# Rename text file with a specific pattern in directory

**URL:** <https://community.unix.com/t/rename-text-file-with-a-specific-pattern-in-directory/364978>\
**Category:** Shell Programming and Scripting\
**Created:** [February 9, 2017, 1:09pm UTC](https://community.unix.com/t/rename-text-file-with-a-specific-pattern-in-directory/364978 "2017-02-09T13:09:38Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![cmccabe](https://community.unix.com/letter_avatar/cmccabe/32/5_5575768a8748004e209b776fc1b2916d.png) [@cmccabe](https://community.unix.com/u/cmccabe)\
**Post date:** [February 9, 2017, 1:09pm UTC](https://community.unix.com/t/rename-text-file-with-a-specific-pattern-in-directory/364978/1 "2017-02-09T13:09:38Z")

</div>

I am trying to `rename` all text files in a directory that match a pattern. The current command below seems to be using the directory path in the name and since it already exists, will not do the `rename` . I am not sure what I am missing? Thank you :).

Files to rename in `/home/cmccabe/Desktop/test/vcf/overall/annovar`

```nohighlight
16-0000_File-A_variant_strandbias_readcount.vcf.hg19_multianno_dbremoved_removed_final_index_inheritence_import_classify.txt
16-0002_File-B_variant_strandbias_readcount.vcf.hg19_multianno_dbremoved_removed_final_index_inheritence_import_classify.txt
16-0005_File-C_variant_strandbias_readcount.vcf.hg19_multianno_dbremoved_removed_final_index_inheritence_import_classify.txt

```

desired output

```nohighlight
16-0000_File-A_hg19multianno.txt
16-0002_File-B_hg19multianno.txt
16-0005_File-C_hg19multianno.txt

```

```nohighlight
rename 's/(.*?_[^_]+).*/${1}_hg19multianno.txt/g' /home/cmccabe/Desktop/test/vcf/overall/annovar/*_classify.txt

```

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![drysdalk](https://community.unix.com/letter_avatar/drysdalk/32/5_5575768a8748004e209b776fc1b2916d.png) [@drysdalk](https://community.unix.com/u/drysdalk)\
**Post date:** [February 10, 2017, 11:20am UTC](https://community.unix.com/t/rename-text-file-with-a-specific-pattern-in-directory/364978/2 "2017-02-10T11:20:55Z")

</div>

Hi,

I've come up with the following script which does what you need, I think:

```nohighlight
#!/bin/bash

pattern1="variant_strandbias_readcount.vcf."
pattern2_old="hg19_multianno"
pattern2_new="hg19multianno"
pattern3="_dbremoved_removed_final_index_inheritence_import_classify"

for file in `/bin/ls *.txt`
do
        newname=`echo $file | /bin/sed s/$pattern1//g | /bin/sed s/$pattern2_old/$pattern2_new/g | /bin/sed s/$pattern3//g`
        /bin/mv -fv $file $newname
done

```

If I run it, this is what I get:

```nohighlight
$ ls -1
16-0000_File-A_variant_strandbias_readcount.vcf.hg19_multianno_dbremoved_removed_final_index_inheritence_import_classify.txt
16-0002_File-B_variant_strandbias_readcount.vcf.hg19_multianno_dbremoved_removed_final_index_inheritence_import_classify.txt
16-0005_File-C_variant_strandbias_readcount.vcf.hg19_multianno_dbremoved_removed_final_index_inheritence_import_classify.txt
script.sh
$ ./script.sh 
'16-0000_File-A_variant_strandbias_readcount.vcf.hg19_multianno_dbremoved_removed_final_index_inheritence_import_classify.txt' -> '16-0000_File-A_hg19multianno.txt'
'16-0002_File-B_variant_strandbias_readcount.vcf.hg19_multianno_dbremoved_removed_final_index_inheritence_import_classify.txt' -> '16-0002_File-B_hg19multianno.txt'
'16-0005_File-C_variant_strandbias_readcount.vcf.hg19_multianno_dbremoved_removed_final_index_inheritence_import_classify.txt' -> '16-0005_File-C_hg19multianno.txt'
$ ls -1
16-0000_File-A_hg19multianno.txt
16-0002_File-B_hg19multianno.txt
16-0005_File-C_hg19multianno.txt
script.sh
$ 

```

Hope this helps.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Don\_Cragun](https://community.unix.com/user_avatar/community.unix.com/don_cragun/32/2682_2.png) [@Don\_Cragun](https://community.unix.com/u/Don_Cragun)\
**Post date:** [February 10, 2017, 6:39pm UTC](https://community.unix.com/t/rename-text-file-with-a-specific-pattern-in-directory/364978/3 "2017-02-10T18:39:14Z")

