Dates, years, numbers, and other content in multiple PDFs often have the same format but are not exactly identical, making individual search and replacement very inefficient. This article explains how to use HeSoft Doc Batch Tool to perform wildcard fuzzy search and batch replacement across multiple PDF files. As shown in the example, "April 13, 2017" in the original PDF is updated to "August 13, 2026", making it suitable for office scenarios that require unified modification of report dates, contract information, and document keywords.
Many people encounter a similar problem when organizing PDF reports, contracts, manuals, or archival materials: a large number of files with almost identical page structures, but certain keywords within them need to be updated uniformly. For example, the cover pages on a batch of PDF reports all have dates, where the month might be April or May, and the year might be a different four-digit number. Opening each PDF file individually to search and replace is not only slow but also makes it easy to miss a file or a page.
This article will use a specific example to explain how to use the office software " HeSoft Doc Batch Tool " to perform batch fuzzy search and replacement of keywords across multiple PDF files. The focus here is not simply replacing a fixed word, but using wildcards or formula rules to match text with certain patterns, such as "April or May" and "a four-digit year number." After reading, you can apply the same method to scenarios like batch modification of PDF dates, PDF number replacement, and PDF version number updates.
Applicable Scenarios: Why PDF Batch Replacement Needs Fuzzy Search
Standard find and replace is suitable for dealing with completely consistent text. For example, if all files contain the text "Old Version Instructions" that needs to be changed to "New Version Instructions," a direct exact search will suffice. However, in actual office documents, much target content is not exactly the same but shares a "same format, different value" pattern. For instance, the month in a date might vary, the year might differ, and a serial number could range from 0001 to 9999.
Without wildcards or formula-based fuzzy search, you would need to set up a rule for each variation. The more files there are, the more complex the rules become, and the higher the manual checking cost. By using fuzzy search, a single rule can cover a category of text. For example, use "\d{4}" to match a four-digit year, and use "April|May" to match multiple optional months. This way, the software can automatically find content that meets the rule across multiple PDFs and then perform a batch replacement.
This type of method is particularly suitable for scenarios like administrative departments uniformly updating notification documents, HR batch modifying template dates, project departments updating report covers, legal departments replacing version information in contracts, and data managers batch correcting PDF archive numbers. Compared to a single PDF editor, a batch processing tool is more suitable for handling a large number of repetitive files.
Effect Before Processing: Multiple PDFs to Process in a Folder
In the example, the files to be processed include 1.pdf, 2.pdf, 3.pdf, and 4.pdf, totaling 4 PDF files. They are stored in the same location, making them suitable for a one-time import into batch processing software. In actual work, the number of files can be far more than 4; it could be dozens of reports, hundreds of contracts, or a whole batch of archival materials.
Opening one of the PDFs reveals the date on the document cover is "April 13, 2017." The red box marks the parts that need updating: the month "April" and the year "2017." The goal this time is not to rewrite the entire date string, but to replace only these two types of key content, updating the date to a new month and year.
This kind of localized replacement is very common in PDF batch processing. For example, keeping the day number in a date while only updating the month and year; keeping a serial number prefix while only updating the number digits; keeping a fixed sentence pattern while only replacing the department name or version number within it. The key is to enable the software to accurately identify which content should be changed and which should not.
Effect After Processing: Date Keywords Have Been Batch Updated
After the batch find and replace is complete, open the processed PDF, and you can see the date has changed to "August 13, 2026." The month was updated from April to August, and the year was updated from 2017 to 2026, while the "13," in the middle was not mistakenly altered.
This result demonstrates that the fuzzy search rules accurately matched the target text and replaced it with the corresponding content as set. For users needing to batch update PDF dates, this method avoids page-by-page searching and reduces errors caused by manual copy-pasting.
Procedure Step 1: Open the Find and Replace Entry in the PDF Tool
First, launch HeSoft Doc Batch Tool . On the left side of the software are function categories, including entries such as Home, Task Flow, All Tools, File Name, Folder Name, File Organizer, Word Tools, Excel Tools, PowerPoint Tools, and PDF Tools. As the content to be modified this time is within PDF pages, select "PDF Tools" on the left.
On the PDF Tools page, find the "Find and Replace Keywords in PDF" function. In the screenshot, this function is the first item on the list, with the description "Batch find and replace keywords within PDF file content." Clicking this function will take you to the dedicated PDF keyword batch replacement process.
The purpose of this step is to ensure you are using the correct tool module. Since the same office batch processing software might support file name processing, Word/doc/docx processing, Excel table processing, PPT processing, PDF processing, and many other tasks simultaneously, the subsequent keyword rules will only act on the internal text of PDF files once you enter the PDF content find and replace module.
Procedure Step 2: Import Multiple PDFs and Check the File List
After entering the function, the interface displays a step-by-step flow. You are currently at Step 1 "Select records to process." The upper right area provides two common import methods: "Add Files" and "Import Files from Folder." If your PDF files are scattered in different locations, you can use "Add Files" to select them individually; if all PDFs are in the same folder, using "Import Files from Folder" is more convenient.
