When there are dozens or even hundreds of Excel tables in a folder, opening them one by one to view information such as file path, size, creation time, modification time, author, title, subject, and number of worksheets is very inefficient. This article describes how to use the file information statistics function in HeSoft Doc Batch Tool to import multiple xlsx, xls, and other Excel files at once, select the Excel file details, generate complete statistical results, and summarize them into one Excel table, suitable for scenarios such as data inventory, archive organization, teaching document archiving, and project file auditing.
In daily office work, many people encounter this situation: a folder contains a large number of Excel files, such as course statistics tables, project plan sheets, study records, grade analysis sheets, weekly report summaries, and so on. You not only want to know what these files are called, but also need to organize their full paths, extensions, file sizes, creation dates, modification dates, and even further statistics on Office metadata and the number of Excel worksheet sheets. If you manually open and check each file one by one, it is not only time-consuming but also prone to omissions and errors.
The problem this article aims to solve is: how to batch count the paths, number of worksheet sheets, and metadata information of many Excel files, and summarize the results into a new Excel spreadsheet. Taking HeSoft Doc Batch Tool in the screenshot as an example, it demonstrates the complete workflow from selecting the function, importing files, checking Excel file detailed information, to generating the statistics table. This tool is positioned as office software, with its core value lying in batch file processing to reduce repetitive labor, suitable for office scenarios that require frequent organizing of Word, Excel, PPT, PDF, images, text, and other file materials.
Application Scenarios: When do you need to batch statistics of Excel file information
Batch counting Excel file information is not a niche requirement. As long as you frequently manage a large number of spreadsheet files, you may need to organize scattered file information within folders into a list. Common scenarios include:
1. Project material archiving. After a project ends, it is necessary to organize the names, storage paths, creation times, modification times, sizes, and other information of various xlsx and xls files into an archive directory for future auditing, handover, or review.
2. Teaching and training material management. Teachers, training institutions, or academic staff may have numerous Excel files like course schedules, grade sheets, practice records, and reading progress forms. They need to quickly create a material list to confirm if files are complete, if naming conventions are followed, and if the last update times are reasonable.
3. Enterprise document inventory. Departments such as administration, HR, finance, and operations often need to count Office file information on shared drives. By using file information statistics, details like file path, folder, file size, metadata author, last saved by, title, and subject can be summarized, facilitating subsequent classification, filtering, and management.
4. Verification of Excel file worksheet count. Some business spreadsheets contain multiple worksheets, such as monthly data, regional data, personnel data, course data, etc. After batch counting the number of worksheets, you can quickly spot abnormal files, such as files missing worksheets, having too many worksheets, or inconsistent template structures.
5. Pre-migration file check. Before migrating files from a local computer to a server, cloud drive, or archive system, exporting a file information summary table first can serve as a checklist for pre- and post-migration comparison.
Preview of Results: Before processing, a batch of scattered Excel files; after processing, a complete summary table
Before Processing: Multiple xlsx spreadsheets in the folder
From the pre-processing screenshot, you can see multiple Microsoft Excel worksheet files in the folder, such as ClassNoteIndex.xlsx, CourseReviewMatrix.xlsx, ExamScoreAnalysis.xlsx, GrammarExerciseBook.xlsx, KnowledgeReviewGrid.xlsx, etc. Although the names, modification dates, types, and sizes of these files can be seen in File Explorer, the information is relatively scattered. If you further want to know the full path, Office metadata, and Excel worksheet count for each file, you cannot accomplish this all at once directly in File Explorer.
The difficulty in these scenarios is that as the number of files increases, manual counting becomes extremely tedious. Especially when you need to create a filterable, sortable, and deliverable Excel file list, simply copying and pasting file names is insufficient; structured fields are required.
After Processing: Generating an Excel summary result containing paths, metadata, and worksheet counts
The post-processing screenshot shows that the statistical results have been summarized into an Excel spreadsheet. The table contains multiple columns of information, such as path, name, name without extension, extension, size, containing folder name, containing folder path, creation time, modification time, and several Office metadata items. On the right side, you can also see the Excel worksheet count field, used to count how many worksheets each Excel file contains internally.
