How to Change File Names Inside a Directory Using Python

A step-by-step guide to renaming files programmatically using Python, including a detailed explanation and code example that shows how to add leading zeros effectively.
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How to Change File Names Inside a Directory Using Python

Renaming files in a directory can be a tedious task, especially when dealing with numerous files. Luckily, Python provides a powerful and efficient way to automate this process. In this guide, we'll dive into how you can change the names of files in a folder, specifically focusing on adding leading zeros to file names that follow a specific pattern.

The Problem

Imagine you have a collection of PDF files with names like these:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Your goal is to modify these file names by adding an additional zero after the last hyphen, transforming them into these new names:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

If you're new to Python, renaming files might seem challenging. To address this, we'll provide a simple and effective solution using the os and glob libraries.

The Solution

Here's a clear step-by-step guide to accomplish our file renaming task using Python. We'll be using the os module to rename files and the glob module to easily find files matching our criteria.

Step 1: Import Required Libraries

First, make sure to import the necessary libraries at the start of your script.

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Step 2: Get the List of Files

Use the glob module to get all the PDF files in your current directory. This method will return a list of all matching files based on the specified file pattern.

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Step 3: Loop Through Each File

Next, we'll create a loop to process each file in the list obtained above. Inside the loop:

Get the file name without the extension.

Replace the last occurrence of -00 with -000 in the file name.

Here's the updated code:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Step 4: Explanation of Code Changes

Conclusion

By following these steps, you can effectively rename files in a directory using Python. This solution not only adds leading zeros to your file names but also demonstrates the flexibility of Python in file handling. Automation can save you a lot of time, especially when dealing with large numbers of files.

We hope this guide was helpful to you! If you have any questions or need further assistance, feel free to drop a comment below.