When many file names contain the same old text, renaming them one by one wastes a lot of time. This article, combined with actual screenshots, demonstrates how to use HeSoft Doc Batch Tool to batch find and replace keywords in file names, uniformly changing "Adventure Film" in file names to "1080p". The tutorial covers applicable scenarios, before and after effects, detailed operation steps, and precautions, suitable for organizing videos, Word, PDF, Excel, and other files.
When organizing folders, you may encounter a situation where a batch of file names all contain the same tag, category word, or old project name that now needs to be uniformly replaced with new text. For example, the multiple video files in the screenshot all have "Adventure Film" in their file names, and now this text needs to be uniformly replaced with "1080p". If the number of files is small, manually renaming them is acceptable; but with dozens or hundreds of files, changing them one by one is not only slow but can also cause confusion due to a missed space, a skipped file, or accidentally deleting the extension.
This type of problem essentially falls under "keyword replacement" in batch file renaming. Using HeSoft Doc Batch Tool , you can find the same text string across multiple file names at once and batch replace it with new content. It is a batch file processing software designed for office scenarios, suitable for reducing repetitive work and improving the efficiency of data organization, file archiving, and naming standardization before delivery. The following will fully explain how to complete the operation, following the order of the screenshots.
Applicable Scenarios: What Office Problems Batch Replacing Text in File Names Can Solve
Batch replacing text in file names is common in scenarios like file archiving, content operations, data delivery, course material organization, film and media asset management, and contract document updates. For example, a folder contains many Word documents with an old client name in the file name, which needs to be uniformly replaced with a new client name; a batch of PDF report names contains "Draft," which needs to be changed to "Final" before delivery; multiple Excel spreadsheet file names contain an old month that needs updating to the current month; many image or MP4 video file names contain old tags that need replacing with new resolution, category, or version information.
These tasks share a common feature: the modification rule is simple, but the number of repetitions is high. Manual operation seems easy but consumes a lot of time. Especially when files like docx, doc, pdf, xlsx, and mp4 are mixed together, manual renaming requires special attention to ensure extensions are not damaged. By setting rules with a batch processing tool, you can perform replacements only on specified keywords within file names, preserving other parts of the name, thus achieving a uniform result more reliably.
Result Preview: Multiple File Names Containing "Adventure Film" Before Processing
In the folder list before processing, the file type is MP4 File, and multiple file names contain "[Adventure Film]". For example, Avatar [Adventure Film].mp4, Interstellar [Adventure Film].mp4, Jurassic World [Adventure Film].mp4, The Lord of the Rings [Adventure Film].mp4, etc. The red box marks the location of the keyword to be replaced, which can be seen positioned between the main title and the extension.
Although this naming convention expresses file category, manual processing becomes very tedious when it later needs to change to a resolution label, version number, or other identifier. For instance, in this example, to change "Adventure Film" to "1080p", renaming each file individually would require repeatedly performing steps: selecting the file, entering rename mode, deleting the old text, typing the new text, and confirming save. The more files there are, the higher the probability of errors.
Result Preview: Uniformly Changed to "1080p" After Processing
After processing, you can see that the "Adventure Film" text originally in the file names has been replaced with "1080p", and the square bracket structure has been preserved. The file names become Avatar [1080p].mp4, Guardians of the Galaxy [1080p].mp4, Star Trek [1080p].mp4, The Martian [1080p].mp4, etc. The file titles are unchanged, and the .mp4 extension remains normal.
This result indicates that the batch replacement rule acted accurately on the target text. The same applies to office files: if "ClientA-ContractDraft.docx" needs to be changed to "ClientA-ContractFinal.docx", or "2024MonthlyReport.pdf" needs to be changed to "2025MonthlyReport.pdf", it can be done in a similar way. The key is to first clarify the old text to find, then set the new text for replacement.
Operation Step 1: Open the Keyword Replacement Tool in the File Name Category
After launching HeSoft Doc Batch Tool , you can see the "File Name" category in the left navigation bar. After clicking this category, the main area will display multiple file name processing functions. What we need to do this time is "change a section of text in a file name to another section of text," so choose the first function: "Find and replace keywords in file names."
The purpose of this step is to make the software enter the workflow specifically for keyword replacement, rather than entering other renaming functions like inserting text, adding prefixes/suffixes, or deleting text. Choosing the correct function is very important because different functions correspond to different processing logics. For this article's example, the goal is not to add content at the beginning of the file name or delete a word, but to replace "Adventure Film" with "1080p", so we should enter the "Find and Replace" function.
Operation Step 2: Import the Files to Be Processed and Verify the List
After entering the function page, the interface top shows the current function name "Find and replace keywords in file names," and the progress bar shows the first step is "Select records to process." There are "Add Files" and "Import Files from Folder" buttons at the top right. If files are scattered in different locations, you can use "Add Files"; if all files are in the same directory, using "Import Files from Folder" is more suitable for batch import.
