import re with open('_get_instance_details.php', 'r', encoding='utf-8') as f: content = f.read() def replace_checkbox(m): block = m.group(0) return re.sub( r'\n .*?<\?php else: \?>", replace_checkbox, content, flags=re.DOTALL ) with open('_get_instance_details.php', 'w', encoding='utf-8') as f: f.write(content) print("Hidden inputs added.")