brename -- a practical cross-platform command-line tool for safely batch renaming files/directories via regular expression

brename is a cross-platform command-line tool for safely batch renaming files/directories via regular expression.

Table of Contents

• Features
• Installation
• Usage
• Examples
• Real-world examples
• Contact
• License
• Starchart

Features

• Cross-platform. Supporting Windows, Mac OS X and Linux.
• Safe. By checking potential conflicts and errors.
• Supporting Undo.
• Overwrite can be detected and users can choose whether overwrite or leave it.
• File filtering. Supporting including and excluding files via regular expression. No need to run commands like find ./ -name "*.html" -exec CMD.
• Renaming submatch with corresponding value via key-value file.
• Renaming via ascending integer.
• Recursively renaming both files and directories.
• Supporting dry run.
• Colorful output. Screenshots:

  • Linux

    

  • Windows

    

Installation

brename is implemented in Go programming language, executable binary files for most popular operating systems are freely available in release page.

Method 1: Download binaries

brename v2.11.1

Tip: run brename -V to check update !!!

OS	Arch	File, 中国镜像	Download Count
Linux	32-bit	brename_linux_386.tar.gz, 中国镜像
Linux	64-bit	brename_linux_amd64.tar.gz, 中国镜像
Linux	arm64	brename_linux_arm64.tar.gz, 中国镜像
OS X	64-bit	brename_darwin_amd64.tar.gz, 中国镜像
OS X	arm64	brename_darwin_arm64.tar.gz, 中国镜像
Windows	32-bit	brename_windows_386.exe.tar.gz, 中国镜像
Windows	64-bit	brename_windows_amd64.exe.tar.gz, 中国镜像

Just download compressed executable file of your operating system, and decompress it with tar -zxvf *.tar.gz command or other tools. And then:

1. For Linux-like systems

   1. If you have root privilege simply copy it to /usr/local/bin:

       sudo cp brename /usr/local/bin/
      

   2. Or copy to anywhere in the environment variable PATH:

       mkdir -p $HOME/bin/; cp brename $HOME/bin/
      

2. For windows, just copy brename.exe to C:\WINDOWS\system32.

Method 2: For Go developer

go get -u github.com/shenwei356/brename/

Method 3: For ArchLinux AUR users

yaourt -S brename

Method 4: For Scoop users

scoop install brename

Method 5: Compiling from source

# download Go from https://go.dev/dl
wget https://go.dev/dl/go1.17.12.linux-amd64.tar.gz

tar -zxf go1.17.12.linux-amd64.tar.gz -C $HOME/

# or 
#   echo "export PATH=$PATH:$HOME/go/bin" >> ~/.bashrc
#   source ~/.bashrc
export PATH=$PATH:$HOME/go/bin

git clone https://github.com/shenwei356/brename
cd brename

go build

# or statically-linked binary
CGO_ENABLED=0 go build -tags netgo -ldflags '-w -s'

# or cross compile for other operating systems and architectures
CGO_ENABLED=0 GOOS=openbsd GOARCH=amd64 go build -tags netgo -ldflags '-w -s'

Usage

brename -- a practical cross-platform command-line tool for safely batch renaming files/directories via regular expression

Version: 2.11.1

Author: Wei Shen <[email protected]>

Homepage: https://github.com/shenwei356/brename

Attention:
  1. Paths starting with "." are ignored.
  2. Flag -f/--include-filters and -F/--exclude-filters support multiple values,
     e.g., -f ".html" -f ".htm".
     But ATTENTION: comma in filter is treated as separator of multiple filters.

Special replacement symbols:

  {nr}    Ascending integer
  {kv}    Corresponding value of the key (captured variable $n) by key-value file,
          n can be specified by flag -I/--key-capt-idx (default: 1)

Usage:
  brename [flags] [path ...] 

