Create/rename a file/folder that begins with a dot in Windows?

Question

Many programs needs folder names that starts with a dot, like .emacs.d, .gimp-2.2, .jedit etc. How do I create such a folder?

When using the Windows Explorer in Windows 2000 (and other versions), I get an error message saying "You have to enter a filename". The only solution I have come up with, is to open a command prompt (Start > Run > "CMD" > OK) and enter mkdir .mydir.

Why have Microsoft this error message in the Explorer, but not in the command shell? Is there any registry hack out there to fix this, so that I am able to enter the folder name directly in the Explorer?

This is an ancient protection built into windows explorer and dates back to the time that only DOS 8.3 filenames were available (Win 3.1) and files with just an extension were not allowed. Microsoft never bothered to remove this from the Explorer, probably because humans using the Explorer should be "protected" from accidentally creating files without a filename (i.e., only extension). — , Nov 02 '09 at 15:22
See also "How do I rename a file to .htaccess in Windows 7?" at http://superuser.com/questions/56562/how-do-i-rename-a-file-to-htaccess-in-windows-7/ — Arjan, Nov 02 '09 at 15:30
Related post on SO - [How to manually create a file with a . dot prefix in windows for example .htaccess](https://stackoverflow.com/q/5004633/465053) — RBT, Mar 22 '19 at 05:35
I encountered a similar problem when creating files. Some files were named`com4.txt`, `com1.txt` etc and those are reserved names for devices, so it crashed my software. — Zimano, Feb 12 '20 at 16:00
Also, perhaps to somewhat clarify re the good initial comment above: the '8.3' in the comment refers to the naming convention at that time of _xxxxxxxx.xxx_, or _filename.ext_, referring to the fact that maximum filename length at that time for those systems was 8 characters,.separated by a dot, and the 3 for the length of extension characters, cf referring to a DOS Version such as DOS 3.1, DOS 3.3, or DOS 5.0 , Thank you :) — M H, Nov 12 '20 at 04:47

score 714 · Answer 1 · edited Mar 30 '12 at 20:50

714

To create/rename on windows explorer, just rename to .name. - The additional dot at the end is necessary, and will be removed by Windows Explorer.

To create a new file begins with a dot, on command prompt:

echo testing > .name

edited Mar 30 '12 at 20:50

Raystafarian

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answered Mar 30 '12 at 18:25

Denny

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I just tried `.name.` in Windows (XP) and it did not work; it complained about needing a filename. – Synetech Jun 24 '12 at 16:54
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Confirmed to work on Windows 7. That's awesome. – Joe White Jun 30 '12 at 21:26
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Confirmed to work on Windows 8. – Mr. Polywhirl Jan 24 '13 at 03:38
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Confirmed to work on Windows Vista. Amazing. – Hope4You Jan 26 '13 at 17:21
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Only option to create in XP is thru command prompt. say `mkdir .name` – Antony Thomas May 08 '13 at 18:05
Or even simply `echo. > .name`! – mythofechelon Oct 03 '13 at 09:01
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Works on Windows 10 - @Denny where did you find this gold nugget?! – Daniel Sokolowski May 29 '15 at 01:52
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@Denny How did you know this? Is it a feature or a very useful bug? – Buttle Butkus Oct 29 '15 at 21:36
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@ButtleButkus (not meant to disparage *anyone*) ...I would imagine that he knew this because he is older than 30 and had to make his way in the Long-Long-Ago; in the Before Time when theres was no Interwebz. Try this little ditty from your command line `echo times >> .foo & < nul (set /p s=gaz) >> .foo & echo intas >> .foo & type .foo` and you will see 2 lines printed to the screen `times` and `gazintas` – K. Alan Bates Jan 19 '16 at 16:15
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@K.AlanBates I don't see an explanation in your comment regarding the trailing dot. What does age or the internet have to do with this syntactical phenomenon? – isherwood Oct 17 '16 at 18:33
if you get "The system cannot find the file specified." when trying to rename/move, make sure the file or folder isn't hidden! (`attrib -h .setting && move .setting .new-setting`) – matt wilkie Nov 11 '16 at 21:54
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@K.AlanBates - A little less patronisation, a little more explanation please. – Hashim Aziz Aug 14 '17 at 01:10
Works with windows 2008 R2 SP1, which is the server equivalent of Win7. Thank you OP and @Joe White – Jon Grah Oct 04 '17 at 10:20
`echo on > .name` (or `echo off > .name`) creates an empty file. – Nuno André Jul 28 '18 at 05:26
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@Hashim The original DOS convention for filenames was FILENAME.EXT where the dot separator was always present at least implicitly to separate the name from the extension. For backwards compatibility or tradition, Windows still works like this, so any filename ending with a . is the same as the name itself. For example "abc." is the same as "abc", as is "abc..", "abc..." and so on. On Unix-like systems these are all distinct filenames, but on Windows they are not. – Brandin Sep 26 '18 at 10:43
For those keeping score, this is confirmed to work in Windows Server 2012 – cdkMoose Oct 08 '19 at 19:15
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For those keeping score, this is confirmed to work in Windows Server 2016 – dmikester1 Jan 29 '20 at 18:22

score 71 · Answer 2 · edited Jun 30 '12 at 21:22

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You can create a folder using the Command Prompt with:

mkdir .foldername

You can create a file using command prompt with:

echo.>.filename.extension

edited Jun 30 '12 at 21:22

Canadian Luke

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answered Jun 29 '12 at 22:59

quickmana

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score 39 · Answer 3 · edited Jun 15 '18 at 00:39

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Good question. There is an easy way to do this from Windows Explorer without using a command prompt or shell. Suppose you want to create a folder called: ".apple"

Create a New Folder from Windows Explorer as you normally would.
When prompted to enter a name, type: ".apple." (notice the dot at the end)

Windows should create a folder called: ".apple"

Please note that I've used this only on Windows 7. I am not sure if other versions of Windows support this.

