This document contains a description of Release 2 Update 1 (R2 U1) of the ABBYY FlexiCapture Engine 12.

The Release Notes is a document intended to be the source of technical information for groups that are involved in the marketing, sales, and support of the Release.

About the Release

Purpose of the Release

Purpose of this release is to support a compatibility with FlexiCapture 12 Release 2 Update 7.

The product release also includes bugfixes. Please find an additional information in the “Fixed Bugs” section.

Product Information

ABBYY FlexiCapture Engine 12 is a new release of the ABBYY Data Capture SDK delivering new features and technology improvements.

ABBYY FlexiCapture Engine is a development tool for ISVs, OEM vendors, and service providers that wish to develop data capture solutions for processing fixed-form documents and semi-structured documents with repetitive layouts. It can also be used for creating customized data capture applications for various scanning devices and terminals.

Release Description

This is a release for worldwide sales.

Part Number, Build Number

• Part # 1355/13
• Build # 12.1.24.10

Technology and FlexiCapture Build Numbers

• FlexiCapture 12.0.2.3052
• OCR Technology build # 16.1.528.13
• APDFL version 15.0.4PlusP3e

ABBYY FlexiCapture Engine 12 works with projects created in ABBYY FlexiCapture 12 Release 2 Update 7, Build 12.0.2.3042, or earlier. Projects saved in the current version of ABBYY FlexiCapture Engine 12 can be used in ABBYY FlexiCapture 12 Release 2 Update 7, Build 12.0.2.3042, or later. You can also pass projects to and from ABBYY FlexiCapture 12 shipped with the current ABBYY FlexiCapture Engine 12 distribution.

Software and Hardware Requirements

ABBYY FineReader Engine 12 Requirements

• PC with x86-compatible processor (1 GHz or higher)
• Operating system (compatible with last available service packs)
  • Windows Server 2016, 2012, 2008 R2
  • Windows 10, 8.1, 8, 7
• ABBYY FlexiCapture Engine has been tested on the following cloud computing platforms
  • Microsoft Azure
    • Azure App Services
    • Azure Cloud Services
    • Azure Service Fabric
    • Azure Virtual Machines
  • Amazon EC2
• ABBYY FlexiCapture Engine has been tested in the following virtual environments
  • Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2016, 2012, 2008
  • Oracle VM VirtualBox 5.2
  • Parallels Desktop for Mac 13.0.1
  • VMware ESXi 6.5
  • VMware Workstation Player 12.5
  • VMware Workstation Pro 14.0.0
• ABBYY FlexiCapture Engine can also be run in a Docker container on supported platforms.
• Memory
  • For processing one-page documents — minimum 400 MB RAM, recommended 1 GB RAM
  • For processing multi-page documents — minimum 1 GB RAM, recommended 1.5 GB RAM
• Hard disk space: 1400 MB for library installation and 100 MB for program operation plus additional 15 MB for each processed page of a multi-page document
• 100% TWAIN-compatible scanner, digital camera, or fax modem — for scanning only
• Video card and monitor (min. resolution 1024*768) — for displaying GUI elements
• Keyboard, mouse or other input device
• The following registry branches should be accessible from the workstation
  • "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\ABBYY\SDK\12\FlexiCapture Engine" — full control
  • "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\ABBYY\SDK\12" — full control for installation only
  • "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\ABBYY\SDK\12" — full control for installation only
• The following folders should be accessible from the workstation
  • Folder with ABBYY FlexiCapture Engine binary files — access for reading
  • %TEMP% folder — full control access
  • Folder %ProgramData%\ABBYY\SDK\12\FlexiCapture Engine — full control access
  • Folder %ProgramData%\ABBYY\SDK\12\Licenses — full control access
• The following components should be installed
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 8.0 or higher

ABBYY SDK 12 License Server Requirements

• PC with x86-compatible processor (1 GHz or higher)
• Operating system (compatible with last available service packs)
  • Windows Server 2016, 2012, 2008 R2
  • Windows 10, 8.1, 8, 7
• ABBYY FlexiCapture Engine has been tested in the following virtual environments
  • Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2016, 2012, 2008
  • Oracle VM VirtualBox 5.2
  • Parallels Desktop for Mac 13.0.1
  • VMware ESXi 6.5
  • VMware Workstation Player 12.5
  • VMware Workstation Pro 14.0.0
• ABBYY FlexiCapture Engine can also be run in a Docker container on supported
• 25 MB of free hard-disk space
• Folder %ProgramData%\ABBYY\SDK\12\Licenses — full control access
• For activation/deactivation of the license
  • Allowed connections to *.abbyy.com
  • Port: 80
  • Protocol: HTTP
• If proxy-server, VPN or dial-up connection is used, you must customize the following settings in Internet Explorer: Tools > Internet Options > Connections

Upgrading from Previous Versions and Releases

Binary Incompatibility

It is necessary to recompile the host application regardless of the version of the Engine previously used.

API Changes

Release 1

Please refer to the “ABBYY FlexiCapture Engine 12 and 11 Compatibility” section in the product documentation.

• project structure
• document definition structure
• image-related objects
• scanning-related objects
• license-related objects

Release 2

New algorithm for FCE loading

The loading of the Engine object is now a unified algorithm with the possibility to customize the loading parameters.

Automatic text- and image-based classification is deprecated

The corresponding functionality will be removed in future versions.

Working with projects is deprecated

The corresponding functionality will be removed in future versions.

ActiveX visual components are marked as deprecated

The ActiveX components will be removed from the product in the next version.

Changes in Behavior

Release 1

New default installation folders

List of Changes

New Features and Improvements

Release 1

Technologies

Compatibility with FlexiCapture 12 – the product should be based on the same technologies.

Export

• Users can now select a version of PDF/A
• The quality setting allows selecting between file size and image quality
• MRC can now be used for non-searchable PDFs
• The “Fast Web View” option allows showing the first page of a multi-page document before the entire document has been loaded
• Use the “Enable tagged PDF” setting for searchable PDFs
• UTF encoding without BOM is now supported for all text formats

Release 2

Improved speed and accuracy, new languages, and barcode types

• MaxiCode barcode type
• Japanese Modern language support
• Burmese, Farsi, and Georgian recognition language support

New filters to enhance images manually

• Reduce noise in high-ISO images
• Remove color marks
• Automatically crop images
• Whiten image backgrounds

Digital PDF processing

• Content only
• Do not reuse
• Auto

New export options

• The ability to select PDF/A version during export
• “Fast Web View” option for export to PDF
• The ability to export tagged PDFs
• The ability not to write a BOM character when exporting to UTF

FRE 12 API included

To use the FRE 12 API inside FCE 12, a special license may be required.

New engine deployment options

FCE 12 now supports a new licensing type for virtual and cloud environments.

64-bit version

FCE 12 now natively supports 64-bit operating systems.

Fixed Bugs

Severity scale

• Critical A bug that causes crashes or freezes
• Major A bug that does not cause program failure but affects major functionality
• Minor A bug that leads to feature malfunctioning
• Trivial A cosmetic issue that does not affect functionality