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Setting my paragraphs to begin at the top margin with iTextSharp

I'm trying to build pdfs to digitize our reporting system at my company. I've used iTextSharp and so far it looks great but my margins don't seem to be working properly. I've set the margins to a config file and the left and right margins are working great, but my paragraph seems to start about 30% down the page regardless of the top and bottom margin. Here's the code I'm using:
public int PrintPdf()
{
//Getting the path
//Path.GetFileNameWithoutExtension("Test_Doc_Print") + ".pdf");
object OutputFileName = this._path;
//Making the PDF Doc
iTextSharp.text.Document PDFReport = new iTextSharp.text.Document
(
PageSize.A4.Rotate(),
/*this._left,
this._right,
this._top,
this._bottom*/
10,
10,
10,
10
);
//Setting The Font
string fontpath = #"C:\Windows\Fonts\";
BaseFont monoFont = BaseFont.CreateFont(fontpath + "Consola.ttf", BaseFont.CP1252, BaseFont.EMBEDDED);
Font fontPDF = new Font(monoFont, this._fontSize);
// create file stream for writing the PDF
FileStream fs = new FileStream(this._path, FileMode.Create, FileAccess.ReadWrite);
//FileStream fs = new FileStream(#"c:\\Reportlocation", FileMode.Create);
// Create an FCFC scan object to convert TextToPrint page at a time
FCFCScanner page = new FCFCScanner(this._text);
// Create PDF writer and associate with file stream
//iTextSharp.text.pdf.PdfWriter writer = new iTextSharp.text.pdf.PdfWriter.GetInstance(PDFReport, fs);
PdfWriter writer = PdfWriter.GetInstance(PDFReport, fs);
//Opening the PDF Doc
PDFReport.Open();
//Load each page from the string into the PDF
page.NextPage();
do
{
if (page.PageLength > 0)
{
Paragraph prg = new Paragraph(page.Page, fontPDF);
PDFReport.Add(prg);
PDFReport.NewPage();
page.NextPage();
}
} while (page.MorePages);
PDFReport.Close();
return (0);
}
I've set the margins to 10 (hardcoded for now) to show what I'm working with. This program should read a string that I send it from my StringBuider class.
It's designed to receive one page of text at a time and to convert it into a PDF document.
Ok, so the problem: when the page is built, the first paragraph doesn't begin at the top margin. If I reduce the margin, it doesn't shift the paragraph up to the new margin. It's causing my PDFs to be much longer as the text that fits easily on a printer page takes two PDF pages. Any help with getting my paragraph to simply begin at the top margin would be really appreciated.
I'm relatively new to programming and this is my first post, so if you need more information, let me know and I'll add more info.

PDF generated with iTextSharp always prompts to save changes when closing. And has missing pages when viewed with non-Acrobat PDF readers

I've recently used iTextSharp to create a PDF by importing the 20 pages from an existing PDF and then adding a dynamically generated link to the bottom of the last page. It works fine... kind of. Viewing the generated PDF in Acrobat Reader on a windows PC displays everything as expected although when closing the document it always asks "Do you want to save changes?". Viewing the generated PDF on a Surface Pro with PDF Reader displays the document without the first and last pages. Apparently on a mobile device using Polaris Office the first and last pages are also missing.
I'm wondering if when the new PDF is generated it's not getting closed off quite properly and that's why it asks "Do you want to save changes?" when closing it. And maybe that's also why it doesn't display correctly in some PDF reader apps.
Here's the code:
using (var reader = new PdfReader(HostingEnvironment.MapPath("~/app/pdf/OriginalDoc.pdf")))
{
using (
var fileStream =
new FileStream(
HostingEnvironment.MapPath("~/documents/attachments/DocWithLink_" + id + ".pdf"),
FileMode.Create, FileAccess.Write))
{
var document = new Document(reader.GetPageSizeWithRotation(1));
var writer = PdfWriter.GetInstance(document, fileStream);
using (PdfStamper stamper = new PdfStamper(reader, fileStream))
{
var baseFont = BaseFont.CreateFont(BaseFont.HELVETICA_BOLD, BaseFont.CP1252,
BaseFont.NOT_EMBEDDED);
Font linkFont = FontFactory.GetFont("Arial", 12, Font.UNDERLINE, BaseColor.BLUE);
document.Open();
for (var i = 1; i <= reader.NumberOfPages; i++)
{
document.NewPage();
var importedPage = writer.GetImportedPage(reader, i);
// Copy page of original document to new document.
var contentByte = writer.DirectContent;
contentByte.AddTemplate(importedPage, 0, 0);
if (i == reader.NumberOfPages) // It's the last page so add link.
{
PdfContentByte cb = stamper.GetOverContent(i);
//Create a ColumnText object
var ct = new ColumnText(cb);
//Set the rectangle to write to
ct.SetSimpleColumn(100, 30, 500, 90, 0, PdfContentByte.ALIGN_LEFT);
//Add some text and make it blue so that it looks like a hyperlink
var c = new Chunk("Click here!", linkFont);
var congrats = new Paragraph("Congratulations on reading the eBook! ");
congrats.Alignment = PdfContentByte.ALIGN_LEFT;
c.SetAnchor("http://www.domain.com/pdf/response/" + encryptedId);
//Add the chunk to the ColumnText
congrats.Add(c);
ct.AddElement(congrats);
//Tell the system to process the above commands
ct.Go();
}
}
}
}
}
I've looked at these posts with similar issues but none seem to quite provide the answer I need:
iTextSharp-generated PDFs cause save dialog when closing
Using iTextSharp to write data to PDF works great, but Acrobat Reader asks 'Do you want to save changes' when closing file
(Or they refer to memory streams instead of writing to disk etc)
My question is, how do I modify the above so that when closing the generated PDF in Acrobat Reader there's no "Do you want to save changes?" prompt. The answer to that may solve the problems with missing pages on Surface Pro etc but if you know anything else about what might be causing that I'd like to hear about it.
Any suggestions would be very welcome! Thanks!

