---
title: "Avoid conversion on error"
description: "Learn how to avoid conversion on error using Java and the HttpClient library. This guide offers detailed steps with code samples in Java and the HttpClient library, showing how to handle conversion errors gracefully."
language: 'Java'
library: 'HttpClient'
property: 'continue_on_error'
output: 'pdf'
related: ['define-a-time-limit', 'receive-a-webhook-event']
default: false
---

In this guide, we'll show you how to avoid conversion on error using Java and the HttpClient library.

When converting documents to PDF, you might want to prevent conversion if certain errors occur to avoid generating invalid PDFs.

```java
import java.net.http.*;
import java.net.URI;
import java.net.http.HttpRequest.BodyPublishers;
import java.net.http.HttpResponse.BodyHandlers;
import java.time.Duration;

// You can get an API key at https://pdfshift.io
String apiKey = "sk_xxxxxxxxxxxx";

HttpClient client = HttpClient.newBuilder()
    .connectTimeout(Duration.ofSeconds(10))
    .build();

HttpRequest request = HttpRequest.newBuilder()
    .uri(URI.create("https://api.pdfshift.io/v3/convert/pdf"))
    .header("X-API-Key", apiKey)
    .header("Content-Type", "application/json")
    .POST(BodyPublishers.ofString("{\n" +
        "  \"source\": \"https://www.example.com\",\n" +
        "  \"continue_on_error\": false\n" +
        "}"))
    .build();

HttpResponse<byte[]> response = client.send(request, BodyHandlers.ofByteArray());

// Handle errors:
if (response.statusCode() >= 400) {
    throw new RuntimeException("Request failed with status code " + response.statusCode());
}

java.nio.file.Files.write(java.nio.file.Paths.get("result.pdf"), response.body());

System.out.println("The PDF document was generated and saved to result.pdf");
```

This allows you to fail fast when conversion issues occur.