Octo for prepress in CorelDRAW

The PDF is out. Whether it prints is for the print shop to say.

CorelDRAW publishes PDF with a color profile, spot colors and built-in preflight; PDF/X-4 has been available since version 2019, according to a Corel tutorial, and is checked in the dialog box of the installed version. Octo audits colors and overprint in the .cdr by macro, publishes with the profile the print shop approved and checks the PDF with independent tools: fonts, resolution, separations and ink coverage. The color proof and the final PDF are still approved by people.

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PDF/X-4 in CorelDRAW2019transparency kept as vector

Current version2026update 27.2, September 2026

Inks in tiffsep64process and spot combined, in Ghostscript

Sources13listed at the end of the page

What Octo does before the file goes to the print shop.

Six possible deliverables, drawn from the survey. All of them work on a copy, check by content and end in the hands of the designer and the print shop.

Color audit in the .cdr

RGB objects in a CMYK piece, spot colors not on the list, small text in rich black and lines thinner than the minimum, by page and layer.

Deliverable: auditoria_cores.csv per file

Overprint checked

White set to overprint (which disappears on the plate), forced black and spot over spot, flagged in the file and seen in the separations.

Deliverable: list of objects and plates before and after

PDF/X with the print shop's profile

A macro loads the saved, approved PDF profile (PDF/X-4, output profile, bleed, crop marks) and publishes the batch with standardized names.

Deliverable: PDFs and publishing log

Independent preflight

pdfinfo, pdffonts, pdfimages and Ghostscript read the PDF without knowing who generated it: bleed, embedded fonts, effective ppi, inks.

Deliverable: conferencia.csv against the print shop's spec sheet

Ink coverage by peak

The tiffsep separations summed pixel by pixel give the maximum TAC and the area above the limit, not just the page average.

Deliverable: tac.csv per page

The print shop's spec sheet as a file

PDF standard, profile, TAC, ppi, bleed, minimum line and allowed inks in a JSON that the check uses and a person reviews.

Deliverable: versioned spec per print shop

Eight arms, one checked file.

The same Octo cycle, applied to prepress. Each arm has a narrow role; people approve the artwork, the proof and the final PDF.

Discovery
Maps what already exists

CorelDRAW versions in use, the machines' color settings, saved PDF profiles and the print shops that receive the files.
Data
Turns the spec sheet into rules

Each print shop's spec becomes a JSON; each check is stored with date and result.
Security
Looks after the file and the data

Works on a copy; photos and names of people in the pieces are personal data (LGPD) and do not leave the network without review.
Architecture
Chooses the path

Macro in the .cdr before publishing, PDF check after, or both.
Development
Writes macro and script

Audit, publishing with a saved profile and check, with the source of each limit noted in the file.
Review
Checks by content

Plates, embedded fonts and ppi measured in the PDF. "PDF generated successfully" is not a check.
Release
Prepares the handoff

PDF, report and sha256 in one package. A person sends it to the print shop.
Documentation
Records what holds

Each print shop's spec, the approved PDF profile, who approved each batch and what changed.

Octo works with copies and reading; it does not change the artwork without the designer and does not replace the print shop's preflight or proof.

Each check, its own path.

The criteria Octo uses to choose, with the documented limit of each path.

Task	Path	Note
Find RGB and spot colors in the file	VBA macro on the `.cdr` copy	Object model names to be tested on the version in use
Publish PDF/X-4	Publish to PDF with a saved profile	PDF/X-4 since CorelDRAW 2019
Publish in batch	`PDFSettings.Load` + `PublishToPDF`	Names to be checked in the Object Browser of the installed version
See overprint on screen	Simulate overprints mode	Recommended by Corel before printing
Check bleed	`pdfinfo -box`	BleedBox beyond the TrimBox
Check fonts	`pdffonts`	Embedded font column
Check resolution	`pdfimages -list`	Effective ppi at page scale
See the plates	Ghostscript `tiffsep`	Up to 64 inks; spots by name
Measure ink coverage	`tiffsep` + per-pixel sum	`ink_cov` gives only the average
Formal PDF/X validation	Print shop preflight	No open-source validator confirmed in this research

From "I think it's right" to a checked file.

