Re: Renaming files: annoying automatic re-selection of entire filename in Windows 8

Anonymous
2020-10-19T14:19:02+00:00

So I think I've found a workaround that doesn't require a third party program. I simply can't reply to the original thread because it's closed, but I think my two cents may help some people since I'm having this problem on Windows 10 nearly seven years later.

It seems that, because I'm trying to rename something on dropbox, that there's a lag between me choosing to rename the file and dropbox recognizing that I'm trying to rename a file. At first, I would wait a few seconds, hit "Home" or the left arrow key, and then work on renaming the file hoping it doesn't happen again, which sometimes it does.

It seems though, that if I hit backspace (when the filename is still initially selected), ctrl+z (to undo deleting the file name), and then home (to get back to the beginning of the file name), I can use the arrow keys to move to the portion I need to rename unmolested, almost like it forces dropbox to recognize that a file is being renamed.

Original thread: https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows8\_1-files/renaming-files-annoying-automatic-re-selection-of/3e451ce8-282a-4638-88ee-fd9f7cca2536

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Files, folders, and storage

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

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  1. Anonymous
    2023-08-10T19:58:28+00:00

    This has bothered me for many years. This thread didn't solve it, but it did help me observe what was happening, at least in my case.

    I notice this most often when I am renaming many files. Like I want to add the word "lecture" in front of 20 files.

    What I observed is that in my OneDrive files,

    1. As soon as I change the name of File 1, it resyncs that file. That takes about 2 seconds.
    2. But after 1 second, I am already renaming the File 2.
    3. When File 1 completes the sync, Windows seems to reset the folder which means it selects the entire file name for me in File 2, while I am half-done editing. Annoying!

    What I noticed is that if I wait 2 seconds for File 1 to complete its sync, and then select File 2, then Windows does not reset the folder while I am editing File 2 and the problem goes away.

    Of course this is also annoying, to wait 2 seconds (or longer for large files) for the previous file to sync before starting the next, in what was supposed to be a fast repetitive task.

    So what I did instead was close OneDrive. Then the syncs stay pending. I edit all file names, and then turn OneDrive back on to complete the syncs. That worked for me, or has so far. I have not tested other scenarios yet.

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  2. Anonymous
    2023-07-17T10:55:34+00:00

    Thank you!

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  3. Anonymous
    2023-03-07T12:10:08+00:00

    Has anyone tried to disabled Windows Search service?

    It is effective on my computer. I tested on win10 and win11.

    Image

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  4. Anonymous
    2023-02-13T18:28:54+00:00

    I have the same issue, and it is one of the most irritating daily work bugs. I'm using Windows 11 Enterprise edition, so whatever it is causing this it's fundamental to some internals of Windows.

    It goes like this. Select a file name, or a folder name, then use either F2 or a delayed mouse click to select the filename editing feature. What I've discovered is that Windows will automatically select the entire filename, and no matter what I do with the keyboard cursor keys (HOME, END, INS, DEL, up arrow, down arrow, left arrow, right arrow) after a short delay Windows will re-select the entire filename.

    This is quite surprising, and extraordinarily annoying. I curse it every day.

    I agree with other posts here. This extraordinarily annoying bug seems to be strongly correlated with cloud files. In my case, the files are on OneDrive. Doing the same actions on a file stored locally doesn't reveal the bug.

    Followup. Disabling File Sync using the OneDrive settings seems to cure the behavior. There is about a one minute delay between the disable and the inhibiting of the bug.

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  5. Anonymous
    2023-01-17T14:49:30+00:00

    That was the single most effective answer I've seen to this problem so far.

    I copied a bunch of photos into my folder and used Tab to quickly go the next and rename them. Then I tried carefully going to each one to select and change their last name only. It was responding a little sluggishly (not sure if it's related) but doing what I asked without reselecting the whole name.

    I'll keep this one in play and hope it's a long-term fix. Thanks for sharing!

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