# view a PDF from database **URL:** \ **Category:** Web\ **Created:** [June 11, 2016, 12:45pm UTC](https://forum.xojo.com/t/view-a-pdf-from-database/31912 "2016-06-11T12:45:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Helge\_Tjelta](https://forum.xojo.com/user_avatar/forum.xojo.com/helge_tjelta/32/193_2.png) [@Helge\_Tjelta](https://forum.xojo.com/u/Helge_Tjelta)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2016, 12:45pm UTC](https://forum.xojo.com/t/view-a-pdf-from-database/31912/1 "2016-06-11T12:45:53Z")
Hi, I have a PDF stored in my DB (valentina), I can get the file and download it, and send it as an emailattachment… but how can I view it. Using htmlviewer.url gives me a lot of can find file errors and stuff… so is there another way to get the PDF on screen… the file is stored in a BLOB field, and the test PDF is uploaded into the blob using valentina studio, and can be downloaded as a PDF so file is ok into base. I also tried to make a new PDF, import the PDF from db into this new PDF and show that one in the htmlviewer but still no go. ---
**Author:** ![Helge\_Tjelta](https://forum.xojo.com/user_avatar/forum.xojo.com/helge_tjelta/32/193_2.png) [@Helge\_Tjelta](https://forum.xojo.com/u/Helge_Tjelta)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2016, 12:54pm UTC](https://forum.xojo.com/t/view-a-pdf-from-database/31912/2 "2016-06-11T12:54:17Z")
I only get a lot of: 404: File Not Found The requested URL “/39412B6FD785D1E414E33B972F96328222CCAACE/files/1179-0156-1173-4985-9854/test.pdf” could not be found. Please check your request and try again. ---
**Author:** ![Christian\_Schmitz](https://forum.xojo.com/user_avatar/forum.xojo.com/christian_schmitz/32/158_2.png) [@Christian\_Schmitz](https://forum.xojo.com/u/Christian_Schmitz)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2016, 1:50pm UTC](https://forum.xojo.com/t/view-a-pdf-from-database/31912/3 "2016-06-11T13:50:45Z")
With MBS DynaPDF? Or at least running on Mac to use PDFKit? I think we have a web app example for showing PDF. ---
**Author:** ![Helge\_Tjelta](https://forum.xojo.com/user_avatar/forum.xojo.com/helge_tjelta/32/193_2.png) [@Helge\_Tjelta](https://forum.xojo.com/u/Helge_Tjelta)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2016, 2:15pm UTC](https://forum.xojo.com/t/view-a-pdf-from-database/31912/4 "2016-06-11T14:15:26Z")
I have MBSdynaPDf But all examples shows from a file and not from DB ? ---
**Author:** ![Helge\_Tjelta](https://forum.xojo.com/user_avatar/forum.xojo.com/helge_tjelta/32/193_2.png) [@Helge\_Tjelta](https://forum.xojo.com/u/Helge_Tjelta)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2016, 2:16pm UTC](https://forum.xojo.com/t/view-a-pdf-from-database/31912/5 "2016-06-11T14:16:01Z")
I was looking into rendertopicture, but then I need to upgrade my dynaPDF to pro license ? ---
**Author:** ![Christian\_Schmitz](https://forum.xojo.com/user_avatar/forum.xojo.com/christian_schmitz/32/158_2.png) [@Christian\_Schmitz](https://forum.xojo.com/u/Christian_Schmitz)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2016, 4:02pm UTC](https://forum.xojo.com/t/view-a-pdf-from-database/31912/6 "2016-06-11T16:02:29Z")
Yes, pro license. And open import buffer function reads from string or memoryblock ---
**Author:** ![Maurizio\_Rossi](https://forum.xojo.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@Maurizio\_Rossi](https://forum.xojo.com/u/Maurizio_Rossi)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2016, 4:07pm UTC](https://forum.xojo.com/t/view-a-pdf-from-database/31912/7 "2016-06-11T16:07:47Z")
The error “404: File not found” could be an indication that the file (test.pdf in this case) was deleted before the browser was able to download it. Please, make your file a property of your window and not a property of a method. ---
**Author:** ![Helge\_Tjelta](https://forum.xojo.com/user_avatar/forum.xojo.com/helge_tjelta/32/193_2.png) [@Helge\_Tjelta](https://forum.xojo.com/u/Helge_Tjelta)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2016, 5:03pm UTC](https://forum.xojo.com/t/view-a-pdf-from-database/31912/8 "2016-06-11T17:03:05Z")
Hi Maurizio, I don’t want to download it. I just want my app to get it from my DB (it is stored in a blob field), and show it on screen. And since htmlviewer can show it when it is a file I would like to know if it can be done without having to downloading it. ---
**Author:** ![Maurizio\_Rossi](https://forum.xojo.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@Maurizio\_Rossi](https://forum.xojo.com/u/Maurizio_Rossi)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2016, 7:42am UTC](https://forum.xojo.com/t/view-a-pdf-from-database/31912/9 "2016-06-13T07:42:20Z")
Hi Helge, to display the pdf file in a browser page, the browser itself must download the pdf file. The problem you have is, possibly, that the value you set in “htmlviewer.url” is referring to a webfile that gets destroyed too early so the browser is unable to download the pdf to display. Please, define your webfile not as a property of a method but as a property, for example, of a page. Doing so your webfile stay alive, the browser will be able to download it without the error “404: File not found” Remember also to set the “MIMEType” property of the webfile to the string value “application/pdf”. Regards. ---
**Author:** ![Helge\_Tjelta](https://forum.xojo.com/user_avatar/forum.xojo.com/helge_tjelta/32/193_2.png) [@Helge\_Tjelta](https://forum.xojo.com/u/Helge_Tjelta)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2016, 1:07pm UTC](https://forum.xojo.com/t/view-a-pdf-from-database/31912/10 "2016-06-13T13:07:00Z")
Hi Maurizio, you we totally right. I had to move my property to the web-page. Now I could do it… but I also had to make a new PDF and import that PDF into a new created PDF, and then send that to html viewer. I just did not managed to go directly from DB to html viewer. But thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Maurizio\_Rossi](https://forum.xojo.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@Maurizio\_Rossi](https://forum.xojo.com/u/Maurizio_Rossi)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2016, 2:11pm UTC](https://forum.xojo.com/t/view-a-pdf-from-database/31912/11 "2016-06-13T14:11:47Z")
Hi Helge, thank you for reporting that the problem is solved. I don’t think that you need to duplicate or recreate a second pdf just to show it. Starting from the original pdf you can simply copy it’s content in the data property of the webfile. Take a look at the [WebFile.Data](http://documentation.xojo.com/index.php/WebFile.Data) property. Best regards. ---
**Author:** ![system](https://forum.xojo.com/uploads/default/original/1X/455b4dcc0e61630e9f81940004ddffa49c432a46.png) [@system](https://forum.xojo.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2020, 6:21pm UTC](https://forum.xojo.com/t/view-a-pdf-from-database/31912/12 "2020-10-29T18:21:23Z")