Examples:
  1. dry run and showing potential dangerous operations
      brename -p "abc" -d
  2. dry run and only show operations that will cause error
      brename -p "abc" -d -v 2
  3. only renaming specific paths via include filters
      brename -p ":" -r "-" -f ".htm$" -f ".html$"
  4. renaming all .jpeg files to .jpg in all subdirectories
      brename -p "\.jpeg" -r ".jpg" -R   dir
  5. using capture variables, e.g., $1, $2 ...
      brename -p "(a)" -r "\$1\$1"
      or brename -p "(a)" -r '$1$1' in Linux/Mac OS X
  6. renaming directory too
      brename -p ":" -r "-" -R -D   pdf-dirs
  7. using key-value file
      brename -p "(.+)" -r "{kv}" -k kv.tsv
  8. do not touch file extension
      brename -p ".+" -r "{nr}" -f .mkv -f .mp4 -e
  9. only list paths that match pattern (-l)
      brename -i -f '.docx?$' -p . -R -l
  10. undo the LAST successful operation
      brename -u

  More examples: https://github.com/shenwei356/brename

Flags:
  -d, --dry-run                   print rename operations but do not run
  -F, --exclude-filters strings   exclude file filter(s) (regular expression, NOT wildcard). multiple values supported, e.g., -F ".html" -F ".htm", but ATTENTION: comma in filter is treated as separator of multiple filters
  -U, --force-undo                continue undo even when some operations failed
  -h, --help                      help for brename
  -i, --ignore-case               ignore case of -p/--pattern, -f/--include-filters and -F/--exclude-filters
  -e, --ignore-ext                ignore file extension. i.e., replacement does not change file extension
  -f, --include-filters strings   include file filter(s) (regular expression, NOT wildcard). multiple values supported, e.g., -f ".html" -f ".htm", but ATTENTION: comma in filter is treated as separator of multiple filters (default [.])
  -D, --including-dir             rename directories
  -K, --keep-key                  keep the key as value when no value found for the key
  -I, --key-capt-idx int          capture variable index of key (1-based) (default 1)
  -m, --key-miss-repl string      replacement for key with no corresponding value
  -k, --kv-file string            tab-delimited key-value file for replacing key with value when using "{kv}" in -r (--replacement)
  -l, --list                      only list paths that match pattern
  -a, --list-abs                  list absolute path, using along with -l/--list
  -s, --list-sep string           separator for list of found paths (default "\n")
      --max-depth int             maximum depth for recursive search (0 for no limit)
  -N, --nature-sort               list paths in nature sort, using along with -l/--list
      --nr-width int              minimum width for {nr} in flag -r/--replacement. e.g., formating "1" to "001" by --nr-width 3 (default 1)
      --only-dir                  only rename directories
  -o, --overwrite-mode int        overwrite mode (0 for reporting error, 1 for overwrite, 2 for not renaming) (default 0)
  -p, --pattern string            search pattern (regular expression)
  -q, --quiet                     be quiet, do not show information and warning
  -R, --recursive                 rename recursively
  -r, --replacement string        replacement. capture variables supported.  e.g. $1 represents the first submatch. ATTENTION: for *nix OS, use SINGLE quote NOT double quotes or use the \ escape character. Ascending integer is also supported by "{nr}"
  -n, --start-num int             starting number when using {nr} in replacement (default 1)
  -u, --undo                      undo the LAST successful operation
  -v, --verbose int               verbose level (0 for all, 1 for warning and error, 2 for only error) (default 0)
  -V, --version                   print version information and check for update

Examples

Take a directory for example (run generate-example-folder.sh to generate)

$ sh generate-example-folder.sh 
example
├── abc
│   ├── A.JPEG
│   ├── B.HTM
│   └── B.JPEG
├── a.html
├── a.jpeg
└── b.jpeg

# examples below were executed in directory: example
cd example/

1. Recursively renaming all .jpeg files to .jpg in all subdirectories (-R/--recursive). A dry run is firstly performed for safety checking (-d/--dry-run).

