg) on your computer, (output from the PDF Toolkit described above).
Once the package is uploaded any user can view it within the system, or download a copy.
Any Reports uploaded onto GDMS should be approved before uploading. The approval process for Reports refers only to the information entered on GDMS about the Report.