At first glance (and without much coffee yet) it appears that you're using a PdfReader in three different contexts, as a source to a PdfStamper, as a source for Document and as for a source for importing. So you are essentially importing a document into itself that you're also writing to.
To give you a quick overview, the following code will essentially clone the contents of source.pdf into dest.pdf:
using (var reader = new PdfReader("source.pdf")){
using (var fileStream = new FileStream("dest.pdf", FileMode.Create, FileAccess.Write)){
using (PdfStamper stamper = new PdfStamper(reader, fileStream)){
}
}
}
Since that does all of the cloning for you you don't need to import pages or anything.
Then, if the only thing that you want to do is add some text to the last page, you can just use the above and ask the PdfStamper for a PdfContentByte using GetOverContent() and telling it what page number you're interested. Then you can just use the rest of your ColumnText logic.
using (var reader = new PdfReader("Source.Pdf")) {
using (var fileStream = new FileStream("Dest.Pdf"), FileMode.Create, FileAccess.Write) {
using (PdfStamper stamper = new PdfStamper(reader, fileStream)) {
//Get a PdfContentByte object
var cb = stamper.GetOverContent(reader.NumberOfPages);
//Create a ColumnText object
var ct = new ColumnText(cb);
//Set the rectangle to write to
ct.SetSimpleColumn(100, 30, 500, 90, 0, PdfContentByte.ALIGN_LEFT);
//Add some text and make it blue so that it looks like a hyperlink
var c = new Chunk("Click here!", linkFont);
var congrats = new Paragraph("Congratulations on reading the eBook! ");
congrats.Alignment = PdfContentByte.ALIGN_LEFT;
c.SetAnchor("http://www.domain.com/pdf/response/" + encryptedId);
//Add the chunk to the ColumnText
congrats.Add(c);
ct.AddElement(congrats);
//Tell the system to process the above commands
ct.Go();
}
}
}

merge 2 pdf with itextsharp stamper

I want to take 2 pdf files and merge them together.
each file is one page long. the reason to merge them is that one file is simply a footer. The footer needs to be attached to the existing file.
I'm using a stamper to try and merge the 2 files.
I successfully create the output file, but it doesn't have the footer. It's just a copy of the original input file. Any idea why they aren't merging?
using (Stream inputPdfStream = new FileStream(inputFile, FileMode.Open, FileAccess.Read, FileShare.Read))
using (Stream inputPdfFooterStream = new FileStream(footerPdf, FileMode.Open, FileAccess.Read, FileShare.Read))
using (Stream outputPdfStream = new FileStream(outputFile, FileMode.Create, FileAccess.Write, FileShare.None))
{
var reader = new PdfReader(inputPdfStream);
var stamper = new PdfStamper(reader, outputPdfStream);
var pdfContentByte = stamper.GetOverContent(1);
stamper.FormFlattening = true;
stamper.Close();
}

There are different problems with your question.
Problem #1: why did you add the line stamper.FormFlattening = true;? Are you working with a form? I don't see you do anything with forms, so why would you flatten the document?
Problem #2: You say you want to merge two documents with PdfStamper. That is misleading. Merging documents is done with PdfCopy. From your explanation, I gather that you want to superimpose two documents. You are right that you need PdfStamper to do so.
Problem #3: You want to use a specific document containing a footer as company stationery. In that case, you want to add the content of the stationery under the actual content. Then why are you using stamper.GetOverContent(1);? Use stamper.GetUnderContent(1); instead.
Problem #4: You are creating an inputPdfFooterStream to read the document with the footer, but I don't see you using that stream anywhere. What do you expect?
Problem #5: You didn't read the documentation. This is your main problem. Download chapter 6 of my book (it's available for free, and I've been referring to it in dozens of answers on StackOverflow). Go to page 176 where it says "Adding company stationery to an existing document". That example meets your requirement completely!
// Create readers
PdfReader reader = new PdfReader(src);
PdfReader s_reader = new PdfReader(stationery);
using (MemoryStream ms = new MemoryStream()) {
// Create the stamper
using (PdfStamper stamper = new PdfStamper(reader, ms)) {
// Add the stationery to each page
PdfImportedPage page = stamper.GetImportedPage(s_reader, 1);
int n = reader.NumberOfPages;
PdfContentByte background;
for (int i = 1; i <= n; i++) {
background = stamper.GetUnderContent(i);
background.AddTemplate(page, 0, 0);
}
}
return ms.ToArray();
}
In your code, you only have one reader. In my code, I also have an object called s_reader that takes the footerPdf document and allows you to created a PdfImportedPage:
PdfImportedPage page = stamper.GetImportedPage(s_reader, 1);
This page is then added under the existing content of the actual document:
background = stamper.GetUnderContent(i);
background.AddTemplate(page, 0, 0);
Note that this example assumes that both documents have the same page size and that the origin of the coordinate system of the document with the actual content coincided with the lower-left corner. If that isn't the case with your PDFs, you can have a situation where the footer isn't visible or is only partly visible. Also: if the document with the actual content is opaque, it will also make the footer invisible.