    $ brename -p "\.jpeg" -r ".jpg" -R -d
    [INFO] main options:
    [INFO]   ignore case: false
    [INFO]   search pattern: \.jpeg
    [INFO]   include filters: .
    [INFO]   search paths: ./
    [INFO] 
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'a.jpeg' -> 'a.jpg'
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'b.jpeg' -> 'b.jpg'
    [INFO] 2 path(s) to be renamed
   
   
    $ brename -p "\.jpeg" -r ".jpg" -R
    [INFO] main options:
    [INFO]   ignore case: false
    [INFO]   search pattern: \.jpeg
    [INFO]   include filters: .
    [INFO]   search paths: ./
    [INFO] 
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'a.jpeg' -> 'a.jpg'
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'b.jpeg' -> 'b.jpg'
    [INFO] 2 path(s) to be renamed
    [INFO] renamed: 'a.jpeg' -> 'a.jpg'
    [INFO] renamed: 'b.jpeg' -> 'b.jpg'
    [INFO] 2 path(s) renamed
   
    $ tree
    .
    ├── abc
    │   ├── A.JPEG
    │   ├── B.HTM
    │   └── B.JPEG
    ├── a.html
    ├── a.jpg
    └── b.jpg
   

2. Undo the LAST successful operation, yes it's COOL! (-u/--undo, -U/--force-undo)

    $ brename -u
    [INFO] rename back: 'b.jpg' -> 'b.jpeg'
    [INFO] rename back: 'a.jpg' -> 'a.jpeg'
    [INFO] 2 path(s) renamed
   

3. Dry run and only showing operations that will cause error (-v/--verbose)

    # default value of -v is 0
    $ brename -p a -r b -R -D -d
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'a.html' -> 'b.html'
    [ERRO] checking: [ new path existed ] 'a.jpg' -> 'b.jpg'
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'abc' -> 'bbc'
    [ERRO] 1 potential error(s) detected, please check
   
    $ brename -p a -r b -R -D -d -v 2
    [ERRO] checking: [ new path existed ] 'a.jpg' -> 'b.jpg'
    [ERRO] 1 potential error(s) detected, please check
   

4. Ignoring cases (-i/--ignore-case)

    $ brename -p "\.jpeg" -r ".jpg" -R -i
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'abc/A.JPEG' -> 'abc/A.jpg'
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'abc/B.JPEG' -> 'abc/B.jpg'
    [INFO] 2 path(s) to be renamed
    [INFO] renamed: 'abc/A.JPEG' -> 'abc/A.jpg'
    [INFO] renamed: 'abc/B.JPEG' -> 'abc/B.jpg'
    [INFO] 2 path(s) renamed
   
    $ tree
    .
    ├── abc
    │   ├── A.jpg
    │   ├── B.HTM
    │   └── B.jpg
    ├── a.html
    ├── a.jpg
    └── b.jpg
   

5. Using capture variables, e.g., $1, $2 ...

    # or brename -p "(a)" -r '$1$1' in Linux/Mac OS X
    $ brename -p "(a)" -r "\$1\$1" -i
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'a.html' -> 'aa.html'
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'a.jpg' -> 'aa.jpg'
    [INFO] 2 path(s) to be renamed
    [INFO] renamed: 'a.html' -> 'aa.html'
    [INFO] renamed: 'a.jpg' -> 'aa.jpg'
    [INFO] 2 path(s) renamed
   
    $ tree
    .
    ├── aa.html
    ├── aa.jpg
    ├── abc
    │   ├── A.jpg
    │   ├── B.HTM
    │   └── B.jpg
    └── b.jpg
   

6. Renaming directory too (-D/--including-dir), even renaming directory only (-D --only-dir)

    $ brename -p "a" -r "A" -R -D
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'aa.html' -> 'AA.html'
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'aa.jpg' -> 'AA.jpg'
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'abc' -> 'Abc'
    [INFO] 3 path(s) to be renamed
    [INFO] renamed: 'aa.html' -> 'AA.html'
    [INFO] renamed: 'aa.jpg' -> 'AA.jpg'
    [INFO] renamed: 'abc' -> 'Abc'
    [INFO] 3 path(s) renamed
   
    $ tree
    .
    ├── AA.html
    ├── AA.jpg
    ├── Abc
    │   ├── A.jpg
    │   ├── B.HTM
    │   └── B.jpg
    └── b.jpg
   

7. Only renaming specific files via include filters (regular expression) (-f/--include-filters)

    $ brename -p '(.)' -r '$1 ' -d
    [INFO] main options:
    [INFO]   ignore case: false
    [INFO]   search pattern: (.)
    [INFO]   include filters: .
    [INFO]   search paths: ./
    [INFO] 
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'AA.html' -> 'A A . h t m l '
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'AA.jpg' -> 'A A . j p g '
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'b.jpg' -> 'b . j p g '
    [INFO] 3 path(s) to be renamed
   
