Adding files

Name your files

Rename a file, and choose names that sort, search and read well.

Archivist Admin Checked in Starchive on October 12, 2026

A scanner calls everything scan-0001. You want names that tell people what a file is, and that put files in a useful order.

Steps

Right-click the file (or use the ⋮ on its tile) and choose Rename.
The dialog shows the current name, here Einstein Letter to Roosevelt 1939.png, and selects the part before the extension.
Type the new name and press Enter, or click Rename file to ”…”. The extension stays as it was.

The Rename dialog over the letter: its current name, Einstein Letter to Roosevelt 1939.png, above; a date-first name, 1939-08-02 Einstein Letter to Roosevelt, typed in; and Rename file to that name below. The extension is not part of what you type.

To check the order, open the sort menu and choose A to Z.

The sort menu open over a folder of photographs: Newest upload, Oldest upload, Z to A, A to Z, Newest created, Oldest created, Largest, Smallest.

Good to know

A file arrives with the name it had on your computer. Renaming before you upload saves a step for every file.
Search finds part of a name, in any capitals: roosev finds the letter, and a Roosevelt speech with it. Words in the name are words people can find it by.
The grid cuts long names short (Einstein Letter t…), so put the words that tell files apart first.
A to Z sorts by name, character by character. A date written year first, 1939-08-02, puts files in date order; 2 Aug 1939 does not.

A naming pattern that works

Pick one pattern for a collection and keep to it:

Part	Example	Why
Date, year first	`1939-08-02`	Sorts in date order under A to Z
What it is	`Einstein Letter to Roosevelt`	Readable in search results
Number, with leading zeros	`p01`, `p02` … `p12`	`p2` would sort after `p12`

Leave out what Starchive records anyway (who uploaded it and when), and put what people filter by into fields and tags rather than the name: a name can hold one date, a field can be searched and filtered.

Questions

Does search find a file by its new name?

Yes, straight away. Search for part of the new name; the old name no longer matches.

Can I change the extension?

No. Rename edits the name in front of it; .png stays .png.

Can I rename many files at once?

Not in the app. Rename them on your computer before you upload, or ask about Star-Tools, Starchive's companion app for bulk work.