Forum Discussion

Raylander's avatar
Raylander
Brass Contributor
Jun 10, 2026

How to take off or deactivate password in pdf on Windows 11?

I have a PDF file on my Windows 11 PC that asks for a password every time it opens. Unfortunately, I forgot the pdf password, but it is annoying to enter it again and again, so I want to deactivate t...
Features
Thatcherw's avatar
Thatcherw
Iron Contributor
Jun 10, 2026

ExifTool is a command-line program that can be used to how to deactivate password in pdf and delete all metadata from PDFs and other file types.

Instructions: Download the software from the official website and install it on your computer. Open the Command Prompt or Terminal, navigate to the folder containing the PDF file, and run the following command:

exiftool -all= -overwrite_original protected.pdf

This will remove metadata and security settings from the file.

Its advantages include: open-source, support for fast batch processing of multiple PDF files, preservation of the original PDF’s structure and formatting, and the ability to remove metadata and permission restrictions in a single step.

Its disadvantages include: requires basic command-line knowledge, cannot bypass the open password of encrypted PDFs, and is not suitable for PDF files with strong encryption or complex security settings.

This allows you to learn how to deactivate password in pdf. The software works with PDF files that can be opened freely but are password-protected, and it also enables you to quickly clear metadata from multiple files.