How can I mass rename files from the command line or using a 3rd party tool?

Question

I've got a bunch of files named with a the pattern 99 - DescriptiveName.txt and I'd like to remove the number from the front so I just have DescriptiveName.txt.

How can I do this? Can I do it from the command line or is there a utility that can do this?

Answer 1

I know in your title you say "in dos" but I get the impression you are just looking for a way to do this and are wondering if that is the best way.

The absolute best tool I have found for this is Bulk Rename Utility.

It isn't a command line tool, but they do have a command line version if you really want to use it that way.

I've used the GUI version a lot, and it is very powerful, very fast and extremely easy to use.

Oh, and it is FREE (Latest update includes non-intrusive ads and an option to pay and remove them.)

Answer 2

AntRenamer does a pretty good job (with a GUI).

I like that it's quite easy to define a pattern of renaming; there are plenty of ones already prepared (and it gives a preview of the actions):

Answer 3

If you really want to use the windows command line (if you don't want to download something), you could do it like this:

dir /B > fileList.txt
for /f "tokens=1,2,3" %i in (fileList.txt) DO ren "%i %j %l" %l

The first line outputs the list of files into a file called fileList.txt. The second line separates each of the names in the list into 3 parts, the #, the "-" and the rest of the name. For each of those it does the rename command.

Answer 4

old school:

You can do a DIR and redirect the output to a file, as in DIR *.TXT >TEMP.BAT

Then use an editor to take out what you don't need and modify the parts you do need. Add an "@echo off" as the top line, save it and run it.

Answer 5

A small PowerShell script:

$args | ForEach-Object { Rename-Item $_ -NewName ($_.Name.ToLower() -replace ' ','-' )

Answer 6

I've used Free Commander Portable (freeware) for this to good effect:

1. Select or Navigate to the files or directories to rename
2. Press [Ctrl-M] (or File > Multi-rename)
3. fill out the fields as makes sense for your circumstance
4. verify the preview shows what you expect
5. Go!

Answer 7

The easiest way would be to use Rename Master.

Answer 8

The tool that I've been satisfied with is ReNamer. It supports also the saving of renaming rules, which has been useful to me, as I many times do the same renamings.

Answer 9

Here's a command-line solution --- a Java program I wrote specifically to make it easy to work with "patterns" in filenames. It's free and open source, so feel free to modify it:

RenameWand
http://renamewand.sourceforge.net/

Some relevant usage examples:

Drop everything before the "-" in the filename:

java -jar RenameWand.jar  "<a> - <b>"  "<b>"

Prepend a 3-digit number to the filename, sorting by last-modified time:

java -jar RenameWand.jar  "<a>"  "<3|#FT> <a>"

Rearrange parts of the filename, and change case:

java -jar RenameWand.jar  "<album> - <artist> - <song>.<ext>" 
                          "<artist.upper> <album.title> - <song>.<ext.lower>"

Answer 10

I use Total Commander's multi-rename tool (ctrl+M) for things like this. Their useful tool, one of too many to count, is easy to use, and can also employ regular expressions and templates if necessary. Oh, and it obviously gives you a preview before making any changes.

This is the third or fourth question I've answered recommending Total Commander... I should be getting a commission from them ;-)

Answer 11

I discovered RenPhoric about a month ago. Superb. And it's free.

No complicated interface and I was quickly able to rename exactly as I wanted. Regular Expression capable. Haven't used anything else since.

Answer 12

Bulk Rename is my favorite

Answer 13

I like Cylog’s WildRename. It is powerful, yet easy to use, and has a lot of features:

1. fast
2. string manipulation
3. counters
4. wildcards
5. regular expressions
6. substitution
7. case-conversion
8. logging
9. simulation (show the results without actually applying them)