PDF2XL CLI Commands
To pass a command into PDF2XL CLI, prefix it with a minus sign ('-'), otherwise it will be treated as a filename (i.e., PDF2XL CLI will try to open a file in that name).
Each command will appear after a space, and if it has a value, it will be separated from it using an equal sign. If the value contains spaces, it MUST start and end with quotes, which will be removed from the value itself. If a quoted value has a quote inside, it needs to be doubled. See the CLI Examples for samples on the usage of the commands and quotes.
PDF2XL CLI will return an error code if there was a problem with the command line.
| Command | Value | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| -input |
|
Loads the file. | Can appear more than once, unless the Silent Mode command is used, in which case it must appear exactly once. If a filename appears in the command line without any flag, it will be used as input. |
| -layout |
|
Loads a layout from the file. | Will be used on all the input flag files; overrides the layout saved for the input file (if any). |
| -format | excel excelfile word wordfile powerpoint powerpointfile calcfile csvfile clipboard excelclipboard wordclipboard html |
Sets the current conversion format. | Overrides the saved setting. |
| -output |
|
Sets the output filename. Does not apply to formats without a file (clipboard, excelclipboard, wordclipboard). | Only valid when format appears and is set to excelfile, wordfile or csvfile. |
| -range | all current ask |
Sets the conversion page range. | Isn't valid if the document is a Scanned PDF Document. |
| -noui | Runs the application in Silent Mode. | Command line has to include input; will fail if no layout is defined for the file, or if converting to a file without an output file, or if the page range is set to current. |
|
| -autoclose | Closes the file when it is converted; closes the application when the last file is converted. | When the -noui command is used, this command is applied automatically. | |
| -run | Converts the opened document immediately. | Command line must include input; will fail if no layout is defined for the file, or if converting to a file without an output file, or if the page range is set to current. When the -noui command is used, this command is applied automatically. . | |
| -autoopen | on off |
If set to on, will open the Excel or Word file when the conversion is finished. If set to off, will not display the file. If not specified, PDF2XL CLI will use the Open File after Conversion setting in the Conversion Settings page. | Valid only in combination with Silent Mode command. |
| -autolayout | Will automatically create a layout for each file (just like using the automatic layout detection in the Layout ribbon). | Valid only if no layout is specified (i.e., do not use the -layout command). | |
| -existingfile | replace newsheets append |
Set the handling of converting to an existing file (Excel only). | Overrides the saved setting |
| -template | same different repeat |
Set the structure type for the document. | Overrides the saved setting. |
| -pagerepeat |
|
Set the number of pages per repetition, for a repeating template. | This option must appear if, and only if, the -template repeat option was used. |
| -firstpagediff | Set the First Page Different option, identical to the one in the Document Template dialog. This means that the first page does not repeat the layout in the same way as the rest of the document. | Overrides the saved setting. | |
| -lastpagediff | Set the Last Page Different option, identical to the one in the Document Template dialog. This means that the last page does not repeat the layout in the same way as the rest of the document. | Overrides the saved setting. |