![]() If we need to quickly rename files above a certain size limit, then a simple for loop wouldn’t do the trick. While the “mv” command is quite powerful and, as seen above, we can use it in conjunction with “for” loops to target files that match a certain pattern, the operation is still limited in terms of what it can target. Using Alternative Command Line Tools to Rename Linux Files If you wanted to achieve the same result using a GUI, it wouldn’t have been possible. This kind of power is typical of the Linux command line. Here’s the output of the above command in verbose mode:Īs you can see, if you have a pattern for the files that you want to target, you can rename all of them at the same time without needing to do it individually. You can use it like this: mv -v old_name new_name The verbose command gives you detailed information about what’s happening, which files were renamed, and what the new filename is. Here’s what the command looks like: mv -n old_name new_name -v or –verbose This is useful to ensure that you don’t accidentally mess up and delete an existing file. The “-n” flag ensures that Linux never overwrites existing files if they exist with the new filename. Here’s an example: mv -i old_name new_name -n or –no-clobber If you press “y” during the prompt, Linux will overwrite the existing file. ![]() If you’re renaming a file, and an existing file already exists with the new name, then the “-i” flag will ask you for confirmation whenever there’s a conflict between the new filename and an existing one. However, here are the ones that are: -i or –interactive While using “mv” to rename files, not all these flags are useful. The “mv” command in Linux has a number of flags. Common Flags for the “mv” Command while Renaming Files So you can use the “mv” command in the same way to rename an entire folder. A directory is simply a file containing the names of other files. This is because, internally, Linux treats files and directories the same. ![]() If you want to rename a director instead of a file on Linux, the command is the same. The Command for Renaming Directories is the Same Linux changes the metadata of the file to point to the new location even when using the “mv” command to move the file to a new location. In fact, this behavior isn’t limited to just moving files within the same directory. It simply changes the metadata to reflect the new name. When the “mv” command is used to rename a file, the system is smart enough to realize that the source and destinations are the same, and it doesn’t waste resources. However, this doesn’t mean that the system is destroying the file and recreating it again with a new name. And in case you’re wondering, yes – “mv” stands for “move” and this command is also used to move a file in Linux from one location to another with a different name. Rename a File in Linux using the mv CommandĪnd that’s it.
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