Replace PDF swaps the file on a PDF template and keeps the fields already placed on it. You then check those fields on the new pages and click Save Draft. The template stores the positions you save.
The action is on a PDF template and on a Document Builder template. Use WPsigner 3.3.2.41 or newer and Document Builder 1.5.24 or newer for a Document Builder template.
When to use it
Section titled “When to use it”| You want to | Use |
|---|---|
| Keep this template and give it a new PDF | Replace PDF |
| Keep the current PDF and also keep a copy | Duplicate on a PDF template |
| Change the written text of a Document Builder template | Edit on that card. Document Builder |
| Start from a document you have open | Save as Template on Review. See Creating Documents |
Map Variables on that menu edits integration keys. It does not change the PDF.
What the replacement keeps
Section titled “What the replacement keeps”| Kept on the template | What happens |
|---|---|
| Fields | Type, label, signer slot, required setting, and size stay. |
| Fields that still have a page | They stay on that page, in the same place, until you move them. |
| Documents already created | They keep the PDF they were created with. A completed PDF is not rewritten. |
| The next document | Use Template, Bulk Send, a campaign, or a form feed uses the new PDF and the positions saved on the template. |
The new PDF is stored on the template as soon as Replace PDF and check fields finishes. Save Draft is what stores field moves.
Replace the file
Section titled “Replace the file”- Go to WPsigner → Templates.
- On the PDF template, or the Document Builder template, open the ⋮ menu.
- Click Replace PDF.
- Choose a PDF. The dialog explains that existing fields stay and that documents already sent keep their original file.
- Click Replace PDF and check fields.
A modern PDF is prepared in the browser, the same way a new document upload is. The button can say Preparing PDF… while that runs. Export the file from Word as a PDF before you upload it. The size limit is the same limit as a new document (25 MB unless the site uses another limit).
WPsigner then opens a draft named Check fields: followed by the template name. It opens on the Fields step, with the new PDF in the preview.
Check the fields
Section titled “Check the fields”The amber note at the top tells you this draft only checks the template. Move anything that sits in the wrong place, then click Save Draft.
Leave the draft when you are done. Send for Signing on this draft is refused, with the message: “This draft only checks the template fields. Create a new document from the template when you are ready to send it.”
The draft stays in Documents under that Check fields name. Open it again if you still need to move a field, then click Save Draft once more.
Unassigned fields
Section titled “Unassigned fields”If the new PDF has fewer pages, a field that was on a removed page is listed in Unassigned fields, next to the preview. Each row says Was on page and the old page number.
- Drag the field from Unassigned fields onto the page where it should go.
- Repeat for every field in that column.
- Click Save Draft.
A field you leave in Unassigned fields keeps its old page on the template until you place it and save. The next document would still be looking for that missing page.
When every field is on a page, the column says Every field is on a page.
Page count and page size
Section titled “Page count and page size”After the upload, WPsigner can show a short message before the checker opens:
| Message | What to do |
|---|---|
| The PDF has fewer pages, and one or more fields are in Unassigned fields | Drag each listed field onto a page, then click Save Draft. |
| The new PDF has a different number of pages, and no field lost its page | Look through the new pages. Fields that still have a page stayed where they were. Extra pages start empty. |
| The new PDF page size is different | Fields kept their previous position. Move any field that no longer lines up with the contract, then click Save Draft. |
Document Builder templates
Section titled “Document Builder templates”A Document Builder template starts as written text. Replace PDF keeps the fields that text already has — signature, initials, text, and the rest — and puts them on the file you upload.
Save Draft stores those positions on the template. The next time you use the template, including a form feed, WPsigner copies that uploaded PDF and those fields. Documents already created keep the PDF they were given.
Edit still opens the written document. Continuing from the editor builds a PDF from that text for the draft you are editing. The template keeps the uploaded PDF until you choose Replace PDF again.
After you save
Section titled “After you save”Create the document you actually send from the template: New Document → From Template, Bulk Send, a campaign, or the form feed that uses this template. That new document copies the PDF and the field positions saved at Save Draft.
Documents created before the replacement stay on the PDF they already have.
Troubleshooting
Section titled “Troubleshooting”| What you see | What to do |
|---|---|
| Replace PDF is missing on a Document Builder card | Update WPsigner to 3.3.2.41 and Document Builder to 1.5.24. The action sits under Edit. |
| The preview is empty, or the editor jumps to Signers | Update to 3.3.2.41 or newer, then run Replace PDF again. |
| The button says Preparing PDF… and then stops | Upload the file again. Use a PDF, within the site’s upload limit. |
| A field is still under Unassigned fields | Drag it onto a page and click Save Draft. |
| A sent contract still shows the old PDF | That document kept the file it was created with. New documents from this template use the replacement. |
| Send for Signing fails on the checker draft | Create a new document from the template and send that one. |
Related guides
Section titled “Related guides”- Creating Documents — Save and reuse a template
- Form Fields — Field types and placement
- Bulk Send — Send the updated template from a CSV
- Campaigns — Public link that uses the template
- Document Builder — HTML templates, edited in the builder