Rename multiple filename with python

Question

I have a folder with contains photo of students, with the following naming format:

StudentID_Name-Number

for example: 37_GOWDA-Rohan-1204-06675

I want to keep the 37 only, some students might have a longer ID (123, 65857....)

How may I do this using python, I am assuming I need the os lib.

Answer 1

You could use something like this to list all contents of the directory, pull the student id's, find the file type, and create a new name and save it in the same directory:

import os

# full directory path to student pictures
student_pic_path = 'full directory path to student pics'

# get all student picture filenames from path
fnames = os.listdir(student_pic_path)

# iterate over each picture
for fname in fnames:
    # split by underscore and capture student id name
    new_name = fname.split('_')[0]
    # get the file type
    file_type = fname.split('.')[-1]
    # append file type to new name
    new_name = '{}.{}'.format(new_name, file_type)
    os.rename(os.path.join(student_pic_path, fname), 
              os.path.join(student_pic_path, new_name))