The pandemic has taught us how to work efficiently while staying in our homes. People from every job field exchange millions of digital documents daily in this present world, and we send most of them in PDF formats, assignments, exams, contracts, etc. After all, PDFs come with many benefits and are a widely supported format.
However, PDFs are no different than any other file, and they are made of 0s and 1s as well. So, a day may come when you open a vital PDF document to see that it has become corrupted.
So, you need to know how to repair corrupted PDF if such a scenario happens. And today we are going to talk about that.
The Cause of PDF File Corruption
Before we move on to repair damaged PDF, it is essential to know why it can corrupt. This will save a lot of time as knowing them will help you prevent these files from getting corrupt.
Here are some reasons why your PDF got corrupt:
1. There was an error during the download
When you download a PDF from the internet, some mistakes can lead to file corruption.
For example, if you have an unstable internet connection, it will cause some parts of the document not to download correctly. This error will cause the entire PDF file to get corrupt. It may also happen if you are downloading multiple files at once. Ensure that you have a stable connection and avoid downloading multiple files at once – especially if you are downloading large files.
2. Not using the right software.
There are PDF readers, which are the only software that can read and display PDF files. If you use some other software, it can modify the file, leading to corruption. So, make sure that you are always using a proper PDF reader like Adobe Reader or Wondershare PDFElement to open PDFs.
3. Fault in encoding files
To ensure that transfer happens faster and securely, email service providers tend to encode large files. While encoding may be helpful, file corruption occurs when decoding it.
If the document is not decoded correctly on the receiving end, it leads to file corruption.
You should always send large PDF files by compressing them to a .zip file to avoid this.
4. Issues in the hard drive
Hard disks crashes can also be responsible for file corruption. If you are making changes to a PDF and suddenly your computer crashes, it can lead to file corruption.
If your hard drive develops some bad sectors, it can also damage files.
It is better to check for any faults in the hard drive before keeping a PDF in it.
5. Malware attacks
If malicious software like a virus is present in your system, it can corrupt any file. And your PDF might become one of its victims.
Common Ways of Repairing Corrupt PDF Files
Before you start using any third-party software, here are some things you can try out to repair the damaged document.
If the file got corrupted during downloading, it is better to re-download it from the source.
If you have a PDF backup, you can try restoring it from there.
There are times when a specific PDF reader might be responsible for the file not opening. There are quite some free PDF readers out there, and you can try them out to see if the error persists.
Windows 10 has some backup tools that help you get back to the previous version of the file.
Firstly, go to Update and Security in Windows Settings and restore any backup to get an undamaged file version.
If you do not have any backup, you can use the Windows File History feature to get back any previous versions.
Right-click on the PDF file to open the menu. Click on Restore to previous versions and see if it brings back the undamaged document.
There are some common ways to repair damaged PDFs. If none of these solutions work, you should download a file repair tool.
How to Repair PDF Files with Repairit
Wondershare Repairit is a repair tool that you can use to repair corrupt PDF files, and it can repair any damaged file from any situation. So, let us see how you can repair damaged PDF files using Wondershare Repairit.
Step 1: Download Repairit from the official site and install it on your computer. Go to the Start menu to launch it.
After the window has opened, you can drag the corrupt PDF file to the window or click on + Add to browse the file in File Explorer.
Repairit allows you to select more than one file at once.
The window of Repairit shows you the list of items you have selected.
Step 2: After all the excel sheets have loaded successfully on Repairit, click on Repair. This will start the repairing process. Repairit will scan each document to find the major and minor issues and fix them.
As Repairit is repairing a file, it will show you the real-time results of each process. It even allows you to cancel the process for any specific PDF.
The interface also shows you whether the files are already repaired, being scanned, or waiting to be repaired.
Once Repairit has completed all the processes, a dialogue box will open up showing the number of files that have been repaired successfully.
Step 3: Repairit allows you to preview the file before saving it on your computer. So, click on the Preview button adjacent to each PDF file.
Like the repaired document? Save it to your preferred location, and you are done.
And that is how you can repair corrupt PDF documents. After the files have been saved successfully, you can go to the exact location and use the document as if nothing happened.
Closing Words
PDFs are used to exchange lots of documents and information. Since they are made of bits, there is a chance of file corruption. That is why we should know why a file can get corrupt and ensure that it doesn’t happen. If none of the solutions above works, you can use Wondershare Repairit.