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File Operation Snippets

These snippets help automate common file tasks. Test on a copy of the folder first.

List Files In A Folder​

from pathlib import Path

folder = Path("files")
for path in folder.iterdir():
    if path.is_file():
        print(path.name)

Rename Files With A Prefix​

from pathlib import Path

folder = Path("files")
prefix = "project_"

for path in folder.iterdir():
    if path.is_file():
        new_path = path.with_name(prefix + path.name)
        path.rename(new_path)

Replace Text In File Names​

from pathlib import Path

folder = Path("files")
old_text = "draft"
new_text = "final"

for path in folder.iterdir():
    if path.is_file() and old_text in path.name:
        path.rename(path.with_name(path.name.replace(old_text, new_text)))

Move Files By Extension​

from pathlib import Path
import shutil

source = Path("downloads")
target_root = Path("organized")

for path in source.iterdir():
    if not path.is_file():
        continue

    extension = path.suffix.lower().lstrip(".") or "no_extension"
    target_dir = target_root / extension
    target_dir.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
    shutil.move(str(path), target_dir / path.name)

Find Large Files​

from pathlib import Path

folder = Path("files")
min_size_mb = 50

for path in folder.rglob("*"):
    if path.is_file() and path.stat().st_size > min_size_mb * 1024 * 1024:
        print(path, round(path.stat().st_size / 1024 / 1024, 1), "MB")

Safety Prompt​

Review this file operation script before I run it.
Tell me which lines rename, move, overwrite, or delete files.
Suggest a dry-run mode that prints actions without changing files.