</div>

> [@drysdalk](#):
>
> Hi,
> 
> I've come up with the following script which does what you need, I think:
> 
> ```plaintext
> #!/bin/bash
> 
> pattern1="variant_strandbias_readcount.vcf."
> pattern2_old="hg19_multianno"
> pattern2_new="hg19multianno"
> pattern3="_dbremoved_removed_final_index_inheritence_import_classify"
> 
> for file in `/bin/ls *.txt`
> do
> newname=`echo $file | /bin/sed s/$pattern1//g | /bin/sed s/$pattern2_old/$pattern2_new/g | /bin/sed s/$pattern3//g`
> /bin/mv -fv $file $newname
> done
> 
> ```
> 
> If I run it, this is what I get:
> 
> ```plaintext
> $ ls -1
> 16-0000_File-A_variant_strandbias_readcount.vcf.hg19_multianno_dbremoved_removed_final_index_inheritence_import_classify.txt
> 16-0002_File-B_variant_strandbias_readcount.vcf.hg19_multianno_dbremoved_removed_final_index_inheritence_import_classify.txt
> 16-0005_File-C_variant_strandbias_readcount.vcf.hg19_multianno_dbremoved_removed_final_index_inheritence_import_classify.txt
> script.sh
> $ ./script.sh 
> '16-0000_File-A_variant_strandbias_readcount.vcf.hg19_multianno_dbremoved_removed_final_index_inheritence_import_classify.txt' -> '16-0000_File-A_hg19multianno.txt'
> '16-0002_File-B_variant_strandbias_readcount.vcf.hg19_multianno_dbremoved_removed_final_index_inheritence_import_classify.txt' -> '16-0002_File-B_hg19multianno.txt'
> '16-0005_File-C_variant_strandbias_readcount.vcf.hg19_multianno_dbremoved_removed_final_index_inheritence_import_classify.txt' -> '16-0005_File-C_hg19multianno.txt'
> $ ls -1
> 16-0000_File-A_hg19multianno.txt
> 16-0002_File-B_hg19multianno.txt
> 16-0005_File-C_hg19multianno.txt
> script.sh
> $ 
> 
> ```
> 
> Hope this helps.

Note that several short cuts can be used to speed up the above script and reduce chances for failures due to system limits on the size of argument lists allowed when `exec` ing a file...

The command:

```plaintext
for file in `/bin/ls *.txt`

```

produces exactly the same list of files to be processed as:

```plaintext
for file in *.txt

```

as long as you don't have any directories located in the current working directory with names ending in `.txt` (which, although possible, would be unconventional); none of the selected files have names containing any \<space\>, \<tab\>, or \<newline\> characters (which cause "file not found" errors when using `ls *.txt` , but will work correctly when just using `*.txt` ); and, if there are a lot of file, `/bin/ls *.txt` can fail if the shell runs out of memory producing the list of filenames matching `*.txt` or the list exceeds the `ARG_MAX` system limit while just using `*.txt` will only fail if the shell runs out of memory producing the list of filenames. In cases where the given pattern does match a directory name, `/bin/ls pattern` will give you a list of the unhidden files in directories matching pattern while just using pattern will give you the names of the directories instead of the names of the files in the directories.

The command:

```plaintext
        newname=`echo $file | /bin/sed s/$pattern1//g | /bin/sed s/$pattern2_old/$pattern2_new/g | /bin/sed s/$pattern3//g`

```

invokes three copies of `/bin/sed` when only one is needed. That takes more time, more swap space, more memory, more ... Try the following instead:

```plaintext
        newname=`echo $file | /bin/sed -e s/$pattern1//g -e s/$pattern2_old/$pattern2_new/g -e s/$pattern3//g`

```

to get exactly the same results taking less time, less swap space, less memory, less ... Note also that there is no need to to the `g` flag on these substitutions since you are only trying to remove one copy of each of these patterns, each of these substitutions will fail if any of the variables being used in these substitutions contain any \<space\>, \<tab\>, or \<newline\> characters. And, if any of the filenames being modified starts with a \<hyphen\> or contains any \<space\>, \<tab\>, \<newline\>, or \<backslash\> characters, `echo` might not produce the results you want. Therefore, I would suggest using:

```plaintext
        newname=`printf '%s\n' "$file" | /bin/sed -e "s/$pattern1//" -e "s/$pattern2_old/$pattern2_new/" -e "s/$pattern3//"`

```

instead. Note also that with most modern shells all of these changes could be performed in the shell with various variable substitutions instead of using command substitution to invoke `sed` . But, since we don't know that operating system or shell are being used by the submitter of this thread, I won't go there.

And, for safety in case of some of the characters listed above might appear in filenames, I would also change:

```plaintext
        /bin/mv -fv $file $newname

```

to:

```plaintext
        /bin/mv -fv "$file" "$newname"

```

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![cmccabe](https://community.unix.com/letter_avatar/cmccabe/32/5_5575768a8748004e209b776fc1b2916d.png) [@cmccabe](https://community.unix.com/u/cmccabe)\
**Post date:** [February 21, 2017, 8:35am UTC](https://community.unix.com/t/rename-text-file-with-a-specific-pattern-in-directory/364978/4 "2017-02-21T08:35:56Z")

</div>

Thank you both, works perfectly. Sorry for the delay I was out of the country, any just out of curiosity why did the `rename` not work as expected? Thank you :).