P.S. Chris Moschini says in a comment that it works in Windows 10.

edited Jun 15 '18 at 00:39

Scott - Слава Україні

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answered Dec 14 '16 at 15:56

Aamer

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Works in Windows 10. – Chris Moschini Sep 13 '17 at 17:52
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this was exactly the same as the [top voted answer in this question](https://superuser.com/a/406758/241386), only 4 years later – phuclv Jun 15 '18 at 01:24
You have just saved my life, I accidentally rename all folders and files from my Windows User folder and my programs started to fail. Fortunately i was able to reset the names. +1e6 votes up. – Rafa Barragan Jul 26 '18 at 23:24

score 14 · Answer 4 · edited Oct 12 '12 at 01:57

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Use any file browser other than Explorer (Shell). I have tested with WinRAR, 7-Zip ect. For example, open WinRAR, then navigate to your files or folders, click on it, press F2 (rename), put a . at beginning, Done! I have tested with both WinRAR and 7-Zip. You don't need to add to Zip or make a compressed file.

The simpler method I found in other answer, just put a . at the end too.

edited Oct 12 '12 at 01:57

jonsca

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answered Jul 15 '12 at 16:41

Shafeer

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score 8 · Answer 5 · edited Apr 13 '13 at 00:07

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Open a Command Prompt window and enter the following commands:

cd /path/to/the/file
ren file.extension .file.extension

That worked for me.

edited Apr 13 '13 at 00:07

Indrek

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answered Apr 12 '13 at 19:51

user216626

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score 6 · Answer 6 · edited Mar 31 '17 at 15:51

6

You can do it with powershell cmdlet New-Item.

Open PowerShell console and enter

For File:

New-Item .whatever -type file

For Folder:

New-Item .whatever -type directory

edited Mar 31 '17 at 15:51

phuclv

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answered Nov 20 '13 at 15:12

Michael Hicks

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Yeah, in Powershell 4.0 also works with "md" command. – Fernando Gonzalez Sanchez Oct 16 '14 at 19:26

score 4 · Answer 7 · answered Nov 03 '09 at 10:12

4

Total Commander does it in visual manner.

answered Nov 03 '09 at 10:12

Boris Pavlović

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score 2 · Answer 8 · answered Dec 16 '15 at 23:06

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I couldn't create .bowerrc. So

First, I created bowerrc Then, to a dos prompt I said:

>powershell
PS > ren bowerrc .bowerrc
PS > exit
>

answered Dec 16 '15 at 23:06

Joe Codeswell user601770

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you dont even need powershell. just plain old cmd (see other answers) - Powershell definitely works though :) – Nick Mar 22 '16 at 06:45

score 2 · Answer 9 · answered Jun 30 '12 at 00:15

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Use Windows Powershell. Otherwise this is not possible with DOS/Explorer - only method is to create foo.bar and then rename with the explorer window.

With Powershell you can

touch .bak

successfully.

answered Jun 30 '12 at 00:15

lonstar

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this is definitely possible. Did you look at the [most voted answer](https://superuser.com/a/406758/241386) which was posted several months before yours? – phuclv Jun 15 '18 at 01:27

score 1 · Answer 10 · answered Aug 12 '18 at 10:45

My favorite way to do this: I have ConEmu installed and integrated into the Windows context menu. https://stackoverflow.com/questions/21852965/open-in-conemu-right-click-menu-windows-7

When I need to rename a file to one with the dot I choose "ConEmu here" from the context menu, then type:

ren name .name

Can also be used with echo method above.

Benefits:

Quick and easy, doesn't take you out of context too much.
No need to type D: enter cd D:\\____\\_____\\_______\\____
No need to install software you wouldn't otherwise (I like and use ConEmu for various purposes).

score 0 · Answer 11 · edited Jun 24 '12 at 16:52

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Just download Anyclient and Fast Folder Rename. Fast folder rename will name a folder .whatever, using the replace feature. Anyclient will upload the folder and show it, even though it operates on a Windows system.

edited Jun 24 '12 at 16:52

Sathyajith Bhat

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answered Feb 22 '11 at 18:31

Jagtig

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links to the utilities would be very useful – Jhonny D. Cano -Leftware- Aug 11 '11 at 17:14

score -4 · Answer 12 · answered Nov 02 '09 at 15:23

-4

Windows (Explorer) does not allow you to create a folder that starts with a dot ('.'). This is for security/exploit reasons. However, it is possible (as you noted) to create the folder manually using the Command Prompt.

So, if your question was how to do it in native Windows Explorer, the answer is no -- You cannot.

answered Nov 02 '09 at 15:23

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How do you do it from the command line? – Buttons840 Nov 16 '11 at 20:13
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*> Windows (Explorer) does not allow you to create a folder that starts with a dot ('.'). This is for security/exploit reasons.* Huh? In what way? – Synetech Jun 24 '12 at 16:55
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I second Synetech comment - if it is for "security/exploit reasons" then we need to call up Linus Torvald ASAP and tell him to plug this hole yesterday! – Natalie Adams Oct 12 '12 at 02:56

Create/rename a file/folder that begins with a dot in Windows?

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