convert livecycle to acroform

How do I convert an Adobe LiveCycle form to Adobe Acroform? It is required to use the Adobe EchoSign service, but I am unable to find a way to convert.

Randall Hodges

4 Answers

There's no direct way to convert an LCD form to an AcroForm. You will need to print the file using the PDF Printer to get a "flat" version of it, and then you'll have to re-create all the form fields and scripts from scratch. Of course, the form field wizard will probably detect most of them for you.


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Gilad D (try67)   

Hi Randall,

That is not an easy one. Acrobat forms and LiveCycle PDF forms have different underlying structures so are not directly convertible.

If you have a static form (do not use any dynamic features) you can open it in Acrobat then Print to PDF. This is called re-frying the PDF. When you do this you will lose all the active fields and scripts and need to recreate them.

If it is a static PDF, then a tricky way to do this is to delete the XFA Dictionary out of the Acroform Dictionary. That requires understanding the internal structure of a PDF file and having the appropriate tools to analyze and locate the Dictionary objects.

Hope this helps,


WindJack Solutions



Dimitri Munkirs   

It is highly experimental, but it should be possible to interpret the XML part of the XFA, and recreate an Acroform based on this information. This would make it possible to some extent to create a dynamic Acroform form. However, this would require some programming…

If there is an interest and a budget, feel free to contact me in private (the eMail address is in my profile).

Hope this can help.

Max Wyss.

Max Wyss   

OK, thank you all for your input. This is just one form used globally with about 62 fields and a ton of Javascript relationships to each other. But, looks like we just need to start from scratch again.

Thanks again.

Randall Hodges   

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