Load files into the editor

File loading reads a local file into the test string editor. You can insert its contents or add separate test strings where the editor supports that action.

Text and binary files are available on every plan. Pro adds PDF, DOCX, ODT, GZIP, and multiple-file loading. These extras are an optional add-on for self-hosted installations.

Open a file

1. Open the test string editor.
2. Select browse files, or drag a file into the editor's drop area.
3. Choose the insertion destination offered by the editor.
4. If a format dialog opens, choose Open as Text, Extract Text, or Open as Binary.
5. Inspect the resulting input before applying your pattern.

Insertion uses the current editor position or selection. It does not automatically replace the entire test string.

Download orders.txt, or save the following text as orders.txt:

ORD-0042 pending
ORD-0187 sent

Include a line break after the second line. Use JavaScript, the gm flags, and this pattern:

\bORD-([0-9]{4})\b

The expected matches are ORD-0042 and ORD-0187. Group 1 contains 0042 and 0187.

Select browse files (1) in the empty test string editor, then choose orders.txt.

1

After you choose the file, its contents appear in Test String. Match Information shows both order identifiers and their captured numbers.

The imported file produces two matches. Group 1 contains 0042 and 0187.

Supported formats

File recognition uses the extension or MIME type. Extraction happens in the browser and does not depend on the regex engine.

File type	Recognized examples	Result	Access
Text	.txt, .text, .log, .csv, .tsv, .json, .jsonl, .xml, .html, .css, .js, .ts, .md, .yaml	Text from the file	Basic file loading
Binary	Any file	One character for each byte value	Basic file loading
Word document	.docx	Extracted document text	Full file loading
OpenDocument text	.odt	Extracted document text	Full file loading
PDF	.pdf	Searchable text from the pages	Full file loading
GZIP	.gz	Text from decompressed contents	Full file loading

Supported text MIME types and related extensions also include JSX, TSX, Markdown, and YML. A recognized extension does not guarantee that a damaged file can open.

Legacy .doc, spreadsheets, ZIP archives, and image OCR are not document-text extractors in this feature. Binary mode reads bytes instead of extracting formatted document text.

Multiple files and destinations

Selecting several files at once requires full file loading. Adding files as separate test strings also requires that access and a compatible editor.

Basic file loading supports one file at a time. It includes text and binary insertion, so opening a plain text file does not require Pro.

In Enterprise, full file loading is an optional add-on. An administrator can also disable features for the installation.

Extraction and privacy

The file loaders read text, bytes, and supported documents locally in the browser. This file-reading step does not upload the document for extraction.

The resulting text becomes workspace input. Saving and sharing can send that input to the workspace service.

Document extraction does not preserve the original layout or formatting. PDF extraction requires searchable text. A scanned page without text is not an OCR input.

If a PDF requires a password, the application requests it. The extraction result can differ from the document's visual reading order.

Size and processing limits

The implementation caps the resulting string at 536,870,888 characters. Existing editor contents and separators reduce the available space.

This is an implementation ceiling, not a promised file size. Browser memory, extraction, and decompression can fail earlier.

Text and binary loaders also reject files whose byte size exceeds the remaining budget. Compressed and formatted files can expand substantially during extraction.

Use a small representative extract for initial pattern work. Larger input can also reach the regex engine's execution limit after the file opens.

Resolve a file error

Problem	Next action
Invalid file	Verify that the file opens in its normal application and that its extension matches its contents.
No searchable text	Export text from the source document or supply a text-based PDF.
Too large for the editor	Use a smaller extract or remove existing input before retrying.
Unreadable characters	Verify whether text decoding or binary byte inspection is appropriate.
Extraction choice is unavailable	Verify the feature access for your account or Enterprise installation.

Choose an opening mode

Remember this choice stores the selected opening mode. Open Settings > Files & Input to change file-loading configuration.

The File loading choices are Ask every time, Extract text automatically, and Always load as binary.

Use File loading to select a prompt, automatic text extraction, or binary input.

Related articles

Apply several substitutions to the extracted text.