Add new page to iTextSharp's PdfStamper with template and fields

I'm trying to add new page to a PdfStamper but this code doesn't add the template pdf fields to the stamper.
private void InsertNewPage(PdfStamper stamper, int pageNumber)
{
var pdfReader = new PdfReader(UrlTemplateBlankPage);
pdfReader.SelectPages("1");
stamper.InsertPage(pageNumber, pdfReader.GetPageSize(1));
stamper.GetOverContent(pageNumber).AddTemplate(stamper.GetImportedPage(pdfReader, 1), 0, 0);
//This code doesn't work because the code before is not adding the form
var pdfFormFields = stamper.AcroFields;
var fieldKeys = pdfReader.AcroFields.Fields.Keys;
foreach (var k in fieldKeys.ToList())
{
pdfFormFields.RenameField(k, k + string.Format("_{0:000}", pageNumber));
}
}
I searched online but I can't find an answer about my problem.
The PDF template I'm adding has some fields added with Acrobat. I can't attach the template but I can give you all informations.

I cannot see how do you instantiate the stamper. This is an example about how to read a PDF template and assign it to the stamper:
var reader = new PdfReader(TEMPLATE_PATH);
var pdfOutput = new FileStream(PDF_OUTPUT_PATH, FileMode.Create)
var stamper = new PdfStamper(reader, pdfOutput);
After that, you can set the fields using the SetField function:
stamper.AcroFields.SetField("FIELD1", "VALUE")
There is an option to make your fillable PDFs non-editable using:
stamper.FormFlattening = true;
Otherwise, your PDF still fillable.
Once you have finished working with your files, close them:
stamper.Close();
reader.Close();
There is an example about how to use iTextSharp's PdfStamper in the next link: http://www.codeproject.com/Tips/679606/Filling-PDF-Form-using-iText-PDF-Library

iTextSharp - Opening a file and saving PdfDestination and PdfAction

I am trying to do something relatively simple with iTextSharp, but I always find it very confusing and can't figure out this without asking for some help.
I have a situation where a third party product I use generates a PDF, but doesn't have the option of setting initial view settings (zoom, fit to width, etc).
I have found some code that will allows me to do this in iTextSharp :-
Developer Barn
The bit I cannot work out is how to apply this to a file that already exists - this seems to be fine for any new files, or something I am creating in iTextSharp, but not an existing PDF. Is there a way of doing this, and how can it be done?
Many thanks in advance,
Adam
PS - Already found the answer to this.. StackOverflow won't let me close my own question though? Seems a bit daft, but anyway do it like this -
PdfReader reader = new PdfReader(new FileStream(fileName, FileMode.Open, FileAccess.Read));
Rectangle size = reader.GetPageSizeWithRotation(1);
using (Document document = new Document(size))
{
using (PdfWriter writer = PdfWriter.GetInstance(document, new FileStream(Path.Combine(Path.GetDirectoryName(fileName), "Zoom" + Path.GetFileName(fileName)), FileMode.Create, FileAccess.ReadWrite)))
{
//open our document
document.Open();
PdfContentByte cb = writer.DirectContent;
//this creates a new destination to send the action to when the document is opened.
PdfDestination pdfDest = new PdfDestination(PdfDestination.FITH, reader.GetPageSize(1).Top);
//create a new action to send the document to our new destination.
PdfAction action = PdfAction.GotoLocalPage(1, pdfDest, writer);
for (int pageNumber = 1; pageNumber <= reader.NumberOfPages; pageNumber++)
{
//need to change page size for landscape / portrait
document.SetPageSize(reader.GetPageSizeWithRotation(pageNumber));
document.NewPage();
PdfImportedPage page = writer.GetImportedPage(reader, pageNumber);
cb.AddTemplate(page, 0, 0);
}
//set the page mode
int PageMode = 0;
PageMode += PdfWriter.PageLayoutOneColumn;
//set the open action for our writer object
writer.SetOpenAction(action);
writer.ViewerPreferences = PageMode;
writer.SetFullCompression();
//finally, close our document
document.Close();
}
}

I don't think there is an edit functionnality per se, neither in iTextSharp nor in iText. I think the way to go is to open the existing document, create a new writer, copy the old document into the new writer while adding the enrichments you'd like to see and overwrite the original doc afterwards as decribed here.