Print AutoPage

This documentation contains information about the Print AutoPage component and how it is used in connection with Adobe InDesign and STEP to create autopaginated publications. With autopagination, a selection of objects (most commonly products and assets) can be placed onto one or even hundreds of Adobe InDesign pages in a single-mount operation, requiring minimal or no manual interference.

Once an initial publication has been created, AutoPage can update these auto-generated InDesign pages with just a few clicks. For publications like catalogs and sales flyers, which need to be republished each year or season, AutoPage can save time on pagination tasks that would otherwise be performed manually, such as the updating of content, images, and pricing information. Additionally, product presentations can be easily reordered and repositioned, and pages for an entire publication can be resequenced in one operation. When autopagination is complete, AutoPage can transform the InDesign pages into printer-ready, high-resolution PDFs.

Note: Though objects other than product objects can be mounted onto InDesign pages from STEP, including classification folders, entities, and green publication hierarchy objects themselves, the subtopics in this documentation will frequently refer to InDesign page layouts as 'product presentations' and objects to be mounted as 'products'. This is to streamline the language used in presenting this information.

AutoPage Component Requirements

To use AutoPage, the following components are required in addition to STEP:

  • Print Publisher
  • Print AutoPage

Other components may be required for specific features.

Third-Party Software Requirements

  • Adobe InDesign Server (IDS) software, which executes the autopagination process.
  • Adobe InDesign client software, for individual users. The client version of the software must match the server version.

Note: Supported versions of Adobe InDesign are CC 2024 (v. 19) and CC 2023 (v. 18).

A subscription to the Adobe Creative Cloud service is required for both client and server platforms.

The Adobe InDesign server is only supported by Windows and Mac platforms. As such, additional hardware may be required in addition to the STEP application server.

Additional Prerequisites

Consider the following items:

  • STEP Knowledge

    To use AutoPage, the following is recommended:

    • Basic knowledge of STEP. Refer to the Getting Started documentation (here) for more information.

    • An understanding of Publisher. For more information, refer to the Publisher (Adobe InDesign Integration) documentation here.

  • Fonts

    All required fonts for a production must be placed onto the InDesign Server that STEP is connected to as well as on users' local client PCs or Macs. If possible, use Open Type fonts (OTF), which are both PC and Mac compatible.

  • InDesign Plugin

    Both the InDesign Server (IDS) and any local client installations of Adobe InDesign must have the correct Adobe InDesign plugin installed. For client installations, this is downloaded from the Start Page of your STEP system. Refer to the Installing Print Publisher (InDesign Plugin) section of the Publisher (Adobe InDesign Integration) documentation (here) for more information.

  • Asset Push

    Since the majority of publications utilize images, asset push must be configured, and the asset push sidecar must be set up and running. For more information, refer to the Asset Push section of the Digital Assets documentation here.