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When job files contain spot colors, you need to figure out whether to reduce them.

You can handle a spot color in several ways:

Preserve it so that it remains in the job files, appears in a proof, or appears in final output.
Convert it to process color.
Map it to another spot color.
Omit it from proofs or final output.

You can handle spot colors at several stages in the workflow:

Refine: See About reducing and preserving spot colors during refine.
Proof: See About reducing and preserving spot colors in proofs.
Final output: See About reducing and preserving spot colors in final output.

To determine whether to reduce or preserve spot colors, evaluate the spot colors in your input files and compare that to the spot colors expected in the output. Use the table below to select the procedure that best suits your job.

If the Answer to This Question	Is This	See This Procedure
Will the colors in your final output be the same as the colors in your input files?	Yes	Preserving spot colors during refine
	No	Reducing all spot colors during refine Reducing individual spot colors during refine
When you generate loose page output does the proofer support the spot colors in the pages?	Yes	Preserving spot colors in loose page output
	No	Reducing all spot colors in loose page output Reducing individual spot colors in loose page output
When you generate imposition output does the proofer support the spot colors in the signatures?	Yes	Preserving spot colors in imposition output
	No	Reducing all spot colors in imposition output Reducing individual spot colors in imposition output
Do the signatures have spot colors that you do not want in the final output?	Yes	Preserving spot colors in final output
	No	Reducing all spot colors in final output Reducing individual spot colors in final output