   
    $ brename -p '(.)' -r '$1 ' -d -f '\.jpg$'
    [INFO] main options:
    [INFO]   ignore case: false
    [INFO]   search pattern: (.)
    [INFO]   include filters: \.jpg$
    [INFO]   search paths: ./
    [INFO] 
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'AA.jpg' -> 'A A . j p g '
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'b.jpg' -> 'b . j p g '
    [INFO] 2 path(s) to be renamed
   

   Attention: value of -f/--include-filters and -F/--exclude-filters should be regular expression, NOT wildcard!

    $ brename -p '(.)' -r '$1 ' -d -f *.jpg
    [WARN] Seems you are using wildcard for -f/--include-filters? Make sure using regular expression: AA.jpg
    [INFO] main options:
    [INFO]   ignore case: false
    [INFO]   search pattern: (.)
    [INFO]   include filters: AA.jpg
    [INFO]   search paths: b.jpg
    [INFO] 
    [INFO] 0 path(s) to be renamed
   
    $ brename -p '(.)' -r '$1 ' -d -f '*.jpg'
    [WARN] Are you using wildcard for -f/--include-filters? It should be regular expression: *.jpg
    [ERRO] illegal regular expression for include filter: *.jpg
   
    $ brename -p '(.)' -r '$1 ' -d -f A*
    [WARN] Seems you are using wildcard for -f/--include-filters? Make sure using regular expression: AA.html
    [INFO] main options:
    [INFO]   ignore case: false
    [INFO]   search pattern: (.)
    [INFO]   include filters: AA.html
    [INFO]   search paths: AA.jpg, Abc
    [INFO] 
    [INFO] 0 path(s) to be renamed
   

8. Excluding files via exclude filters (regular expression) (-F/--exclude-filters)

    $ brename -p '(.)' -r '$1 ' -d
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'AA.jpg' -> 'A A . j p g '
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'b.jpg' -> 'b . j p g '
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'hello AA.html' -> 'h e l l o   A A . h t m l '
    [INFO] 3 path(s) to be renamed
   
   
    $ brename -p '(.)' -r '$1 ' -d -F '\.html$'
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'AA.jpg' -> 'A A . j p g '
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'b.jpg' -> 'b . j p g '
    [INFO] 2 path(s) to be renamed
   

9. Do not touch file extension (-e/--ignore-ext)

    $ brename -p '(.)' -r '$1 ' -d
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'AA.jpg' -> 'A A . j p g '
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'b.jpg' -> 'b . j p g '
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'hello AA.html' -> 'h e l l o   A A . h t m l '
    [INFO] 3 path(s) to be renamed
   
    $ brename -p '(.)' -r '$1 ' -d -e
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'AA.jpg' -> 'A A .jpg'
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'b.jpg' -> 'b .jpg'
    [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'hello AA.html' -> 'h e l l o   A A .html'
    [INFO] 3 path(s) to be renamed
   

10. Renaming with number (-r {nr})

     $ brename -d -p '(.+)\.' -r 'pic-{nr}.' -f .jpg -d
     [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'AA.jpg' -> 'pic-1.jpg'
     [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'b.jpg' -> 'pic-2.jpg'
     [INFO] 2 path(s) to be renamed
    
     $ brename -d -p '(.+)\.' -r 'pic-{nr}.' -f .jpg -d --nr-width 3 --start-num 11
     [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'AA.jpg' -> 'pic-011.jpg'
     [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'b.jpg' -> 'pic-012.jpg'
     [INFO] 2 path(s) to be renamed
    

11. Replace submatch with corresponding value via tab delimited key-value file (-k/--kv-file)

     $ more kv.tsv
     a       一
     b       二
     c       三
    
     $ brename -p '^(\w)' -r '{kv}' -k kv.tsv -K -i -d
     [INFO] read key-value file: kv.tsv
     [INFO] 3 pairs of key-value loaded
     [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'AA.jpg' -> '一A.jpg'
     [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'b.jpg' -> '二.jpg'
     [WARN] checking: [ unchanged ] 'hello b.html' -> 'hello b.html'
     [WARN] checking: [ unchanged ] 'kv.tsv' -> 'kv.tsv'
    

