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craiglambie
New Participant
July 23, 2018
Answered

Rename an open PDF in Acrobat?

  • July 23, 2018
  • 13 replies
  • 113241 views

I often receive PDF files that I want to rename once I have looked at the content more closely.

How do I just rename an open file in Acrobat (rather than Save As, or closing the file and going into the OS file manager to do it?)

    Correct answer Test Screen Name

    Not only can you not rename files INSIDE Acrobat, you cannot rename a file at all, in Windows, while the file is open. Acrobat is a perfectly normal app in this regard.

    13 replies

    W
    wiliki
    New Participant
    July 18, 2024

    It's been 6 years and Adobe still does not provide this feature!  @Adobe please fix!

    К
    Коля37235694z1fr
    New Participant
    May 7, 2024

    https://techswift.org/2021/08/26/how-to-change-the-document-title-of-a-pdf/

    .

    J
    J34173065lykf
    New Participant
    May 8, 2024

    Changing the title does not change the filename

    D
    David31558036a5dv
    New Participant
    August 8, 2023

    This is a flaw of Acrobat. PDF XChange will allow this feature to rename the file while it is open and is one of many reasons why I perfer it over Acrobat.

    J
    Jim33055705925x
    New Participant
    October 20, 2023

    So does the freaking free Sumatra PDF.

      A
      adwul62
      Inspiring
      October 21, 2023

      Yes, I use SumatraPDF by default. It is light weight and really fast, highlights stuff searched for incrementally, etc.
      Acrobat I use to create PDF, make them searchable, etc.

      Like @bedazzler said: renaming, just hit F2. Piece of cake.

       

       

      I am using Acrobat Pro 2020, likely newer versions have more features.

      SumatraPDF can close a number of open files at once, using good old Pro 2020 I should close them one by one.

      As said: for creating it is Acrobat of course, but for viewing, handling, whatever, it is SumatraPDF for me.

       

       

       

        M
        Martin25301133lffu
        New Participant
        July 19, 2022

        In the tree on the left highlight <Your Files> Then tick the box for the one you want, the menue on the right will show <rename> option click that and it will open a panel to edit the name. Click the rename button once you do that it will be done.

        Bernd Alheit
        Bernd Alheit
        Community Expert
        July 19, 2022

        What version of Adobe Acrobat does you use?

        M
        Martin25301133lffu
        New Participant
        July 19, 2022

        I'm using Adobe Acrobat Reader DC free version 2022.001.20169 64bit.

        On Windows 11.

        cmoore655
        cmoore655
        New Participant
        March 16, 2022

        First If you click on the left side panel to expand it, you'll see the Page Thumbnails option. Should be the first one.

         

        Then right click the page you want to rename, select Page Labels...

         

        And then in the popup window you'll see an area called "Prefix" - you can change the name there and then press ok

         

        That should work.

        Bernd Alheit
        Bernd Alheit
        Community Expert
        March 16, 2022

        This doesn't change the name of the PDF file.

        S
        Stéphanie5C6C
        New Participant
        August 5, 2021

        This a nightmare! I dont get why such sophisticated tool cannot do such a simple and absolutly necessary action. Will try another app now.

          D
          Darren5C2A
          New Participant
          February 18, 2021

          Sumatra PDF is the only application I have found that does this well:

          • Open the PDF, to see what it is
          • Hit F2 (inside Sumatra PDF, while you're still looking at the PDF)
          • File selector dialog comes up, with title "Rename to"
          • Type new name of file, hit Save
          • Boom - you've renamed the file, and now have the renamed file open to continue viewing.

          Adobe, why is this hard? I understand that there would be some issues if the user had already made edits, but you could easily force a save along with the rename.

            J
            JoelDeBruijn
            New Participant
            February 19, 2021

            In the mean time, the answer which didnt look any further then a superficial first glance is marked 'correct'.

            Maybe its technically true, but misses your point.

             

            J
            JoelDeBruijn
            New Participant
            January 16, 2021

            Maybe so, but lots of imageviewers let you rename a picture which APPEARS to be open to the user (meaning you can see it simultaneously while renaming).

            From a technical perspective I guess the file is closed/unlocked in the background without changing the 'screen looking at it, renamed and opened again.

              M
              Mac34
              New Participant
              January 23, 2020

              My workplace switched from Mac to PC, and I am shocked that it is not possible to rename files while they are open. This is a basic function that something like PDF Expert can do on a Mac. How is corporate America functioning with such outdated technology?

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