Accept all revisions in a word processing document

Article
11/15/2023

This topic shows how to use the Open XML SDK for Office to accept all revisions in a word processing document programmatically.

Structure of a WordProcessingML Document

The basic document structure of a WordProcessingML document consists of the document and body elements, followed by one or more block level elements such as p, which represents a paragraph. A paragraph contains one or more r elements. The r stands for run, which is a region of text with a common set of properties, such as formatting. A run contains one or more t elements. The t element contains a range of text. The following code example shows the WordprocessingML markup for a document that contains the text "Example text."

    <w:document xmlns:w="https://schemas.openxmlformats.org/wordprocessingml/2006/main">
      <w:body>
        <w:p>
          <w:r>
            <w:t>Example text.</w:t>
          </w:r>
        </w:p>
      </w:body>
    </w:document>

Using the Open XML SDK, you can create document structure and content using strongly-typed classes that correspond to WordprocessingML elements. You will find these classes in the DocumentFormat.OpenXml.Wordprocessing namespace. The following table lists the class names of the classes that correspond to the document, body, p, r, and t elements.

WordprocessingML Element	Open XML SDK Class	Description
document	Document	The root element for the main document part.
body	Body	The container for the block level structures such as paragraphs, tables, annotations and others specified in the ISO/IEC 29500 specification.
p	Paragraph	A paragraph.
r	Run	A run.
t	Text	A range of text.

For more information about the overall structure of the parts and elements of a WordprocessingML document, see Structure of a WordprocessingML document.

    <w:document xmlns:w="https://schemas.openxmlformats.org/wordprocessingml/2006/main">
      <w:body>
        <w:p>
          <w:r>
            <w:t>Example text.</w:t>
          </w:r>
        </w:p>
      </w:body>
    </w:document>

WordprocessingML Element	Open XML SDK Class	Description
document	Document	The root element for the main document part.
body	Body	The container for the block level structures such as paragraphs, tables, annotations and others specified in the ISO/IEC 29500 specification.
p	Paragraph	A paragraph.
r	Run	A run.
t	Text	A range of text.

ParagraphPropertiesChange Element

When you accept a revision mark, you change the properties of a paragraph either by deleting an existing text or inserting a new text. In the following sections, you read about three elements that are used in the code to change the paragraph contents, mainly, <w: pPrChange\> (Revision Information for Paragraph Properties), <w:del> (Deleted Paragraph), and <w:ins> (Inserted Table Row) elements.

The following information from the ISO/IEC 29500 specification introduces the ParagraphPropertiesChange element (pPrChange).

*pPrChange (Revision Information for Paragraph Properties)

This element specifies the details about a single revision to a set of paragraph properties in a WordprocessingML document.

This element stores this revision as follows:

The child element of this element contains the complete set of paragraph properties which were applied to this paragraph before this revision.
The attributes of this element contain information about when this revision took place (in other words, when these properties became a "former" set of paragraph properties).

Consider a paragraph in a WordprocessingML document which is centered, and this change in the paragraph properties is tracked as a revision. This revision would be specified using the following WordprocessingML markup.

    <w:pPr>
      <w:jc w:val="center"/>
      <w:pPrChange w:id="0" w:date="01-01-2006T12:00:00" w:author="Samantha Smith">
        <w:pPr/>
      </w:pPrChange>
    </w:pPr>

The element specifies that there was a revision to the paragraph properties at 01-01-2006 by Samantha Smith, and the previous set of paragraph properties on the paragraph was the null set (in other words, no paragraph properties explicitly present under the element). pPr pPrChange

Deleted Element

The following information from the ISO/IEC 29500 specification introduces the Deleted element (del).

del (Deleted Paragraph)

This element specifies that the paragraph mark delimiting the end of a paragraph within a WordprocessingML document shall be treated as deleted (in other words, the contents of this paragraph are no longer delimited by this paragraph mark, and are combined with the following paragraph—but those contents shall not automatically be marked as deleted) as part of a tracked revision.