12. Auto mkdir

     $ brename -f .txt -p '-' -r '/'
     [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'a-b-c.txt' -> 'a/b/c.txt'
     [INFO] 1 path(s) to be renamed
     [INFO] renamed: 'a-b-c.txt' -> 'a/b/c.txt'
     [INFO] 1 path(s) renamed
    
     $ tree a
     a
     └── b
         └── c.txt
    

13. Only listing paths that match pattern (-l and -a)

     $ brename -p '.gz$' -R -l
     binaries/brename_darwin_386.tar.gz
     binaries/brename_darwin_amd64.tar.gz
     binaries/brename_linux_386.tar.gz
     binaries/brename_linux_amd64.tar.gz
     binaries/brename_windows_386.exe.tar.gz
     binaries/brename_windows_amd64.exe.tar.gz
    
     $ brename -p '.gz$' -R -l -a
     /home/shenwei/project/src/github.com/shenwei356/brename/binaries/brename_darwin_386.tar.gz
     /home/shenwei/project/src/github.com/shenwei356/brename/binaries/brename_darwin_amd64.tar.gz
     /home/shenwei/project/src/github.com/shenwei356/brename/binaries/brename_linux_386.tar.gz
     /home/shenwei/project/src/github.com/shenwei356/brename/binaries/brename_linux_amd64.tar.gz
     /home/shenwei/project/src/github.com/shenwei356/brename/binaries/brename_windows_386.exe.tar.gz
     /home/shenwei/project/src/github.com/shenwei356/brename/binaries/brename_windows_amd64.exe.tar.gz
    

14. Overwrite mode (-o/--overwrite-mode)

     $ ls *.tar.gz
     brename_darwin_386.tar.gz    brename_linux_386.tar.gz    brename_windows_386.exe.tar.gz
     brename_darwin_amd64.tar.gz  brename_linux_amd64.tar.gz  brename_windows_amd64.exe.tar.gz
    

    1. default mode: reporting error

        $ brename -p 386 -r amd64 -d
        [ERRO] checking: [ new path existed ] 'brename_darwin_386.tar.gz' -> 'brename_darwin_amd64.tar.gz'
        [ERRO] checking: [ new path existed ] 'brename_linux_386.tar.gz' -> 'brename_linux_amd64.tar.gz'
        [ERRO] checking: [ new path existed ] 'brename_windows_386.exe.tar.gz' -> 'brename_windows_amd64.exe.tar.gz'
        [ERRO] 3 potential error(s) detected, please check
       

    2. allowing overwrite

        $ brename -p 386 -r amd64 -d -o 1
        [WARN] checking: [ new path existed ] 'brename_darwin_386.tar.gz' -> 'brename_darwin_amd64.tar.gz' (will be overwrited)
        [WARN] checking: [ new path existed ] 'brename_linux_386.tar.gz' -> 'brename_linux_amd64.tar.gz' (will be overwrited)
        [WARN] checking: [ new path existed ] 'brename_windows_386.exe.tar.gz' -> 'brename_windows_amd64.exe.tar.gz' (will be overwrited)
        [INFO] 3 path(s) to be renamed
       

    3. leave it

        $ brename -p 386 -r amd64 -d -o 2
        [WARN] checking: [ new path existed ] 'brename_darwin_386.tar.gz' -> 'brename_darwin_amd64.tar.gz' (will NOT be overwrited)
        [WARN] checking: [ new path existed ] 'brename_linux_386.tar.gz' -> 'brename_linux_amd64.tar.gz' (will NOT be overwrited)
        [WARN] checking: [ new path existed ] 'brename_windows_386.exe.tar.gz' -> 'brename_windows_amd64.exe.tar.gz' (will NOT be overwrited)
        [INFO] 0 path(s) to be renamed
       

    4. this flag also works for another case, where two or more files are renamed to same new path

