Generating PDFs with Puppeteer on Vercel: A Comprehensive Guide

Introduction

Generating PDFs using Puppeteer on Vercel can be a challenging task, but with the right setup, it’s achievable. This comprehensive guide will walk you through the process, perfect for developers and beginners alike. By the end of this article, you’ll be able to generate PDFs effortlessly.

Section 1: Understanding the Problem

Creating PDFs with Puppeteer on Vercel can be daunting due to potential setup issues and the unique challenges of serverless environments. However, by following the steps outlined in this guide, you can overcome these obstacles and create PDFs with ease. The key is to configure Puppeteer correctly and handle the limitations of running headless Chromium in a serverless environment like Vercel.

Section 2: Setting Up @sparticuz/chromium and Puppeteer

To get started, you need to install the necessary packages. The @sparticuz/chromium package provides the required Chromium executable bundle for Puppeteer. This setup helps avoid timeout issues and ensures smooth PDF generation.

1. Install Dependencies:

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• npm install puppeteer @sparticuz/chromium

1. Configure Puppeteer: In your code, configure Puppeteer to use the Chromium executable provided by @sparticuz/chromium.

• js
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• const chromium = require('@sparticuz/chromium'); const puppeteer = require('puppeteer-core'); async function generatePDF(url) { const browser = await puppeteer.launch({ executablePath: await chromium.executablePath, args: chromium.args, headless: chromium.headless, }); const page = await browser.newPage(); await page.goto(url, { waitUntil: 'networkidle2' }); const pdf = await page.pdf({ format: 'A4' }); await browser.close(); return pdf; }

1. Avoiding Timeout Issues: Configure the setup to handle potential timeout issues by increasing the timeout limits.

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• const browser = await puppeteer.launch({ executablePath: await chromium.executablePath, args: chromium.args, headless: chromium.headless, timeout: 0, // Disables the timeout });

Section 3: Considering Security Implications

When running this setup on public sites, it’s crucial to address additional security considerations to ensure the safety of your users and data. Analyze the Chromium args and confirm their compatibility with your security policies.

1. Security Best Practices:

• Limit the permissions of the Chromium instance.
• Sanitize input URLs to prevent malicious scripts.
• Regularly update Chromium and Puppeteer to the latest versions to incorporate security patches.

1. Example:

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• const browser = await puppeteer.launch({ executablePath: await chromium.executablePath, args: [ '--no-sandbox', '--disable-setuid-sandbox', '--disable-dev-shm-usage', ], headless: chromium.headless, });

Section 4: Full Code and Configuration

Here’s the complete code and configuration needed for generating PDFs with Puppeteer on Vercel. This setup ensures smooth functionality and improves stability.

1. Complete Code:

• js
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• const chromium = require('@sparticuz/chromium'); const puppeteer = require('puppeteer-core'); async function generatePDF(url) { const browser = await puppeteer.launch({ executablePath: await chromium.executablePath, args: [ '--no-sandbox', '--disable-setuid-sandbox', '--disable-dev-shm-usage', ], headless: chromium.headless, timeout: 0, }); const page = await browser.newPage(); await page.goto(url, { waitUntil: 'networkidle2' }); const pdf = await page.pdf({ format: 'A4', printBackground: true, }); await browser.close(); return pdf; } module.exports = { generatePDF };

1. Configuration: Ensure that the @sparticuz/chromium package is properly configured in your project.

Section 5: Additional Enhancements

Enhance your PDFs by improving font rendering quality and spacing, including background graphics, and omitting background colors and images.

1. Improving Font Rendering: Load additional fonts to enhance the quality of text rendering in your PDFs.

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• await page.addStyleTag({ content: '@import url("https://fonts.googleapis.com/css2?family=Roboto:wght@400;700&display=swap");' });

1. Including Background Graphics: Ensure that background graphics are included in your PDFs.

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• const pdf = await page.pdf({ format: 'A4', printBackground: true, });

1. Omitting Background Colors and Images: If necessary, you can omit background colors and images for a cleaner look.

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• const pdf = await page.pdf({ format: 'A4', printBackground: false, });

Section 6: Conclusion

Mastering the art of generating PDFs with Puppeteer on Vercel is now within your reach. By following the provided steps, you can unleash your PDF generation capabilities and create high-quality documents effortlessly.

Conclusion

Empower your PDF generation process like never before with Puppeteer on Vercel!