Batch Renaming

Batch renaming is the heart of ANE. It lets you change the names of many files and folders at once, with full control and a safe preview.

The workflow

1. Select a target folder: click Browse (or paste a path).
2. Choose an operation: Add, Remove, or Replace.
3. Choose a target type: Files only, Folders only, or Both.
4. Enter the text for the operation.
5. Optionally set filters: keyword, file format, case sensitivity, subfolder depth.
6. Preview the result.
7. Rename and confirm.
8. Review the results grid.

Operations

Operation	What it does
Add	Inserts text at the beginning or end of a name (before the extension, for files).
Remove	Deletes a specific piece of text from the beginning, end, or anywhere in a name.
Replace	Finds a specific text pattern and replaces it with something else throughout the name.

Target type

• Files only: only files in the target folder.
• Folders only: only subfolders.
• Both: files and folders together.

Filters

Keyword filter

Enter a word or symbol so ANE renames only items whose names contain it (respecting case sensitivity).

Format filter

Choose a file extension (for example .mp3) to limit the operation to that file type, or type a custom extension.

Case sensitivity

When enabled, Draft and draft are treated as different words. When disabled, matching ignores capitalisation.

Include subfolders

Check Include Subfolders to rename items in subfolders too. A depth selector appears, filled automatically from the folder structure, choose 1, 2, … N levels, or unlimited. The depth scan runs in the background.

Safety behaviour: whenever you change the target path, Include Subfolders is automatically unchecked. This prevents an accidental deep rename on a path you have not reviewed yet.

Preview

Click Preview at any time before renaming. ANE scans matching items in the background and shows them a page at a time. Each row shows the number, full path, type, current name, and new name. Double-click a row to open that item in Windows Explorer.

Files with no extension may appear in the preview. This is expected, only items whose names actually match your settings are renamed. See Warnings and Safety.

Running the rename

Click Rename, then confirm. ANE works in the background; watch the progress bar, and click Stop at any time to halt. When it finishes, the results grid shows every processed item with a colour-coded outcome — green for success, red for an error with details.

Handling files without extensions

Some files, from other operating systems, developer tools, or certain databases, have no extension. ANE handles them correctly: they may appear in the preview, but they are renamed only if their name genuinely matches your criteria.

Duplicate names

If a new name would clash with an existing one, ANE automatically adds a numeric suffix (for example report_1, report_2) so nothing is overwritten.

Exporting results

Click Export Results to save the results grid as a CSV file, which opens in Excel or any spreadsheet application.

See also

• Examples and Use Cases: renaming scenarios.
• Warnings and Safety: preview behaviour and edge cases.
• FAQ: undo, conflicts, network drives, and more.