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Sheets in Photoshop and InDesign

Adobe Creative Suite1 applications, including the Photoshop graphics editor and InDesign desktop publishing software, support JavaScript-based extensions.

SheetJS is a JavaScript library for reading and writing data from spreadsheets.

This demo uses SheetJS in Creative Suite extensions to import data from spreadsheet files and export data to spreadsheets. We'll explore how to use SheetJS scripts in extensions and programmatically interact with documents.

The InDesign demos translate between InDesign tables and workbooks.

InDesign Table to Spreadsheet

This demo explores three different JavaScript platforms supported in various versions of Photoshop and InDesign:

Tested Deployments

This demo was verified in the following deployments:

AppPlatformDate
PhotoshopExtendScript2024-03-12
InDesignExtendScript2024-08-12
InDesignCEP2024-03-12
InDesignUXP2024-03-11

ExtendScript​

The "ExtendScript" build can be included from a script in the same directory:

#include "xlsx.extendscript.js"

ExtendScript is not performant. Even modest files may cause Adobe apps to crash.

On the SheetJS chat, a user presented a workaround that uses a precompiled command-line tool to process data and pass JSON data back to ExtendScript.

Reading Files​

The SheetJS readFile2 method can directly accept an absolute URI:

var workbook = XLSX.readFile("~/Documents/test.xlsx");

File.openDialog shows a file picker and returns a path:

/* Show File Picker */
var thisFile = File.openDialog("Select a spreadsheet");
if(!thisFile) { alert("File not found!"); return; }

/* Read file from disk */
var workbook = XLSX.readFile(thisFile.absoluteURI);
Complete Example (click to hide)

In this example, the script will show a dialog to select a file. After reading the file, the workbook Author property will be extracted and the Photoshop doc author (activeDocument.info.author) will be changed accordingly.

  1. Download the test workbook.

  2. Download the following scripts and move to the scripts directory3:

  1. Restart Photoshop and open a file (or create a new one)

  2. File > Scripts > parse and select the test workbook

  3. An alert will confirm that the file was read and the author will be changed:

"Changing Author" popup

  1. Check the Author field of the document in File > File Info...

Writing Files​

The SheetJS writeFile5 method can directly accept an absolute URI:

XLSX.writeFile(workbook, "~/Documents/test.xlsx");

File.saveDialog shows a save picker and returns a path:

/* Show File Picker */
var thisFile = File.saveDialog("Select an output file", "*.xlsx;*.xls");
if(!thisFile) { alert("File not found!"); return; }

/* Write file to disk */
XLSX.writeFile(workbook, thisFile.absoluteURI);
Complete Example (click to hide)

In this example, the script will show a dialog to select an output file. Once selected, the library will create a new workbook with one worksheet. Cell A1 will be "Author" and cell B1 will be the active Photoshop document Author. The PS author is available as activeDocument.info.author.

  1. Download the following scripts and move to the scripts directory6:

  1. Restart Photoshop and open a file (or create a new one)

  2. File > File Info ... and confirm there is an Author. If not, set to SheetJS

  3. File > Scripts > write and use the popup to select the Documents folder. Enter SheetJSPSTest.xlsx and press "Save"

  4. An alert will confirm that the file was created:

"Created File" popup

  1. Open the generated SheetJSPSTest.xlsx file and compare to Photoshop author

CEP​

The SheetJS Standalone scripts can be added to CEP extension HTML. It should be downloaded from the CDN and included in the extension.

For performing file operations in CEP extensions, NodeJS is not required! The manifest must include the following flags to enable cep.fs:

<CEFCommandLine>
  <Parameter>--allow-file-access</Parameter>
  <Parameter>--allow-file-access-from-files</Parameter>
</CEFCommandLine>

With newer versions of Creative Cloud apps, a special player debug mode must be enabled to use unsigned extensions. The command depends on the CEP version.

InDesign and Photoshop 2024 use CEP 11. In the examples, the 11 should be replaced with the appropriate CEP version number.

On Windows, within the registry key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Adobe\CSXS.11, a string value named PlayerDebugMode must be set to 1. This can be set in PowerShell using the reg command:

reg add HKCU\SOFTWARE\Adobe\CSXS.11 /v PlayerDebugMode /t REG_SZ /d 1 /f

On macOS, the setting must be added to com.adobe.CSXS.11.plist . After writing to the property list, cfprefsd must be restarted:

defaults write com.adobe.CSXS.11.plist PlayerDebugMode 1
killall cfprefsd

Reading Files​

The second argument to cep.fs.readFile is an encoding. cep.encoding.Base64 instructs the method to return a Base64-encoded string.

The SheetJS read method8, with the option type: "base64"9, can parse Base64 strings and return SheetJS workbook objects.

The typical flow is to read data from CEP and pass the data into the host ExtendScript context. The following snippet parses a workbook:

/* show file picker (single file, no folders) */
const fn = cep.fs.showOpenDialogEx(false, false, "Select File", "", ["xlsx"]);
/* read data as Base64 string */
const data = cep.fs.readFile(fn.data[0], cep.encoding.Base64);
/* parse with SheetJS */
const wb = XLSX.read(data.data, { type: "base64" });
Complete Example (click to hide)

  1. Download com.sheetjs.data.zip and extract to a com.sheetjs.data subdirectory.

  2. Move the entire com.sheetjs.data folder to the CEP extensions folder10.

If prompted, give administrator privileges.

  1. Download and open Template.idml

  2. Download the test workbook

  3. Show the extension (in the menu bar, select Window > Extensions > SheetJS)

  4. In the extension panel, click "Import from file" and select pres.xlsx

After "success" popup, the first worksheet should be written to the file.

