Find and replace processing instructions

If you are an administrator or have permissions, you can search for and replace text in one or more components without opening them. You can choose Replace All to change a term only when it's inside a tag that provides information to the processing application. Changes are then saved to the Inspire database. For more details on how a search for processing instructions works, read Finding processing instructions to replace or report on.

Tips and tricks

You must have specific permissions to use Find and Replace.

Search in the best place

  • To select individual non-binary, unlocked files, in the Components browser, go to the Components pane and select the specific components you want. Then you can use the Selected Components panel option for Find/Replace components.
  • To search in all content contained in a folder without having to select components one at a time, in the Components browser, go to the Folders pane and use the right-click menu on a folder to access a Find/Replace components option.

    If the folder you select contains sub-folders, those are not included in the search by default. If you want to include them, on the Find/Replace components screen, select the Include Subfolders option.

Use supported components

  • If you choose a component that's locked ( by you, by another user, it's approved, approved and signed, or by the system) Inspire skips it and adds a warning to your notification.
  • If you choose a binary component, Inspire skips it and adds a warning to your notification.

If you want to use other find and replace options, follow the steps in:

To update processing instructions in components using find and replace:

  1. Click Components_TopMenuOpt Components.
  2. In the Folders pane, navigate to the folder where you've saved the components.
  3. In the Components pane, locate the components you want to search in and replace text.
    To find components, you can:
    • Look in the Content details pane at the preview.
    • Set the number of components listed on a page. At the bottom of the list, in Items per page select a quantity.
    • Sort by clicking on a column name.
    • Search, use filters, and use queries.
  4. To select components, do one of the following:
    • To select individual non-binary, unlocked files, go to the Components pane. Select the checkboxes before the name of the components you want to search in. On the Selected Components panel, click Find/Replace components.

      You can also select all components on the page.

      a. At the top of the component list, in the header row, click the arrow next to the Select All SelectAll checkbox.

      b. Click the Select all items from this page option from the list

    • To select all content contained in a folder, go to the Folders pane. Use the right-click menu on a folder and select the Find/Replace components option.
  5. On the Find/Replace components screen, in Find, enter part or all of the processing instruction that you want to find.
    An XML processing instruction is a name-value element.
    • For example: 
      <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
    • The name indicates which application the processing instruction targets. In the example, the names are version and encoding. The name, also called a target, follows the same construction rules as element and attribute names.
    • The value, also called the content or character data, is surrounded with double quotes. In the example the values are "1.0". and "UTF-8"
    You can also select text used in a previous search.
  6. In Replace, enter a new name or value for the processing instruction.
    You can also select text used in a previous search.
  7. In Scope, select Processing Instructions.
  8. Select whether you want to search the name property, value property, or both properties in an instruction.
    • To find the value of the element, you would select Search Processing Instruction Content. For example, UTF-8. This option is chosen by default.
    • To find the name of the element, you would select Search Processing Instruction Name. For example, encoding.
    • To search for your keyword in both the name and value of the processing instruction element, select both of these options:

      Search Processing Instruction Content

      Search Processing Instruction Name

    You must select at least one option.
  9. Optionally, you can select the option to make your search Case Sensitive.
  10. Optionally, if you selected a folder that has subfolders, those are not included in the search by default. If you want to search in them, select the Include Subfolders option.
  11. Click Replace All.

    If the Report button isn't active, in Scope, make sure you select at least one option.

    Result: You are asked to confirm that you want to replace text in the number of components you selected.

  12. Click Yes.
    Results:
    • You see a notification that a Replace All process has started.
    • After the process is complete, you see another notification.

    • The report tells you a number of times your search string appears in each components you selected.

    Tips and tricks

    After using Find and Replace to update content, Inspire updates the following information in the Components Browser and in the Component Details History tab:

    • Updated By
    • Updated Date
    • Last Updated By