How to Generate PDFs from FileMaker with a REST API

FileMaker's built-in PDF generation works — until it doesn't. You build a layout. You use "Save Records as PDF." It looks fine on your machine. Then a client opens the same file on Windows and the fonts are wrong, the margins shifted, and that carefully aligned logo is now floating somewhere in the header wilderness. Sound familiar? Let's fix it. The problem with FileMaker's native PDF generation FileMaker's "Save Records as PDF" script step is layout-based. That means your PDF output is a screenshot of a layout, not a document built from structured data. This creates a cascade of problems: Layout dependency. Every PDF format requires its own layout. Need an invoice, a quote, and a packing slip? That's three layouts to maintain, each with pixel-perfect alignment that breaks when you change a field. Cross-platform inconsistency. FileMaker renders layouts differently on Mac vs. Windows vs. Server. Font substitution, line height differences, and margin calculations vary between platforms.