How to Rename Files in Java, Handling Overwrites and Appends?

Renaming Files in Java

Manipulating files is an essential aspect of programming, and renaming files is a common operation that developers encounter frequently. This article demonstrates how to rename files using Java and addresses the following questions:

Can we rename a file, say test.txt to test1.txt?

Yes, renaming a file is a straightforward operation in Java.

If test1.txt exists, will it rename?

By default, Java will not overwrite existing files while renaming. An exception will be thrown if test1.txt already exists.

How do we rename a file to an existing test1.txt file and append its contents to it?

To achieve this, we need to use the FileWriter class. The following code snippet illustrates how to rename a file and append its contents to an existing file:

File file = new File("test.txt");
File file2 = new File("test1.txt");

if (file2.exists()) {
    // File exists, append contents to it
    FileWriter out = new FileWriter(file2, true);
    out.write("New contents to be appended");
    out.close();
    
    // Rename the original file to another name
    File file3 = new File("test_old.txt");
    boolean success = file.renameTo(file3);
    if (!success) {
        // File was not successfully renamed
    }
} else {
    // File does not exist, rename it
    boolean success = file.renameTo(file2);
    if (!success) {
        // File was not successfully renamed
    }
}

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