The advantage of this result table is evident: You can directly filter for xlsx or xls files in Excel, sort by modification time, search by author or last saved by, group by folder path, or judge whether the file structure meets requirements based on the worksheet count. Compared to manual counting, this batch generation method is more suitable for organizing large numbers of files and standardized management.
Operation Steps: Batch exporting a list of Excel files using the File Information Statistics function
Step One: Enter File Management and select the File Information Statistics function
After opening HeSoft Doc Batch Tool , you can see several office file processing categories in the left navigation bar, such as File Management, Word Tools, Excel Tools, PowerPoint Tools, PDF Tools, Text Tools, Image Tools, etc. Here we want to count information about the files themselves, not edit the content of an Excel spreadsheet, so you should enter the File Management category on the left.
In the File Management page, the interface displays multiple function cards related to batch file management, including Classify by File Name, Classify by Extension, File Information Statistics, Folder Information Statistics, etc. According to the screenshot, select the third function card File Information Statistics. This function's description is to batch count various file names, paths, sizes, times, and metadata information, which exactly matches the needs of this article.
The purpose of this step is to enter the processing flow designed specifically for generating file information lists. After entering this function, the software will guide you through a wizard to sequentially select pending records, set processing options, set the save location, and start processing.
Step Two: Add Excel files or import files from a folder
After entering the File Information Statistics page, you can see the current function name File Information Statistics at the top. Step 1 of the process is Select records to process. The top right provides operation entries such as Add Files, Import Files from Folder, Clear, and More.
If your number of Excel files is small, or you only want to count some of them, you can click Add Files to manually select the xlsx, xls, etc. files you need to process. If all the spreadsheets are concentrated in the same folder, it is more recommended to use Import Files from Folder. This way, you can add all the Excel files in the folder to the list at once, reducing the need for repeated file selection operations.
After import, the list will display basic information such as sequence number, name, path, extension, creation time, and modification time. As seen in the screenshot, the software has recognized 20 records and displays the record count at the bottom. Each row in the list corresponds to one Excel file, for example, D:\test\folders\ClassNoteIndex.xlsx, D:\test\folders\CourseReviewMatrix.xlsx, etc. At this point, you can check if the files are completely imported. If you find any mistakenly selected files, you can remove them using the delete operation on the right side of the list; if you need to reselect, you can also use the Clear function before importing again.
The expected result of this step is: All Excel files that need to be counted appear in the pending list, and basic fields like path, extension, creation time, and modification time have already been recognized by the software.
Step Three: Set processing options and check Excel file detailed information
After confirming the file list is correct, click Next at the bottom to enter Step 2 Set processing options. On this page, you can see an option area called Additional Information, containing checkboxes like Word file detailed information, Excel file detailed information, PPT file detailed information, PDF file detailed information, Text file detailed information, Image file detailed information, etc.
Since the target of this count is Excel files, you need to check Excel file detailed information. In the screenshot, this option is shown as selected, indicating that while the software exports basic file information, it will also further read detailed fields related to Excel, such as the number of worksheet sheets.
This step is critical. If you only count basic file information, you typically only get fields like file name, path, size, and time; only by checking Excel file detailed information will the result table contain fields more relevant to Excel document management needs, such as the Excel - Worksheet Count seen in the processed result screenshot. This field is highly valuable for users who need to check template structures, verify spreadsheet completeness, or count workbook complexity.
Step Four: Set the save location and start processing
After completing the additional information settings, continue clicking Next. According to the process prompt at the top of the interface, you will subsequently enter the Set save location and Start processing stages. The save location here is used to specify where the statistical results are output. It is recommended to choose an easily accessible directory, such as the current project material folder, a temporary directory on the desktop, or a dedicated file list directory.
