When a large number of folders have already been organized by number, project name, or course name, but you later need to insert a uniform identifier in the middle of the names, manually renaming them one by one is not only time-consuming but also prone to inserting in the wrong position. This article uses folders like "001-CourseProjects" as an example to demonstrate how to use HeSoft Doc Batch Tool to batch insert fixed text such as "ABC-" at a specified position in multiple folder names, quickly making the folder naming consistent.
In daily office work, teaching material organization, project archiving, and file delivery processes, many people encounter this problem: folders have already been created, often in large numbers, and their names follow certain rules, such as "001-CourseProjects", "002-ExamPreparation", "003-KnowledgeBase". Later, due to departmental standards, client requirements, version distinctions, or archiving label changes, a uniform piece of text needs to be inserted into the middle of these folder names. If there are only two or three folders, manually renaming them is acceptable; but if there are dozens or hundreds of folders, pressing F2 to rename them one by one is not only inefficient but also prone to missed changes, incorrect changes, and inconsistent insertion positions.
This article aims to solve the repetitive naming task of "batch inserting text into the middle of many folder names". Using the folder name processing feature of the office software " HeSoft Doc Batch Tool ", you can add multiple folders to a task list at once, then specify the insertion position and the text to insert. The software will batch process them according to a unified rule, helping users reduce repetitive labor and improve file organization efficiency.
Applicable Scenarios: When to Batch Insert Text into the Middle of Folder Names
Batch inserting text into the middle of folder names is common in scenarios where a fixed naming structure already exists but a uniform field needs to be added. For example, the original folder started with a number, followed by an English project or course name, separated by a hyphen; now, a new identifier like "ABC-", "2026-", "Department A-", "Client Abbreviation-" needs to be inserted between the number and the original name.
This kind of need is very common in office document management. For instance, when a training institution organizes course catalogs, only the course number and English course name exist initially, and a class identifier needs to be added later; when a company archives projects, only the serial number and project name exist initially, and a client code needs to be supplemented later; when organizing team shared drives, the original directory naming is not uniform enough, and departments, years, versions, or status markers need to be added at fixed positions later. As long as there is a locatable insertion point in the folder name, it can be done through batch processing.
Compared to manual modification, the advantage of using a batch processing tool lies in the uniformity of rules. You only need to set the "Position" and "Text to insert" once, and the software will execute the same rule for all selected folders. This is especially suitable for managing large numbers of directories, resource packages, project folders, and archive folders. For users who frequently organize directories containing office documents like Word, Excel, PDFs, images, and videos, this type of folder batch renaming capability can significantly save time.
Effect Preview: Folder Names Before Processing
Below is the list of folders before processing. As can be seen, the folder names all follow the format "Number-English Name", such as "001-CourseProjects", "002-ExamPreparation", "010-WritingPractice". These names themselves have a pattern, but if you now need to uniformly insert a piece of text after the number, manually renaming them one by one would be quite troublesome.
From the screenshot, it is clear that the first three characters of the original folder name are the number, and the 4th character position is a hyphen. If you want a final result like "001ABC-CourseProjects", you need to insert "ABC-" at the 4th position, which is after the number and before the original hyphen. The key point here is: the insertion position needs to correspond with the original naming structure of the folder, ensuring consistency across all folders after processing.
Effect Preview: Successfully Inserted Text in the Middle After Processing
After processing is completed, the same text "ABC-" has been inserted into the middle of multiple folder names. For example, "001-CourseProjects" becomes "001ABC-CourseProjects", and "002-ExamPreparation" becomes "002ABC-ExamPreparation". The red box indicates the unified effect after the batch insertion.
This result shows that the software does not simply add a prefix or suffix to the folder name, but rather inserts the text into the middle of the folder name according to the user-specified position. For naming conventions that require inserting new fields after a number, date, department code, or project number, this method is more flexible and more suitable for batch organizing existing directories.
Step 1: Enter the Folder Name Tool and Select "Insert Text into Folder Name"
After opening HeSoft Doc Batch Tool , you can see many office processing categories on the left, including File Name, Folder Name, File Organization, Word Tools, Excel Tools, PowerPoint Tools, PDF Tools, Text Tools, Image Tools, Video Tools, Audio Tools, etc. Since you need to process folder names, first enter the "Folder Name" category on the left.
Among the folder name related features, select "Insert Text into Folder Name". The description for this feature card in the screenshot says "Batch insert text at a certain position in folder names", which precisely matches the requirement of this article. After selecting this feature, the software will enter a step-by-step wizard page for adding folders, setting insertion rules, setting the save location, and starting processing.
