How does censhare forward a layout to the Renderer/InDesignServer?

censhare supports multiple InDesign server versions and you can work in parallel with different InDesign servers. It means that either you can install different InDesign server versions like CS6, CC2017 in the same physical machine or you can use different machines to install different InDesignServer versions to connect with the same application server.

If you have such customer environments the question may come to your mind how does censhare know which renderer/InDesignServer instance to send a layout to?

When you create a new layout from java client, censhare InDesign plugin passes the java client which InDesign version is used to create the layout and this information will be stored in the database under 'app_version' column of 'storage_item' table.

Following steps helps to see the application version through XML log of the respective assets:

1. Open 'Java client' and switch to Admin mode.

2. Select the layout and right click to choose the options Admin->Show XML.

3. Swtich to tab "XML Logs".

4. Search for storage_item app_version.

CODE

Example: 

<storage_item app_version="8.1" ... *.indd"/> 

This shows you the Adobe version number, which are: 
... 
6.x = CS4 
7.x = CS5 
7.5.x = CS5.5 
8.x = CS6 
9.x = CC 
10.x = CC2014 
11.x = CC2015 
12.x = CC2017 
13.x = CC2018 
14.x = CC2019
15.x = 2020

In the end, the censhare server knows the InDesign versions through the information present in 'app_version' and delegates the layouts automatically to the respective renderers (Indesign Servers).

If there is no respective InDesign server running then you will notice the following error :'There is no available server version for the document'

Additional information:

1. When you import a layout through java client the respective InDesign version must be opened as a pre-requirement. In the background the layout is opened in InDesign, checked, censhare slugs are added and finally it is imported. Export also needs the respective InDesign version as a pre-requirement, as censhare slugs are removed in this process.

Here the application is set to 'Adobe InDesign' i.e : <asset application="indesign".. and app version is set to respective indesign version i.e <storage_item app_version="12.1"..../>.

Also, you can see proper InDesign icons (coloured) for the assets and you will be able to see previews/thumbnails for all pages present in the InDesign document.

2. Importing a layout through the web client has no InDesign used in the background. So here no version of the layout is identified. You can't see storage_item app_version information in the XML log. Also, the application is set to 'Default' i.e: <asset application="default". Only the MIME type "Adobe InDesign document" is recognized.

This layout contains the black and white icon, and you will be able to see the previews only first page of the document. Layouts imported by the web are treated as any other file.

3. If the censhare server does not support an InDesign version yet, the import on java client looks the same as in web client. To gain full functionality censhare must be upgraded to a compatible version.