Question 1

Is my PDF uploaded anywhere?

Accepted Answer

No. The document is read and rewritten inside the page by pdf-lib and PDF.js, which run in your browser. That is the difference that matters for a contract, a payslip or a medical letter - the usual free PDF site uploads the file to a server you know nothing about.

Question 2

Does redaction remove the text, or just cover it?

Accepted Answer

It removes it. Any page you redact is rendered to an image on export, so the text underneath is gone rather than hidden - checked by redacting a line and finding it in neither the extracted text nor the raw bytes of the file. The trade-off is that the whole of that page becomes a picture: nothing on it stays selectable, searchable or readable by a screen reader, and the file gets larger. Pages you do not redact are untouched.

Question 3

Can I split one PDF into several files?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Split Export in the Advanced Output Studio writes multiple files rather than one, with a filename prefix you choose.

Question 4

Why will it not open my password-protected PDF?

Accepted Answer

An encrypted PDF has to be decrypted before it can be parsed, and this tool never asks for a password. Remove the protection in whatever program can already open the file, then come back.

Question 5

What is Save Setup for?

Accepted Answer

It keeps the Advanced Output Studio settings - the cover page, numbering, watermark and split options - in this browser, so a job you repeat every month does not have to be set up again. It is stored on this machine only, and clearing site data removes it.

Free online PDF editor

Advanced Output Studio

Cover Page

Page Numbers

Watermark

Split Export