Writing Files​

The SheetJS write method11, with the option type: "base64"12, can generate spreadsheet files encoded as Base64 strings.

The third argument to cep.fs.writeFile is an encoding. cep.encoding.Base64 instructs the method to interpret the data as a Base64-encoded string.

The typical flow is to invoke a function with CSInterface#evalScript that returns data from the host ExtendScript context. The callback should build the workbook and initiate a file save. The following snippet exports to XLSX:

/* generate XLSX as base64 string */
const b64 = XLSX.write(wb, {type:"base64", bookType: "xlsx"})
/* show file picker */
const fn = cep.fs.showSaveDialogEx("Save File","",["xlsx"],"SheetJSIDCEP.xlsx");
/* write file */
cep.fs.writeFile(fn.data, b64, cep.encoding.Base64);
Complete Example (click to hide)

  1. Download com.sheetjs.data.zip and extract to a com.sheetjs.data subdirectory.

  2. Move the entire com.sheetjs.data folder to the CEP extensions folder13:

If prompted, give administrator privileges.

  1. Download and open Filled.idml

  2. Show the extension (in the menu bar, select Window > Extensions > SheetJS)

  3. In the extension panel, click "Export to XLSX" and "Save" in the dialog.

  4. A popup will display the path to the generated file. Open the new file.

UXP​

UXP uses scripts with .psjs (PS) or .idjs (InDesign) file extensions.

The SheetJS Standalone scripts can be loaded directly in UXP scripts with require:

/* assuming xlsx.full.min.js is in the same folder as the idjs / psjs script */
const XLSX = require("./xlsx.full.min.js");

Filesystem access is provided by the UXP storage module:

const UXP = require("uxp");
const storage = UXP.storage, ufs = storage.localFileSystem;

Reading Files​

The getFileForOpening method resolves to a File object. Reading the file with the binary format returns an ArrayBuffer object that can be parsed with the SheetJS read method14:

/* show file picker (single file, no folders) */
const file = await ufs.getFileForOpening({ types: ["xlsx", "xls", "xlsb"] });
/* read data into an ArrayBuffer */
const ab = await file.read({ format: storage.formats.binary });
/* parse with SheetJS */
const wb = XLSX.read(ab);
Complete Example (click to hide)

  1. Open the "Scripts Panel" folder15.

  2. Download the following scripts:

Move them to the Scripts Panel folder.

  1. Download and open Template.idml

  2. Download the test workbook

  3. In the Scripts Panel, double-click "parse". Select the downloaded pres.xlsx in the file picker.

If the InDesign version does not support UXP, a tooltip shows a message:

This file is not executable by any supported script language.

ExtendScript should be used when UXP is not supported.

Writing Files​

The SheetJS write method16, with the option type: "buffer"17, returns file data stored in a Uint8Array.

The getFileForSaving method resolves to a File object. The write method accepts an options argument. If the data: storage.formats.binary option is set, the method will correctly interpret Uint8Array data.

The following snippet exports to XLSX:

/* generate XLSX with type: "buffer" */
const buf = XLSX.write(wb, { type: "buffer", bookType: "xlsx" });
/* show file picker */
const file = await ufs.getFileForSaving("SheetJSUXP.xlsx");
/* write data */
await file.write(buf, { data: storage.formats.binary });
Complete Example (click to hide)

  1. Open the "Scripts Panel" folder18.

  2. Download the following scripts:

Move them to the Scripts Panel folder.

  1. Download and open Filled.idml

  2. In the Scripts Panel, double-click "Write". Click "Save" in the dialog.

  3. When the process finishes, open SheetJSUXP.xlsx and verify the contents.

Miscellany​

Scripts Panel​

The scripts panel folder is used for ExtendScript and UXP scripts. The location can be revealed from the relevant applications. For InDesign:

  1. Activate Scripts panel (Windows > Utilities > Scripts)

  2. In the new panel window, select the User folder

  3. Click ☰ and select "Reveal in Explorer" or "Reveal in Finder".

A new Explorer (Windows) or Finder (macOS) window will open the folder.

Some versions of InDesign will open the parent "Scripts" folder. If there is a "Scripts Panel" subdirectory, that folder should be used.

CEP Extensions​

CEP extension scripts are typically stored in a system-wide folder:

OSFolder
WindowsC:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\Adobe\CEP\extensions\
Macintosh/Library/Application\ Support/Adobe/CEP/extensions

Administrator privileges are usually required for writing to the folder.

Footnotes​

  1. Historically, Adobe applications were separate entities. Eventually they were bundled in a package called "Creative Suite". It was rebranded to "Creative Cloud" later. As ExtendScript was introduced during the Creative Suite era, this page will use the phrase "Creative Suite". ↩

  2. See readFile in "Reading Files" ↩

  3. See "Scripts Panel" ↩

  4. See "Scripts Panel" ↩

  5. See writeFile in "Writing Files" ↩

  6. See "Scripts Panel" ↩

  7. See "Scripts Panel" ↩

  8. See read in "Reading Files" ↩

  9. See the "base64" type in "Reading Files" ↩

  10. See "CEP Extensions" ↩

  11. See write in "Writing Files" ↩

  12. See "Supported Output Formats" type in "Writing Files" ↩

  13. See "CEP Extensions" ↩

  14. See read in "Reading Files" ↩

  15. See "Scripts Panel" ↩

  16. See write in "Writing Files" ↩

  17. See "Supported Output Formats" type in "Writing Files" ↩

  18. See "Scripts Panel" ↩