Safety & review
By default the webfont stays put and a new SFNT is written beside it. -c and -ct empty a folder into sorted piles.
With -c or -ct
- Converted folder — the TTF or OTF (or a relocated SFNT that already passed)
_archive/— the original WOFF, WOFF2, or pre-repair file_quarantine/— created only when a file could not be opened or rebuilt. The terminal line is the reason. An empty leftover from an earlier run is removed at the end of the next one.
The terminal reports both moves for a webfont: name.woff → _archive/name.woff, then the written SFNT with its level.
No overwrite
If the destination name exists, Font Catalyst writes name#1.ttf, name#2.ttf, and so on. A folder you pass by name is processed even when it is called _converted, _archive, or _ttx. -r on a broader folder still skips those names when they appear inside it.
A save keeps head.modified at the time stored in the source font.
What the check looks at
- File opens; every table decompiles
- Required tables present (
cmap,head,hhea,hmtx,maxp,name,post,OS/2, plusglyf/locaorCFF;gvarorCFF2whenfvaris present) - Coverage / PairPos order would not change if sorted
- Stored checksums (mismatch is a note, not a rewrite by itself)
This is not Fontspector. Names, licensing, metrics, and hinting quality are out of scope.
What --repair will do
- Coverage out of glyph order, or unsorted PairPos — sorts them
- A table that will not decompile — TTX rebuild;
ttx's own error if that also fails - Missing required tables — reported only; nothing invents them
Dumping a folder to XML is a separate command: fontcatalyst ttx. It writes .ttx files and does not rebuild the binary.