Transform Interface

The Transform Interface component of Infoprint Server communicates with transforms that transform products provide. Transforms convert data from one format to another, for example, from PCL to AFP format and from AFP to PDF format.

Transform Interface can communicate with transforms that run on the z/OS® system and on non-z/OS systems. For a list of the transform products that Transform Interface supports, see Transforms.

Figure 1 shows how Transform Interface fits into your system. An explanation of each step follows.
Figure 1. Transform Interface system diagram
The following text explains the figure.
  1. When they process a print request, Print Interface, NetSpool, and IP PrintWay extended mode call Transform Interface to transform data from one format to another if the administrator specifies a transform filter in the printer definition. The administrator can specify a different transform filter for each data format. Infoprint Server and other transform products provide these transform filters:
    • Some transform products provide transform filters. For example, Infoprint Transforms to AFP for z/OS provides the pdf2afp.dll filter, which transforms data from PDF to AFP.
    • aoprxf.so: This filter sends data to Ricoh InfoPrint Transform Manager for Linux to be transformed.
    • aoprform.dll: This filter sends data to Ricoh InfoPrint Manager for AIX® or Windows to be transformed.
    Tip: IP PrintWay basic mode transforms data by resubmitting it to the Print Interface component. This function is called the resubmit for filtering function.
  2. z/OS job submitters can specify one of these z/OS UNIX commands to transform data without printing it:
    • A transform command: IBM® transform products provide z/OS UNIX transform commands (such as pdf2afp).
    • remotexf command: This command sends data to Ricoh InfoPrint Transform Manager for Linux for transform.
  3. Transform Interface communicates with the transform:
    • If the transform runs on z/OS, the Infoprint Server Transform Manager (part of Transform Interface) starts and stops the transform daemons with configuration information that is specified by the administrator.
    • If the transform runs on a non-z/OS system, the Infoprint Server Transform Interface sends the data to the transform.
  4. The transform converts the data from one format to another.