        $ brename -f 386 -p 'darwin|linux' -r unix-like -d
        [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'brename_darwin_386.tar.gz' -> 'brename_unix-like_386.tar.gz'
        [ERRO] checking: [ overwriting newly renamed path ] 'brename_linux_386.tar.gz' -> 'brename_unix-like_386.tar.gz'
        [ERRO] 1 potential error(s) detected, please check
       
        $ brename -f 386 -p 'darwin|linux' -r unix-like -d -o 1
        [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'brename_darwin_386.tar.gz' -> 'brename_unix-like_386.tar.gz'
        [WARN] checking: [ overwriting newly renamed path ] 'brename_linux_386.tar.gz' -> 'brename_unix-like_386.tar.gz' (will be overwrited)
        [INFO] 2 path(s) to be renamed
       
        $ brename -f 386 -p 'darwin|linux' -r unix-like -d -o 2
        [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'brename_darwin_386.tar.gz' -> 'brename_unix-like_386.tar.gz'
        [WARN] checking: [ overwriting newly renamed path ] 'brename_linux_386.tar.gz' -> 'brename_unix-like_386.tar.gz' (will NOT be overwrited)
        [INFO] 1 path(s) to be renamed
       

Real-world examples

1. Replace matches with corresponding pairing values

   1. Original files

       $ tree
       .
       ├── barcodes.tsv
       ├── tag_ATGCGTA.fasta
       ├── tag_CCCCCCC.fasta
       ├── tag_CGACGTC.fasta
       ├── tag_TCATAGC.fasta
       └── tag_TCTATAG.fasta
      

   2. Tab-delimited key-value file. Notice that CCCCCCC is not in it.

       $ cat barcodes.tsv
       CGACGTC S1
       ATGCGTA S2
       TCTATAG S4
       TCATAGC S3
      

   3. Renaming tag as sample name, marking unknown for non-existing tag.

       $ brename -e -p 'tag_(\w+)' -r '{kv}' -k barcodes.tsv -m unknown -d
       [INFO] read key-value file: barcodes.tsv
       [INFO] 4 pairs of key-value loaded
       [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'tag_ATGCGTA.fasta' -> 'S2.fasta'
       [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'tag_CCCCCCC.fasta' -> 'unknown.fasta'
       [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'tag_CGACGTC.fasta' -> 'S1.fasta'
       [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'tag_TCATAGC.fasta' -> 'S3.fasta'
       [INFO] checking: [ ok ] 'tag_TCTATAG.fasta' -> 'S4.fasta'
       [INFO] 5 path(s) to be renamed
      

2. Renaming PDF files for compatibility (moving from EXT4 to NTFS file system):

   1. Original files

       $ tree -Q
       .
       ├── "0000 Test.pdf"
       ├── "2016 SeqKit: A Cross-Platform and Ultrafast Toolkit for FASTA\342\201\204Q File Manipulation .pdf"
       ├── "metagenomics"
       │   ├── "2017 16S rRNA gene sequencing and healthy reference ranges for 28 clinically relevant microbial taxa from the human gut microbiome .pdf"
       │   ├── "2017 De novo assembly of viral quasispecies using overlap graphs .pdf"
       │   └── "2017 Tracking microbial colonization in fecal microbiota transplantation experiments via genome-resolved metagenomics .pdf"
       ├── "test2222222222222222222211111111122222222222222222233333333.pdf"
       └── "test.pdf"
      

   2. Removing "\n", "'", "?".

       $ brename -p "[\n'\?]" -r " " -R
      

   3. Replacing ":" with " _"

       $ brename -p ":" -r " _" -R
      

   4. Shortening file names (prefering spliting with space)

       $ brename -R -f .pdf -i -p "^(.{30,50})[ \.].*.pdf" -r "\$1.pdf" -d
      

   5. Result

       $ tree -Q
       .
       ├── "0000 Test.pdf"
       ├── "2016 SeqKit _ A Cross-Platform and Ultrafast.pdf"
       ├── "metagenomics"
       │   ├── "2017 16S rRNA gene sequencing and healthy.pdf"
       │   ├── "2017 De novo assembly of viral quasispecies using.pdf"
       │   └── "2017 Tracking microbial colonization in fecal.pdf"
       ├── "test2222222222222222222211111111122222222222222222233333333.pdf"
       └── "test.pdf"
      

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