After importing, the software will list the files to be processed in a table. The screenshot shows the table includes columns like Number, Name, Path, Extension, Creation Time, Modification Time, and Operations. The Name column displays the current file name, the Path column helps confirm the file's directory, and the Extension column shows mp4. This information allows you to check whether the correct files were imported before actually executing the batch modification.
It is recommended to carefully check the file list at this step, especially when batch importing from a folder, to confirm if there are any files you don't want to process. If you find individual files should not be included, you can remove them using the operations column in the interface. After confirming the file scope is correct, click "Next" at the bottom to proceed to set processing rules.
Operation Step 3: Select Exact Search and Fill in Replacement Content
The second step is "Set processing options." In the screenshot, the "Search method" is set to "Exact text search." This is suitable when the old keyword is very clear. Since each file name contains "Adventure Film", enter "Adventure Film" in the "List of keywords to find" on the left; enter "1080p" in the "List of replacement keywords" on the right.
Here, you can understand the left and right sides as a replacement pair: the left side is the content to be found, and the right side is the content to replace it with. The software will find "Adventure Film" in the imported file names and replace it with "1080p". The screenshot also shows options like "Use formula for fuzzy text search", "Ignore letter case", and "Match whole word only". For a fixed text replacement like this example, keeping "Exact text search" is easier to understand and helps control the processing result.
It is particularly important to note that this example did not enter square brackets in the search box, only "Adventure Film". Therefore, the square brackets in the processed file names remain, displayed as [1080p]. If your file name structure includes symbols like parentheses, dashes, or underscores, you can decide whether to include these symbols in the search text based on the target result. For instance, if you only want to change the text inside the brackets, do not include the brackets; if you want to replace the entire "[Adventure Film]" with "-1080p", you'll need to reset the find and replace content according to your actual goal.
Operation Step 4: Set the Save Location and Start Processing
After completing the keyword setup, click "Next". In the interface progress bar, you can see subsequent steps include "Set Save Location" and "Start Processing". This indicates the software uses a wizard-style workflow: first select files, then set processing options, then determine the save location, and finally execute batch processing. For important data, it is recommended to confirm the save location and file list before starting processing to avoid renaming files that shouldn't be modified.
Once entering the start processing phase, the software will batch process the file names according to the set find and replace rules. After processing, open the corresponding folder to check the results. You should see that file names originally containing "Adventure Film" have been uniformly changed to contain "1080p". Comparing the screenshots before and after processing, the main file names, order, and extensions all remain normal, with only the specified keyword changed.
FAQ: Details Easily Overlooked When Batch Replacing File Names
1. Why were some files not replaced? A common reason is that the search text does not exactly match the actual text in the file name, for example, due to an extra space, a missing space, different capitalization, or other symbols used in the file name. You can first copy the target keyword from the file name and paste it into the search list to reduce input errors.
2. Can this be used for office files like docx, doc, pdf? This article's example uses mp4 files because the file type in the screenshot is MP4 File. But the concept of batch replacing text in file names is not limited to video files. For Word documents (docx, doc), PDF files, Excel spreadsheets (xlsx, xls), PowerPoint files (pptx), etc., as long as you need to replace text in the file name, you can follow the same process.
3. Will it modify the file content? From the current function name "Find and replace keywords in file names," it can be seen that it processes keywords in the file name, not the body content of the file. That is to say, this tutorial is about batch renaming, not batch replacing text within the body of a Word or PDF document.
4. Can the replacement content be empty? In the screenshot, the prompt on the right says "Leave blank to delete," but in actual operation, you should set this cautiously based on your goal. If you only want to delete a section of text from the file name, you can leave the replacement keyword blank; if you are replacing it with new text, you should fill it in like this example with "1080p".
5. What preparations are needed before batch processing? It is recommended to first organize the folder and confirm the scope of files to process; back up important files; double-check the find and replace text after setting the rules; after processing, spot-check a few file names to confirm the results meet expectations.
Summary: Replacing Repetitive Manual Renaming with Rule-Based Operations
When a section of text across multiple file names needs to be uniformly replaced, the most effective way is not to manually rename them one by one, but to use a batch file name processing tool to establish replacement rules. Through HeSoft Doc Batch Tool , users can select "Find and replace keywords in file names" under the "File Name" category, import files, set the replacement relationship from "Adventure Film" to "1080p", and then follow the workflow to complete the save location and start processing.
This method can significantly reduce repetitive work and make file naming more unified and standardized. Whether you are organizing video footage, project materials, Word documents, PDF reports, or Excel spreadsheets, as long as you encounter a large number of file names that require keyword replacement, you can operate according to the steps in this article. It is recommended to prioritize using this rule-based processing method the next time you need to batch modify file names, to complete file organization work more stably in less time.