Consider a document consisting of two paragraphs (with each paragraph delimited by a pilcrow ¶):

Two paragraphs each delimited by a pilcrow If the physical character delimiting the end of the first paragraph is deleted and this change is tracked as a revision, the following will result:

Two paragraphs delimited by a single pilcrow This revision is represented using the following WordprocessingML:

    <w:p>
      <w:pPr>
        <w:rPr>
          <w:del w:id="0" … />
        </w:rPr>
      </w:pPr>
      <w:r>
        <w:t>This is paragraph one.</w:t>
      </w:r>
    </w:p>
    <w:p>
      <w:r>
        <w:t>This is paragraph two.</w:t>
      </w:r>
    </w:p>

The del element on the run properties for the first paragraph mark specifies that this paragraph mark was deleted, and this deletion was tracked as a revision.

The Inserted Element

The following information from the ISO/IEC 29500 specification introduces the Inserted element (ins).

ins (Inserted Table Row)

This element specifies that the parent table row shall be treated as an inserted row whose insertion has been tracked as a revision. This setting shall not imply any revision state about the table cells in this row or their contents (which must be revision marked independently), and shall only affect the table row itself.

Consider a two row by two column table in which the second row has been marked as inserted using a revision. This requirement would be specified using the following WordprocessingML:

    <w:tbl>
      <w:tr>
        <w:tc>
          <w:p/>
        </w:tc>
        <w:tc>
          <w:p/>
        </w:tc>
      </w:tr>
      <w:tr>
        <w:trPr>
          <w:ins w:id="0" … />
        </w:trPr>
        <w:tc>
          <w:p/>
        </w:tc>
        <w:tc>
          <w:p/>
        </w:tc>
      </w:tr>
    </w:tbl>

The ins element on the table row properties for the second table row specifies that this row was inserted, and this insertion was tracked as a revision.

Sample Code

The following code example shows how to accept the entire revisions in a word processing document. To run the program, you can pass in the file path and the author name:

dotnet run -- [filePath] [authorName]

After you have run the program, open the word processing file to make sure that all revision marks have been accepted.

C#
Visual Basic

using DocumentFormat.OpenXml;
using DocumentFormat.OpenXml.Packaging;
using DocumentFormat.OpenXml.Wordprocessing;
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;

AcceptAllRevisions(args[0], args[1]);

static void AcceptAllRevisions(string fileName, string authorName)
{
    using (WordprocessingDocument wdDoc = WordprocessingDocument.Open(fileName, true))
    {
        if (wdDoc.MainDocumentPart is null || wdDoc.MainDocumentPart.Document.Body is null)
        {
            throw new ArgumentNullException("MainDocumentPart and/or Body is null.");
        }

        Body body = wdDoc.MainDocumentPart.Document.Body;

        // Handle the formatting changes.
        List<OpenXmlElement> changes = body.Descendants<ParagraphPropertiesChange>()
            .Where(c => c.Author is not null && c.Author.Value == authorName).Cast<OpenXmlElement>().ToList();

        foreach (OpenXmlElement change in changes)
        {
            change.Remove();
        }

        // Handle the deletions.
        List<OpenXmlElement> deletions = body
            .Descendants<Deleted>()
            .Where(c => c.Author is not null && c.Author.Value == authorName)
            .Cast<OpenXmlElement>().ToList();

        deletions.AddRange(body.Descendants<DeletedRun>()
            .Where(c => c.Author is not null && c.Author.Value == authorName).Cast<OpenXmlElement>().ToList());

        deletions.AddRange(body.Descendants<DeletedMathControl>()
            .Where(c => c.Author is not null && c.Author.Value == authorName).Cast<OpenXmlElement>().ToList());

        foreach (OpenXmlElement deletion in deletions)
        {
            deletion.Remove();
        }