The purpose of this step is to find the correct entry point for batch processing. When renaming, many users easily confuse functions like "Add Prefix and Suffix", "Find and Replace", and "Delete Text". If your need is to place fixed text somewhere in the middle of the folder name, not at the beginning or end, you should choose "Insert Text into Folder Name".
Step 2: Add the Folders to Process and Confirm the Record List
After entering the feature page, the top of the interface shows the current task as "Insert Text into Folder Name". There are buttons like "Add Folder", "Clear", and "More" at the top, with the task list in the middle. Following the wizard, the first step is to "Select the records to process". After clicking "Add Folder", add the folders you want to batch rename to the list.
From the screenshot, you can see the software has added 10 folders to the processing list. The list fields include Number, Name, Path, Creation Time, Modification Time, and Actions. The summary area at the bottom shows "Record Count: 10", which helps the user quickly confirm whether the batch processing count is correct.
In this step, it is recommended to focus on checking three items: First, are the folders in the Name column all the objects you need to process? Second, does the Path column point to the correct directory, such as the various folders under D:\test\ shown in the screenshot? Third, is the record count as expected? If you accidentally added folders that don't need processing, you can use the Actions column in the list to delete the corresponding record; if you want to re-select, you can also use "Clear" and then add them again.
After confirming the list is correct, click "Next" at the bottom. The expected result of this step is: all folders to be processed have been entered into the task list, and the software is ready to proceed to the insertion rule setting phase.
Step 3: Set the Insertion Position and the Text to Insert
The second step is "Set Processing Options". In the screenshot, you can see two key input items: one is "Position", and the other is "Text to insert". "Position" tells the software at which character position of the folder name to insert the content; "Text to insert" is for filling in the fixed characters to be uniformly inserted into the folder name.
In this example, "Position" is filled as 4, and "Text to insert" is filled as "ABC-". Combined with the original folder name "001-CourseProjects", the first three characters are "001", and the 4th position is where the original hyphen resides. After inserting "ABC-" at position 4, the name becomes "001ABC-CourseProjects". Similarly, "010-WritingPractice" becomes "010ABC-WritingPractice".
This step is critical because the insertion position determines whether the final naming meets expectations. If your folder names all start with a three-digit number, filling in 4 usually inserts the text after the number; if your folder starts with "2026-" and you want to insert content after the year, you need to adjust the position based on the actual character length. It is recommended to use a small number of samples to verify that the insertion position is correct before officially processing a large number of folders.
After filling them in, click "Next". The interface will then proceed to the "Set Save Location" and "Start Processing" stages. Since the wizard clearly displays these steps, users can follow the software prompts to complete the processing. After processing is complete, go to the target directory to view the folder names and see the result of the batch text insertion.
Frequently Asked Questions and Precautions
1. How should the position be filled? The position depends on the character sequence of the folder name. Taking "001-CourseProjects" as an example, if you want to insert text after "001", you should fill in position 4, so the inserted content appears between the number and the original hyphen. The position may differ for different naming structures and shouldn't be copied blindly.
2. Can the inserted text include a hyphen? As can be seen from the example, "Text to insert" was filled with "ABC-", and the hyphen was also retained in the final folder name. Therefore, if your naming convention requires a separator, you can include the separator in the inserted text.
3. What if the folder name lengths are inconsistent? If all folders share the same prefix structure, such as all starting with a three-digit number, inserting at a fixed position is suitable. If the names vary significantly in length and structure, it is recommended to first organize folders with consistent rules into the same batch for processing to avoid inserting at the wrong position.
4. Should I back up before processing? Batch renaming affects multiple folder names. It is recommended to back up before processing important data, or first verify the effect with a test directory. Especially for shared drives, project delivery directories, and client data directories, name changes might affect other people's reference paths and should be confirmed in advance.
5. What is the difference between this and adding a prefix or suffix? Adding a prefix typically places text at the very beginning of the folder name, and adding a suffix places it at the end. In contrast, "Insert Text into Folder Name" places content at a specified character position. It is more suitable for scenarios like adding an identifier after a number, adding a version after a date, or adding a project type after a department code.
Summary: Reducing Repetitive Renaming Work with Batch Processing
Batch inserting text into the middle of folder names seems like a small requirement, but it is very common in practical office work. Especially when there are many folders, manually modifying them one by one not only consumes time but also easily leads to inconsistent formatting. With HeSoft Doc Batch Tool , users can first add the folders to be processed, then set the insertion position and text, and finally complete the processing by following the wizard, enabling a large number of folders to finish naming adjustments uniformly in a short time.
If you are organizing course materials, project directories, client folders, departmental archives, or batch delivery files, it is recommended to prioritize using the batch processing features of office software instead of repetitive manual operations. Use a few folders to test the rules first, confirm the position and text are correct, and then apply them to the complete directory in batches for a more reliable improvement in file organization efficiency.