C# Directory.GetFiles (How It Works: A Guide for Developers)

NuGet Package Installation

To begin, add IronPDF to your project via NuGet:

1. Open your project in Visual Studio.
2. Go to the Tools menu and select NuGet Package Manager > Manage NuGet Packages for Solution.
3. Search for IronPDF in the NuGet package manager.

4. Install the latest version of IronPDF.

Alternatively, use the NuGet Package Manager Console:

Install-Package IronPdf

Example: Loading All PDF Files for Processing

Using Directory.GetFiles, you can iterate over all PDF files in a directory and process them with IronPDF:

string[] pdfFiles = Directory.GetFiles("C:\\Documents\\PDFs", "*.pdf");
foreach (string file in pdfFiles)
{
    // Load the PDF with IronPDF
    var pdf = PdfDocument.FromFile(file);
    Console.WriteLine($"Processing file: {Path.GetFileName(file)}");
}

string[] pdfFiles = Directory.GetFiles("C:\\Documents\\PDFs", "*.pdf");
foreach (string file in pdfFiles)
{
    // Load the PDF with IronPDF
    var pdf = PdfDocument.FromFile(file);
    Console.WriteLine($"Processing file: {Path.GetFileName(file)}");
}

This example demonstrates how to load multiple PDFs from a directory for processing. Once loaded, you can perform a variety of operations, such as extracting text, adding annotations, or generating new PDFs based on their content.

Example: Selecting PDFs by Name or Date

You can combine Directory.GetFiles with LINQ to filter files based on criteria such as creation or modification date:

string[] pdfFiles = Directory.GetFiles("C:\\Documents\\PDFs", "*.pdf");
var recentFiles = pdfFiles.Where(file => File.GetLastWriteTime(file) > DateTime.Now.AddDays(-7));
foreach (string file in recentFiles)
{
    Console.WriteLine($"Recent file: {Path.GetFileName(file)}");
}

string[] pdfFiles = Directory.GetFiles("C:\\Documents\\PDFs", "*.pdf");
var recentFiles = pdfFiles.Where(file => File.GetLastWriteTime(file) > DateTime.Now.AddDays(-7));
foreach (string file in recentFiles)
{
    Console.WriteLine($"Recent file: {Path.GetFileName(file)}");
}

This approach ensures that only relevant files are processed, saving time and computational resources. For example, you might use this method to process only the latest invoices or reports generated within the last week.

Example: Appending Multiple PDFs

You can append multiple PDFs from a directory into a single file:

string[] pdfFiles = Directory.GetFiles("C:\\Documents\\PDFs", "*.pdf");
var pdfAppend = new PdfDocument(200, 200);
foreach (string file in pdfFiles)
{
    var pdf = PdfDocument.FromFile(file);
    pdfAppend.AppendPdf(pdf);
}
pdfAppend.SaveAs("LargePdf.pdf");
Console.WriteLine("PDFs Appended successfully!");

string[] pdfFiles = Directory.GetFiles("C:\\Documents\\PDFs", "*.pdf");
var pdfAppend = new PdfDocument(200, 200);
foreach (string file in pdfFiles)
{
    var pdf = PdfDocument.FromFile(file);
    pdfAppend.AppendPdf(pdf);
}
pdfAppend.SaveAs("LargePdf.pdf");
Console.WriteLine("PDFs Appended successfully!");

This approach is particularly useful for creating consolidated reports, archiving multiple documents, or preparing presentations. By automating this process, you can handle large collections of files effortlessly.

Code Snippet: Initializing IronPDF and Working with PDF Files

The following code demonstrates how IronPDF can be used alongside Directory.GetFiles to load and work with PDF documents.

using IronPdf;
using System;
using System.IO;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        // Retrieve all PDF file paths from the specified directory
        string[] pdfFiles = Directory.GetFiles("C:\\Users\\kyess\\Documents\\PDFs", "*.pdf");

        // Initialize a PdfDocument
        var pdfAppend = new PdfDocument(200, 200);

        // Create a text annotation to add to each PDF
        TextAnnotation annotation = new TextAnnotation(0)
        {
            Contents = "Processed by IronPDF",
            X = 50,
            Y = 50,
        };

        // Iterate over each file path, load, annotate, and save
        foreach (string file in pdfFiles)
        {
            var pdf = PdfDocument.FromFile(file);
            pdf.Annotations.Add(annotation);
            pdf.SaveAs(file);
        }
    }
}

using IronPdf;
using System;
using System.IO;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        // Retrieve all PDF file paths from the specified directory
        string[] pdfFiles = Directory.GetFiles("C:\\Users\\kyess\\Documents\\PDFs", "*.pdf");

        // Initialize a PdfDocument
        var pdfAppend = new PdfDocument(200, 200);

        // Create a text annotation to add to each PDF
        TextAnnotation annotation = new TextAnnotation(0)
        {
            Contents = "Processed by IronPDF",
            X = 50,
            Y = 50,
        };

        // Iterate over each file path, load, annotate, and save
        foreach (string file in pdfFiles)
        {
            var pdf = PdfDocument.FromFile(file);
            pdf.Annotations.Add(annotation);
            pdf.SaveAs(file);
        }
    }
}