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On Windows, use PowerRename in Microsoft PowerToys to remove bracketed text from many file names at once. Select the files in File Explorer, open PowerRename, turn on Use regular expressions, enter a pattern for the bracket type, leave Replace with empty, and inspect the preview before applying the rename.
The examples below target square brackets, as in Report [draft].docx, or parentheses, as in Report (draft).docx. They remove the bracket pair and everything between it. The procedure covers selected files; it does not assume that nested brackets or subfolders are included.
Remove bracketed text from file names with PowerRename
PowerRename is Microsoft PowerToys’ batch-renaming tool, available from File Explorer when PowerRename is enabled. The workflow below changes the filename, not the file extension.
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- Select the files. In File Explorer, select the files you want to rename. Right-click the selection and choose Rename with PowerRename.
- Enable regex matching. In PowerRename, turn on Use regular expressions. With this option enabled, the Search field is interpreted as a regular expression.
- Enter the pattern for your delimiter. Use one of the patterns in the table below. These are practical expressions for PowerRename’s documented regex support, not recipes copied from Microsoft’s documentation.
- Leave the replacement blank. An empty Replace with field removes the matched text.
- Choose the scope and occurrence behavior. Set the operation to Filename only so the extension is preserved. Turn on Match all occurrences if a filename might contain more than one bracketed section; otherwise, only the first occurrence is replaced.
- Review the preview, then apply. Compare each original name with its proposed new name. Exclude any file that should not change, then apply the rename.
| Text to remove | Example search pattern | Example result |
|---|---|---|
| Square brackets, including the contents | [[^]]*] |
Report [draft].docx becomes Report.docx |
| Parentheses, including the contents | ([^)]*) |
Report (draft).docx becomes Report.docx |
What the patterns match—and what they do not
In the square-bracket expression, the escaped opening and closing brackets match literal [ and ] characters. The part between them matches any number of characters other than a closing bracket. The parentheses expression works the same way for literal ( and ). Both patterns also match an empty pair, such as [] or ().
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These expressions do not parse nested brackets as balanced structures. For example, a name such as File [draft [review]].txt needs careful handling: the basic square-bracket pattern is not designed to understand which opening bracket belongs to which closing bracket. If your names use other delimiter types or nesting, adapt the pattern and inspect the preview rather than applying it blindly.
Check for unintended changes before applying
- Confirm the scope. Use Filename only to avoid matching text in the extension. PowerRename also provides Extension only as a separate scope.
- Check every proposed name. Removing text can make two different files end up with the same filename. The documentation does not establish how every possible name collision is resolved, so review the preview and avoid applying a set of changes that produces duplicates.
- Check how many matches are removed. Select Match all occurrences when each filename can contain multiple bracketed spans and all should be removed.
- Be clear about the selection. These steps apply to the files you selected in File Explorer; they do not establish that files in subfolders are included automatically.
Undo a PowerRename operation
If the rename is not what you intended, Microsoft documents using File Explorer’s Undo Rename command or pressing Ctrl+Z to undo the last rename operation. This is for the last operation, so check the result promptly rather than assuming an older rename can be reversed the same way.
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PowerRename’s regular-expression options
PowerRename uses ECMAScript as its default regular-expression grammar. Its optional Use Boost library setting adds extended features, including lookbehind. The two patterns in this guide do not require Boost or lookbehind.
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Bulk Rename Utility is another option if you already use a separate batch-renaming program. Its manual documents controls for removing filename text and a RegEx control, and says that controls are applied in the order displayed. Its FAQ also describes importing old/new filename pairs and using the program on a UNC path mapped to a drive letter. The cited documentation does not establish universal platform compatibility, so check the utility’s current requirements for your system.
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