Convert HTML from the Command Line

Opening a graphic interface to convert one HTML page is fine. Doing it for a folder of saved pages, every day, on a machine that has no one sitting at it, is not. Total HTML Converter has a command-line mode that runs inside a normal Windows command, so you can turn HTML into PDF, DOC, JPEG, TIFF or XLS in the background without touching the GUI.

Quick answer: To convert HTML from the command line, install Total HTML Converter and run its executable with the source mask, the destination folder and the format flag, for example HTMLConverter.exe C:\Source\*.htm C:\Converted\ -cPDF. Put the command in a .bat file or a scheduled task and a whole folder of HTML files converts in one unattended batch on your server.

How do I convert HTML to PDF from the command line?

The command has three simple parts: the source files, where the results go, and the target format. This example takes every HTM file in a folder and writes a PDF for each:

HTMLConverter.exe C:\Source\*.htm C:\Converted\ -cPDF

Swap the format flag to change the output: -cDOC, -cJPEG, -cTIFF or -cXLS. Extra parameters after the flag let you delete originals after conversion, set a paper format, or choose a compression type. Every option available in the interface is also available on the command line, so nothing is lost by scripting it.

• Turn any HTML page into an image or a text document in one command
• Process any number of HTML files in a single run
• Merge all pages into one image or split into set paper sizes
• Add a header, footer or watermark to the converted files
• Render text and image content separately when exporting

How do I automate HTML conversion on a server?

Save the command in a .bat file and hand it to Windows Task Scheduler to run on a timer, or trigger it whenever new files arrive. Because it runs in the background with no window, one machine can handle the conversions for a whole team. Need pictures instead of documents? The HTML to JPEG option produces images, and HTML to Text strips pages down to plain text, both from the same command line.

A few seconds is all it takes to learn the parameters. The full list, with every switch and its values, is in the Help menu of Total HTML Converter.

Total HTML Converter runs on Windows and adds almost no load to the system, since command-line mode skips the interface entirely. The trial is free and fully functional, so you can test a real batch before you license it.

Point the source mask at *.html or *.htm, choose your format flag, and the same command scales from a handful of files to thousands without any change.

Download Total HTML Converter and move your HTML conversions into fast, hands-off background jobs.