        // Handle the insertions.
        List<OpenXmlElement> insertions =
            body.Descendants<Inserted>()
            .Where(c => c.Author is not null && c.Author.Value == authorName).Cast<OpenXmlElement>().ToList();

        insertions.AddRange(body.Descendants<InsertedRun>()
            .Where(c => c.Author is not null && c.Author.Value == authorName).Cast<OpenXmlElement>().ToList());

        insertions.AddRange(body.Descendants<InsertedMathControl>()
            .Where(c => c.Author is not null && c.Author.Value == authorName).Cast<OpenXmlElement>().ToList());

        foreach (OpenXmlElement insertion in insertions)
        {
            // Found new content.
            // Promote them to the same level as node, and then delete the node.
            foreach (var run in insertion.Elements<Run>())
            {
                if (run == insertion.FirstChild)
                {
                    insertion.InsertAfterSelf(new Run(run.OuterXml));
                }
                else
                {
                    OpenXmlElement nextSibling = insertion.NextSibling()!;
                    nextSibling.InsertAfterSelf(new Run(run.OuterXml));
                }
            }

            insertion.RemoveAttribute("rsidR", "https://schemas.openxmlformats.org/wordprocessingml/2006/main");
            insertion.RemoveAttribute("rsidRPr", "https://schemas.openxmlformats.org/wordprocessingml/2006/main");
            insertion.Remove();
        }
    }
}

Imports DocumentFormat.OpenXml
Imports DocumentFormat.OpenXml.Packaging
Imports DocumentFormat.OpenXml.Wordprocessing

Module Program
    Sub Main(args As String())
        Dim fileName = args(0)
        Dim authorName = args(1)

        'Public Sub AcceptRevisions(ByVal fileName As String, ByVal authorName As String)
        ' Given a document name and an author name, accept revisions. 
        Using wdDoc As WordprocessingDocument = WordprocessingDocument.Open(fileName, True)
            Dim body As Body = wdDoc.MainDocumentPart.Document.Body

            ' Handle the formatting changes.
            Dim changes As List(Of OpenXmlElement) =
                body.Descendants(Of ParagraphPropertiesChange)() _
                .Where(Function(c) c.Author.Value = authorName).Cast(Of OpenXmlElement)().ToList()

            For Each change In changes
                change.Remove()
            Next

            ' Handle the deletions.
            Dim deletions As List(Of OpenXmlElement) =
                body.Descendants(Of Deleted)() _
                .Where(Function(c) c.Author.Value = authorName).Cast(Of OpenXmlElement)().ToList()

            deletions.AddRange(body.Descendants(Of DeletedRun)() _
            .Where(Function(c) c.Author.Value = authorName).Cast(Of OpenXmlElement)().ToList())

            deletions.AddRange(body.Descendants(Of DeletedMathControl)() _
            .Where(Function(c) c.Author.Value = authorName).Cast(Of OpenXmlElement)().ToList())

            For Each deletion In deletions
                deletion.Remove()
            Next

            ' Handle the insertions.
            Dim insertions As List(Of OpenXmlElement) =
                body.Descendants(Of Inserted)() _
                .Where(Function(c) c.Author.Value = authorName).Cast(Of OpenXmlElement)().ToList()

            insertions.AddRange(body.Descendants(Of InsertedRun)() _
            .Where(Function(c) c.Author.Value = authorName).Cast(Of OpenXmlElement)().ToList())

            insertions.AddRange(body.Descendants(Of InsertedMathControl)() _
            .Where(Function(c) c.Author.Value = authorName).Cast(Of OpenXmlElement)().ToList())

            For Each insertion In insertions
                ' Found new content. Promote them to the same level as node, and then
                ' delete the node.
                For Each run In insertion.Elements(Of Run)()
                    If run Is insertion.FirstChild Then
                        insertion.InsertAfterSelf(New Run(run.OuterXml))
                    Else
                        insertion.NextSibling().InsertAfterSelf(New Run(run.OuterXml))
                    End If
                Next
                insertion.RemoveAttribute("rsidR", "https://schemas.openxmlformats.org/wordprocessingml/2006/main")
                insertion.RemoveAttribute("rsidRPr", "https://schemas.openxmlformats.org/wordprocessingml/2006/main")
                insertion.Remove()
            Next
        End Using
    End Sub
End Module