Hi,
An additional thought is to add a character space before renaming:
C:\TestREN>dir
Volume in drive C has no label.
Volume Serial Number is 2176-638D
Directory of C:\TestREN
05/20/2008 06:49 AM <DIR> .
05/20/2008 06:49 AM <DIR> ..
05/18/2008 07:52 AM 9,863 test1.docx
05/18/2008 07:52 AM 9,888 test2.docx
05/18/2008 07:52 AM 9,894 test3.docx
3 File(s) 29,645 bytes
2 Dir(s) 77,142,429,696 bytes free
C:\TestREN>for %l in (*.*) do ren %l _%l
C:\TestREN>ren test1.docx _test1.docx
C:\TestREN>ren test2.docx _test2.docx
C:\TestREN>ren test3.docx _test3.docx
C:\TestREN>ren _test*.docx works*.docx
C:\TestREN>dir
Volume in drive C has no label.
Volume Serial Number is 2176-638D
Directory of C:\TestREN
05/20/2008 06:50 AM <DIR> .
05/20/2008 06:50 AM <DIR> ..
05/18/2008 07:52 AM 9,863 works1.docx
05/18/2008 07:52 AM 9,888 works2.docx
05/18/2008 07:52 AM 9,894 works3.docx
3 File(s) 29,645 bytes
2 Dir(s) 77,142,429,696 bytes free
--
Best of Luck,
Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP
http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/
Windows help -
www.rickrogers.org
My thoughts
http://rick-mvp.blogspot.com
"Rick Rogers" <rick@mvps.org> wrote in message
news:OaGPOqSuIHA.3716@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
> Ok, had it tried in XPGold/XPSP1/XPSP2/Server2003/Server2008 and they all
> exhibit the same behavior. Didn't have a Win2K system available. I suspect
> this is the way the command works.
>
> --
> Best of Luck,
>
> Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP
> http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/
> Windows help - www.rickrogers.org
> My thoughts http://rick-mvp.blogspot.com
>
> "Rick Rogers" <rick@mvps.org> wrote in message
> news:%23x9xrIOuIHA.1772@TK2MSFTNGP03.phx.gbl...
>> You're right, it appears to be an exact character replacement only. It
>> goes the other way as well, if the target name is shorter, the remaining
>> characters on the original are carried over as well, ie:
>>
>> ren test*.docx wor*.docx
>>
>> results in a file name of wort1.docx. I'll see what I can find out about
>> this.
>>
>> --
>> Best of Luck,
>>
>> Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP
>> http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/
>> Windows help - www.rickrogers.org
>> My thoughts http://rick-mvp.blogspot.com
>>
>> "SixSigmaGuy" <Rick@RYTEway.com> wrote in message
>> news:416DD98E-A94C-4DD1-8A81-5F43854F36FF@microsoft.com...
>>> Your test didn't test the same thing. You had 5 character filenames
>>> before and after the rename, i.e., the lenght of the filename didn't
>>> change. In the case described in help, they renamed 6 character
>>> filenames to 7 character filenames. It should have worked as they
>>> described, but it didn't. Try the test again, renaming SMITH?.DOC to
>>> SMYTHE?.doc. It used to work fine; now it doesn't.
>>>
>>> "Rick Rogers" <rick@mvps.org> wrote in message
>>> news:OrGIFSIuIHA.548@TK2MSFTNGP06.phx.gbl...
>>>> Hi,
>>>>
>>>> Works fine for me here. Looking at your DIR results, it appears the
>>>> wildcard character, "a", wasn't carried on the first one. I just
>>>> replicated your test and here are the results:
>>>>
>>>> Directory of C:\TestREN
>>>>
>>>> 05/17/2008 09:11 PM <DIR> .
>>>> 05/17/2008 09:11 PM <DIR> ..
>>>> 05/17/2008 09:11 PM 9,863 Test1.docx
>>>> 05/17/2008 09:11 PM 9,887 Test2.docx
>>>> 05/17/2008 09:11 PM 9,895 Test3.docx
>>>> 3 File(s) 29,645 bytes
>>>> 2 Dir(s) 77,118,971,904 bytes free
>>>>
>>>> C:\TestREN>ren test*.docx work*.docx
>>>>
>>>> C:\TestREN>dir
>>>> Volume in drive C has no label.
>>>> Volume Serial Number is 2176-638D
>>>>
>>>> Directory of C:\TestREN
>>>>
>>>> 05/17/2008 09:12 PM <DIR> .
>>>> 05/17/2008 09:12 PM <DIR> ..
>>>> 05/17/2008 09:11 PM 9,863 work1.docx
>>>> 05/17/2008 09:11 PM 9,887 work2.docx
>>>> 05/17/2008 09:11 PM 9,895 work3.docx
>>>> 3 File(s) 29,645 bytes
>>>> 2 Dir(s) 77,118,185,472 bytes free
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> Best of Luck,
>>>>
>>>> Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP
>>>> http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/
>>>> Windows help - www.rickrogers.org
>>>> My thoughts http://rick-mvp.blogspot.com
>>>>
>>>> "SixSigmaGuy" <Rick@RYTEway.com> wrote in message
>>>> news:C1B5E01F-D343-4B9B-9032-11D174212563@microsoft.com...
>>>> I'm having trouble with the REN command with wild cards as used from
>>>> the command prompt.
>>>>
>>>> For example, in the REN command help, it says:
>>>>
>>>> "For example, if you had files that are named smitha.doc, smithb.doc,
>>>> and smithc.doc, you could use the ren smith*.doc smythe*.doc command.
>>>> All file names automatically show the new spelling, and are renamed
>>>> smythea.doc, smytheb.doc, and smythec.doc."
>>>>
>>>> If I try the example, exactly as described, I don't end up with
>>>> smythea.doc, smytheb.doc, and smythec.doc.
>>>>
>>>> Instead, when I create three files named smitha.doc, smithb.doc, and
>>>> smithc.doc and then execute the command:
>>>>
>>>> ren smith*.doc smythe*.doc
>>>>
>>>> I get:
>>>>
>>>> C:\TestREN>ren smith*.doc smythe*.doc
>>>> A duplicate file name exists, or the file
>>>> cannot be found.
>>>> A duplicate file name exists, or the file
>>>> cannot be found.
>>>>
>>>> C:\TestREN>dir
>>>> Volume in drive C is OS
>>>> Volume Serial Number is 0A07-21F5
>>>>
>>>> Directory of C:\TestREN
>>>>
>>>> 05/17/2008 04:04 PM <DIR> .
>>>> 05/17/2008 04:04 PM <DIR> ..
>>>> 05/17/2008 04:03 PM 0 Smithb.doc
>>>> 05/17/2008 04:03 PM 0 Smithc.doc
>>>> 05/17/2008 04:03 PM 0 smythe.doc
>>>> 0 File(s) 0 bytes
>>>> 2 Dir(s) 48,010,428,416 bytes free
>>>>
>>>> C:\TestREN>
>>>>
>>>> This isn't how I recall REN working in previous versions of Windows.
>>>> Anyone know if the REN command has changed or been broken?
>>>
>>
>