The screenshot already shows 4 imported records: 1.pdf, 2.pdf, 3.pdf, and 4.pdf. The list displays their Name, Path, Extension, Creation Time, Modification Time, and other information. The paths are shown as D:\test\1.pdf, D:\test\2.pdf, D:\test\3.pdf, D:\test\4.pdf, indicating these files have been successfully added to the task.
Before proceeding to the next step, it is recommended to check three points: first, does the number of records match expectations; second, are the file extensions all .pdf; third, have any files that shouldn't be modified been mistakenly added? If there are records in the list that don't need processing, you can remove them via the action column. After confirmation, click "Next" at the bottom.
Procedure Step 3: Choose to Use Formula for Fuzzy Text Search
Step 2 enters "Set processing options." In the "Set Keyword Options" area, you will see the "Search Method." There are two options here: "Exact Text Search" and "Use Formula for Fuzzy Text Search." If your target is a fixed string, simply choose exact search; this example requires matching optional month values and a four-digit year, so select "Use Formula for Fuzzy Text Search."
In the screenshot, the "Keyword List to Search For" on the left has two lines entered: the first line "April|May" and the second line "\d{4}". This can be understood as two search rules. The first is for matching month text like April or May; the second is for matching a four-digit year. The "Replacement Keyword List" on the right also has two lines: the first line "August" and the second line "2026".
With this setup, the software will perform replacement by corresponding lines: when matching April or May, it will be replaced with August; when matching a four-digit year, it will be replaced with 2026. Since the "13," in the date is not part of the search rules, it will not be replaced. This is the advantage of using wildcards or formula-based fuzzy search: it can cover variable content while preserving the text that does not need modification.
If your actual need is to replace serial numbers, a similar approach can be adopted. For example, if the target serial number is a fixed prefix plus digits, you can make the digit part the object of fuzzy matching; if you want to replace multiple possible old words simultaneously, you can use a pattern like "OldWordA|OldWordB" to match multiple candidate texts. The actual writing should follow the software's help prompts and the content of your documents.
Procedure Step 4: Set the Output Location and Execute Batch Processing
After finishing the keyword option settings, click "Next." As can be seen from the top workflow, subsequent steps include "Set Output Location" and "Start Processing." The output location determines where the processed PDFs will be saved; "Start Processing" is for formally executing the batch find and replace.
It is recommended to select a new output directory in the output location step, such as a folder named "Processed" or "Replacement Results." This preserves the original PDFs, making it easier to compare and check after processing. If you overwrite the original files directly, the cost of recovery will be higher if a rule is written incorrectly or the replacement scope exceeds expectations.
Before entering the start processing step, confirm the number of files and the find and replace rules again. Especially when using fuzzy rules, pay attention to whether the rules are too broad. For example, "\d{4}" will match any four-digit number. If the document contains other four-digit numbers besides the year, they might also be matched. Therefore, before formally batch processing a large number of files, it's advisable to test with a small sample first to confirm that only the target positions are replaced, then expand the processing scope.
Frequently Asked Questions and Notes
1. What does "April|May" mean? It means to match 'April' or 'May'. It is suitable for situations where the target text has multiple possible values, but all need to be replaced with the same new value.
2. Why can "\d{4}" match a year? From the example rule, it is used to match four digits, so it can match a year like 2017. Since many years are four-digit numbers, this type of writing is suitable for batch updating year fields.
3. What if I only want to replace 2017 and not other four-digit numbers? Consider using a more precise search term instead of broadly matching any four-digit number. The broader the rule, the larger the coverage; the more precise the rule, the lower the probability of false replacements.
4. Why did the 13 in the middle of the date not change after replacement? Because the search rules only included the month and the four-digit year, and did not include the date number 13. Therefore, the software only replaced the matched target parts.
5. What is the difference between batch replacing PDFs and batch replacing Word documents? Word, .doc, and .docx files usually have text structures that are easier to edit; PDFs emphasize fixed layouts more strongly. When processing PDF content, it is even more crucial to back up files beforehand and check the output results to ensure the layout and replacement positions meet expectations.
Summary: Using Wildcards to Improve PDF Batch Replacement Efficiency
If multiple PDF files contain dates, years, serial numbers, or keywords that need to be modified uniformly, the least recommended method is to open, search, and save each one individually. Using HeSoft Doc Batch Tool , you can add multiple PDFs to the same task and process them centrally through the "Find and Replace Keywords in PDF" function.
This tutorial demonstrated a typical PDF date batch modification workflow: import multiple PDFs, choose to use a formula for fuzzy text search, enter "April|May" and "\d{4}" as the search rules, and then replace them with "August" and "2026". This method can handle text that follows a pattern but is not entirely identical, and is particularly suitable for bulk file maintenance in office scenarios. It is recommended that you test-run with a small number of PDFs to confirm the replacement effect before processing all files.