After setting the save location, enter the start processing phase. The software will batch read the Excel files in the pending list, extract basic file properties, Office metadata, and Excel detailed information, and generate a summary result. After processing is complete, open the generated Excel spreadsheet to see each file corresponding to a row and each statistical field corresponding to a column.
From the post-processing result image, you can see the final result includes not only conventional fields like file path, extension, and file size but also Office metadata fields, such as title, subject, tags, categories, author, last saved by, revision number, company, manager, creation time, last save time, etc. For Excel files, it will also output the worksheet count for further analysis.
How to Use the Result Table: Filtering, sorting, and subsequent organization suggestions
After generating the summary table, it is recommended not to treat it just as a one-time statistical result, but as a foundational ledger for file management. You can perform the following operations on the result table in Excel:
Filter by folder path: Quickly view what Excel files are in a specific directory, suitable for organizing multi-level materials.
Sort by modification time: Identify recently updated files or discover old files that have not been maintained for a long time.
Filter by extension: Distinguish between different types of spreadsheet files like xlsx, xls, xlsm. If the directory contains other Office files mixed in, you can also quickly filter them out by extension.
Filter by author or last saved by: Used for team collaboration file tracking, understanding who created or last saved the file.
Check by Excel worksheet count: If a certain type of template should normally contain a fixed number of worksheets, this field can be used to quickly identify abnormal files.
Sort by size: Locate Excel files that are excessively large in size. Further checks can be made later to see if they contain a large number of images, external data, or invalid content.
Frequently Asked Questions and Considerations
1. Why is it recommended to use 'Import Files from Folder'?
When there are many Excel files, adding files one by one is inefficient. Using Import Files from Folder can add files from the target directory to the list all at once, which better suits batch processing scenarios. If files are distributed across multiple directories, you can import them in batches or consolidate them into a single directory first before counting.
2. If I only want to count Excel files, can I import other files?
The File Information Statistics function is designed for multiple file types. If Word, PPT, PDF, or image files are mixed into the list, their basic file information can usually also be counted. But if your focus is on the Excel worksheet count, you should ensure the target files are mainly Excel files like xlsx, xls, and check the Excel file detailed information in the processing options.
3. What is the practical significance of the worksheet count?
The worksheet count can reflect the internal structure of an Excel workbook. For example, if a standard template should contain 5 worksheets, but some files in the count results only have 3 or as many as 10, it might indicate that the template has been deleted, modified, over-copied, or the file structure is inconsistent. It is very practical for batch checking templates, course materials, financial ledgers, and project reports.
4. Do Office metadata fields always have values?
Not necessarily. Office metadata depends on whether the file itself has saved the relevant properties, such as title, subject, author, company, manager, etc. Some files may have empty fields, which means the file itself did not include the related information, and does not indicate a failure in counting. You can perform secondary organization on empty fields as needed.
5. Do I need to open each Excel file before counting?
No. The value of batch counting is precisely that you do not need to open files one by one. You simply add the files to the list, select the required detailed information, and the software will read and output the summary table according to the process flow.
Summary: Replace manual registration with batch counting for more efficient Excel file management
Batch counting Excel file paths, worksheet counts, and Office metadata is a very practical capability in file management. For dozens or hundreds of spreadsheet files, manually opening, viewing, copying, and registering is not only inefficient but also prone to errors. Using the File Information Statistics function of HeSoft Doc Batch Tool , you can summarize file names, paths, extensions, sizes, creation times, modification times, Office metadata, and Excel worksheet counts into an Excel spreadsheet all at once.
If you are currently organizing project materials, teaching spreadsheets, department shared drives, or historical data files, it is recommended to directly follow the steps in this article: Enter File Management, select File Information Statistics, import Excel files, check Excel file detailed information, set the save location, and start processing. Once the few steps are complete, you will get a clearly structured, easy-to-filter, and deliverable file information summary table, using batch processing to reduce repetitive labor and leaving time for the work that truly requires analysis and decision-making.