Three steps. Each one only makes sense after the previous one has shown results on your team.

A proposal, not a promise

1 Today

PDF check

Octo reads the PDF that would already go to the print shop, without changing anything in the designer's workflow.

Bleed, fonts and ppi measured
Plates and TAC by peak
Report against the print shop's spec sheet

Benefit: errors show up before the proof

2 Next

Audit in the file

Colors and overprint checked in the .cdr and one PDF profile per print shop.

Exceptions instead of piece-by-piece review
Approved profile in one place
White on overprint flagged

Benefit: fewer back-and-forths with the print shop

3 Later

Campaign with history

Whole batch audited, published and checked, with a log of each delivery.

Report per piece
Who approved each batch
sha256 of what was sent

Benefit: knowing what went to press

Confirmed in a source.

Each point below has a source published by Corel, Microsoft, the open-source project or the responsible body. Object and method names are checked in the Object Browser of the installed version. The sources are in the next section.

points with a published source, each with its reference shown alongside.

ConfirmedPDF/X-4 since 2019: CorelDRAW began offering PDF/X-4 in version 2019; in Corel's example, PDF/X-4 kept transparency as vector and was smaller than PDF/X-3.Source: learn.corel.com, Exporting PDF documents in CorelDRAW
ConfirmedPDF color options in version 2026: RGB, CMYK, grayscale or native output; convert spot colors; embed profile; use color proofing; preserve overprints; always overprint black.Source: help.coreldraw.com, CorelDRAW 2026 Help, PDF color management options
ConfirmedBuilt-in preflight: Summary of errors, potential problems and suggestions; items can be turned off; the tab shows the number of issues or "No issues".Source: help.coreldraw.com, CorelDRAW 2026 Help, PDF preflight summaries
ConfirmedSeparations in Ghostscript: tiffsep generates one TIFF per ink, recognizes spot colors and works with up to 64 inks; ink_cov measures average ink, not the peak.Source: ghostscript.readthedocs.io, Devices

What Octo does and what stays with you.

Octo prepares everything, but it does not sign. The document of record stays with whoever is accountable for it.

Octo prepares

Surveys, checks and organizes: exported PDFs, reports on fonts, colors and separations, and the list of what needs fixing.

Deliverable: material ready to check

Your team checks

The client or the art director approves the artwork. The print shop runs its own preflight and approves the color proof.

Step: print shop preflight and proof

Who approves

Octo does not approve the artwork or the proof. Artwork approval stays with the client or the art director; the color proof and the final PDF, with the print shop.

Approval: client, art director and print shop

Sources.

Corel help, tutorials, knowledge base and update pages, and Ghostscript and Poppler documentation, consulted on Oct 31, 2026.

CorelDRAW Graphics Suite 2026, press releaseMar 3, 2026, platforms and pricing
Version 2026 updates27.1 and 27.2
Version 2025 updatesSeparations and bleed
Export documents as PDF filesPDF presets, 2026 help
PDF color management options2026 help
PDF preflight summaries2026 help
Exporting PDF documents in CorelDRAWPDF/X-4 and PDF/X-3
Choosing viewing modesSimulate overprints
Corel KB 128161Color settings, spots in LAB
Corel KB 128151Enhanced mode and overprint
Ghostscript, Devicestiffsep, inkcov, ink_cov
Ghostscript, High Level DevicesPDF/X in pdfwrite
Popplerpdfinfo, pdffonts, pdfimages

Your files, checked before the print shop.

The assessment starts with a read-only check of a few PDFs that have already gone to the print shop. You get what the check would find, what depends on each print shop's spec sheet and the questions only your team can answer.

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