How do I batch rename files in windows 10?

Question

I have a folder full of files and they all look like this:

frame_number_delay-number.gif

I would like to delete the frame_ and the _delay part.

Help please!

Answer 1

You can use PowerShell for that. Open it and navigate to your folder that contains the files you want to rename with cd. Then run the next command:

cd C:\Path\to\your\folder
Get-ChildItem -Filter *.gif -File | Foreach-Object { Rename-Item -Path $_.FullName -NewName $_.Name.replace("frame_","").replace("_delay","") -WhatIf }

-WhatIf means this is a dry run. Remove it once you're happy with the shown result to actually rename the files.

Answer 2

Use the software Renamer. It's free.

Create a remove rule that contains the text frame_ and another one that contains _delay.

Answer 3

Megamorf's answer is correct, but it can be improved, here is my two cents.

The commands can be shortened to an one-liner:

Get-ChildItem -Path "C:\Path\to\folder" -Filter "*.gif" -File -Recurse | % { Rename-Item -Path $_.FullName -NewName $($_.Name -replace "frame_|_delay") -WhatIf }

In the command "C:\path\to\folder" is a placeholder for the actual path, replace the path with the actual path when you run the command;

The -Recurse switch specifies the command to process subdirectories as well;

% when used with a scriptblock (any commands between { and }) is an alias to ForEach-Object, if not used followed by a scriptblock then it means the modulus operator (i.e. 21 % 6 will return 3), it is customary to use % indicate ForEach-Object;

The -Replace operator uses regex match, and you don't need to provide the replacement, so you can replace two strings in one step, saves a lot of characters.