How to open TCPDF output in new window when using AJAX

Question

So I have seen other on the internet have had similar issues but the solutions don't really work for me. Also I've seen that these problems have been posted at least 4 years ago, so maybe some things have changed. Simply, I am trying to write a pdf using TCPDF and open that pdf in a new window. The catch is using AJAX since apparently, the array I sent to the server is not being sent in the success section of the script and this the resulting pdf did not receive the appropriate data:

$(document).on("click", "#create_qr_codes_pdf", function(ev) {
        ev.preventDefault();
        var qr_array = [];

        for (var i = 0; i < $("#qrcode_top img").length; i++) {
            qr_array.push($('#code' +i+' img').attr('src'));
        }

        $.ajax({            
            url: 'server/qr_id_create.php?create_qr_codes_pdf',
            type: 'POST',
            data: {qr_array: qr_array},
            success: function(data) { 
                window.open("C:/xampp/htdocs/*/server/qr_codes.pdf");
            }
        });
    });

So as you can see I tried fetching the pdf from the server and opening it in a new tab, but apparently it's not allowed to open the local resource.

This is the php code used to create the pdf document:

if (isset($_GET['create_qr_codes_pdf'])) {
    //ob_start();
    if (isset($_POST['qr_array'])) {
        $qr_images = $_POST['qr_array'];

        require_once 'tcpdf/tcpdf.php';
        //require_once('tcpdf/include/tcpdf_static.php');
        require_once 'tcpdf/config/tcpdf_config.php'; 
        $pdf = new TCPDF(PDF_PAGE_ORIENTATION, PDF_UNIT, PDF_PAGE_FORMAT, true, 'UTF-8', false);
        $pdf->SetCreator(PDF_CREATOR);
        $pdf->SetAuthor('name');
        $pdf->SetTitle('file');
        $pdf->SetSubject('TCPDF Tutorial');
        $pdf->SetKeywords('TCPDF, PDF, example, test, guide');
        $pdf->setHeaderFont(Array(PDF_FONT_NAME_MAIN, '', PDF_FONT_SIZE_MAIN));
        $pdf->setFooterFont(Array(PDF_FONT_NAME_DATA, '', PDF_FONT_SIZE_DATA));
        $pdf->SetDefaultMonospacedFont(PDF_FONT_MONOSPACED);
        $pdf->SetMargins(PDF_MARGIN_LEFT, 35, PDF_MARGIN_RIGHT);
        $pdf->SetAutoPageBreak(TRUE, 35);
        $pdf->setImageScale(PDF_IMAGE_SCALE_RATIO);
        if (@file_exists(dirname(__FILE__).'/lang/eng.php')) {
            require_once(dirname(__FILE__).'/lang/eng.php');
            $pdf->setLanguageArray($l);
        }
        $pdf->setFontSubsetting(true);
        $pdf->SetFont('helvetica', '', 9, '', true);

        $pdf->AddPage();

        foreach ($qr_images as $img) {
            $img = preg_replace('/^[^,]*,\s*/', '', $img);
            $img = base64_decode($img);
            $pdf->Image('@'.$img);
            $pdf->AddPage();
        }
        ob_end_clean();
        $pdf->Output('qr_codes.pdf', 'F');
        return true;
    } else {

    }
}

I have tried variations of $pdf->Output('qr_codes.pdf', 'F'); //I, F, D. Ideally I would like to use the I option to open in the browser, but this does not work at all. If I run the script, nothing is happening. Any ideas?

@KUMAR getting a error `You don't have permission to access the requested object. It is either read-protected or not readable by the server.`. — Roelof Coertze, Apr 25 '20 at 11:03

score 1 · Accepted Answer · answered Apr 26 '20 at 12:49

In 2014, timclutton found a solution with the php file_get_contents function.

I've tested it with your ajax code. I simply added a space between the images and it worked :

<?php

if (isset($_GET['create_qr_codes_pdf'])) {

    if (isset($_POST['qr_array'])) {

        $qr_images = $_POST['qr_array'];

        require_once('../TCPDF-master/tcpdf.php');

        $pdf = new TCPDF(PDF_PAGE_ORIENTATION, PDF_UNIT, PDF_PAGE_FORMAT, true, 'UTF-8', false);

        $pdf->AddPage();

        foreach ($qr_images as $img) {

            $img = file_get_contents($img);
            $pdf->Image('@'.$img);
            $position = $pdf->GetY();
            $pdf->SetY($position+50);
        }

        $pdf->Output('your\absolute\local\path\qr_codes.pdf', 'F');
        return true;
    }
}

From data URIs, I get a pdf file with pictures that opens in a new window.

How to open TCPDF output in new window when using AJAX

1 Answers1