Office to PDF Conversion Script

A PowerShell script for bulk converting Microsoft Office documents and other file types to PDF format.

Overview

This script provides a robust solution for converting various file types to PDF format using Microsoft Office automation. It handles Word documents, Excel spreadsheets, PowerPoint presentations, images, and other text-based files.

Features

• Multi-format support: Converts a wide range of file formats including:

  • Word documents (.doc, .docx)
  • Excel spreadsheets (.xls, .xlsx, .csv)
  • PowerPoint presentations (.ppt, .pptx)
  • Text files (.txt, .rtf)
  • Web pages (.htm, .html)
  • Images (.jpg, .jpeg, .png, .gif, .tif, .tiff, .bmp)

• Batch processing: Convert entire folders of documents at once

• Subfolder support: Option to recursively process files in subfolders

• Custom output location: Specify a separate folder for the converted PDF files

• Selective conversion: Option to delete original files after successful conversion

• Skip existing: Automatically skips files that have already been converted to avoid duplication

• Memory management: Restarts Office COM objects periodically to prevent crashes during large batch jobs

• Detailed logging: Color-coded console output shows conversion progress and results

Requirements

• Windows operating system
• PowerShell 3.0 or higher
• Microsoft Office installed (Word, Excel, and PowerPoint)

Installation

1. Save the script file as Convert-OfficeToPDF.ps1 to your desired location
2. Open PowerShell with administrator privileges
3. Navigate to the folder containing the script
4. You may need to set the execution policy to run the script:

   Set-ExecutionPolicy -Scope Process -ExecutionPolicy Bypass

Usage

Basic Usage

Convert all supported files in a folder:

.\Convert-OfficeToPDF.ps1 -FolderPath "C:\Documents"

Advanced Usage

Convert files with various options:

.\Convert-OfficeToPDF.ps1 -FolderPath "C:\Documents" -OutputPath "C:\PDFs" -IncludeSubfolders -DeleteOriginal

Function Import

You can also import the function into your PowerShell session:

. .\Convert-OfficeToPDF.ps1
Convert-OfficeToPDF -FolderPath "C:\Documents" -OutputPath "C:\PDFs"

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
FolderPath	String	Yes	Path to the folder containing files to convert
OutputPath	String	No	Path to save the PDF files (defaults to input folder)
DeleteOriginal	Switch	No	If specified, original files will be deleted after successful conversion
IncludeSubfolders	Switch	No	If specified, files in subfolders will also be processed
FileTypes	String[]	No	Array of file extensions to process (defaults to all supported types)

Examples

Example 1: Basic Conversion

Convert all supported files in a folder to PDF, saving them in the same location:

Convert-OfficeToPDF -FolderPath "E:\Documents"

Example 2: Process Subfolders and Save to Different Location

Convert all supported files, including those in subfolders, and save PDFs to a different location:

Convert-OfficeToPDF -FolderPath "E:\Documents" -OutputPath "E:\PDFs" -IncludeSubfolders

Example 3: Convert and Delete Originals

Convert only Word documents and delete the originals after successful conversion:

Convert-OfficeToPDF -FolderPath "E:\Documents" -FileTypes @('.doc','.docx') -DeleteOriginal

Troubleshooting

• Files not converting: Ensure Microsoft Office is installed and functioning correctly
• 'Access denied' errors: Run PowerShell as Administrator
• COM errors: Make sure no Office applications are running when executing the script
• Memory issues: Try converting smaller batches of files at a time

Limitations

• Requires Microsoft Office to be installed
• May not preserve all formatting perfectly in complex documents
• Performance depends on your system resources and the complexity of documents

License

This script is released under the MIT License.

Acknowledgements

This script was created to simplify the process of converting large collections of documents to PDF format automatically.