How to Rename OneDrive Files

Update February 14 2020:

Sorcim Technologies has launched the Cloud File Renamer (CFR) web-application. The CFR allows you to rename OneDrive files on cloud, without making you download files to your computer. It uses official OneDrive API and employs 256-bit encryption. If you’re looking for safe, efficient, and 100% online method to rename files on OneDrive, create a no-obligation account on https://www.cloudfilerenamer.com

If you’re looking for ways to rename files on your computer, you can read about our PC’s file renamer below:

When do you need Easy File Renamer?

• Playing Music in an Orderly Manner: You might want to play your music files in an orderly manner on a DVD player or DJ. Sorcim’s Easy File Renamer adds numbering to your music files so that your DVD player or DJ recognizes the order and plays the files accordingly.

• Removing Underscore from File Names: Most often, files downloaded from the Internet contain an underscore ( _ ) symbol, as part of search engine optimization. You might want to remove the underscore.

• Preventing Inter-Version Documents/ Files Conflicts: While sharing documents and files with colleagues who do not have a compatible program installed, you might want to change file extensions to ensure they can be opened. These inter-version conflicts can be easily solved by renaming bulk files with the supported file extension.

• Removing Unsupported Symbols/ Characters: Some files may contain unsupported symbols or characters. Before transferring them to the server, you might want to remove those characters.

• Removing Promotional Text from Downloaded Music: Digital music files bought / downloaded from the Internet are typically contain their host website’s name, as part of promotional efforts. This can be a big hurdle while searching your favorite music. Easy File Renamer removes such promotional text from the music file names.

• Differentiating Different Photo Albums: Digital photo cameras store files in a predefined format. Easy File Renamer will help you differentiate between several albums by naming them in a format easier to distinguish.

• Trimming Unneeded Spaces: Remove unneeded spaces from the files names through a process known as Trimming.

• Inserting Date-Time: Add date and time to your backup files so that you can restore appropriate backup, whenever required.

• Changing Text Case: Change the case of filenames from Uppercase to Lowercase, and vice versa.

Renaming Manually

Choosing to rename files manually is a way out you can’t totally write off straightaway. You can manually rename them by typing out the new names if the files aren’t too many. This is a reasonable method but it will quickly turn into a nightmare with the amount of time, effort and concentration involved if the number of files runs into hundreds or more. The renaming job can also be performed by using Windows PowerShell and Command Prompt in select scenarios. Let’s take a detailed look at both of these methods.

Using Windows PowerShell

Windows PowerShell is particularly helpful when you want to replace specific characters in filenames. The operation is pretty simple.

1. 1. Click start | All Apps.

1. 1. Scroll down until you come across the Windows PowerShell folder. Expand it and then select the Windows PowerShell shortcut.

1. 1. Now go to the directory that contains all of the OneDrive downloaded files by using appropriate commands.
      Example: CD C:\Users\USER_NAME\Cloud Files

1. Now let’s perform a couple of bulk renaming operations. The basic format remains the same, and only the minute details will change from case to case.
   Example 1: Replacing a word with another in bulk quantities.
   Example 2: Replacing a character with another in bulk quantities.
   
   

Using Command Prompt

Command Prompt proves a handful when it comes to mass renaming file extensions. And the procedure is quite straightforward, just as in the case of Windows PowerShell.

1. 1. Click start | All Apps | Windows System | Command Prompt.

1. 1. Navigate to the folder where all of your OneDrive data sits.
      Example: CD D:\My Cloud Data\Google Drive

1. Now execute the ren command to mass change extensions within a blink.
   Example: Replacing an extension with another
   
   

Renaming Automatically

This is the most efficient, accurate and swift method of carrying out a renaming operation on files in bulk quantities. All you have to do is set the required criteria, and that’s about what you need to do. The rest will be taken care of for good by the automated solution you trust. One such solution is offered by Sorcim’s Easy File Renamer. It will extensively perform rename operations in OneDrive as per your requirements on as many files / folders as you require, and the results will be exactly what you want them to be.

Steps to Rename OneDrive Files

Step # 1: Download Files to Local Machine

Go to the target folder that contains files you want to rename. Select the files and then click the Download icon to download them to your local machine.

Step # 2: Use Easy File Renamer

Download Sorcim’s Easy File Renamer and follow the simple on-screen instructions to bulk rename all files with a single click.

Step # 3: Upload the Files

Once all the files are successfully renamed according to the user-specified format, click the Upload icon in Microsoft OneDrive. Select the folder that contains your files.

We hope this was helpful. Have a great day!