ZenTransfer can automatically rename files as they are processed. You define a rename template using variables wrapped in curly braces, and each variable is replaced with its value when a file is transferred.
For example, the template {datesortdash}_{Make}_{Model}_{#roll:5}.{FileExtension} might produce 2026-04-16_FUJIFILM_X-T5_00042.jpg.
File variables
| Variable | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
{OriginalFilename} | Original filename without extension | DSCF4148 |
{FileExtension} | Original file extension without the dot | jpg |
Sequence counters
Sequence counters auto-increment every time a file is processed. They are created automatically the first time they are referenced in a template. You can manage their current values on your profile page.
| Variable | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
{#name} | Counter named "name", incremented by 1 | 42 |
{#name:N} | Same counter, zero-padded to N digits | {#roll:5} produces 00042 |
You can use any name you like for a counter. Different names are tracked independently: {#daily} and {#job} are two separate counters.
Date/time variables (from file EXIF data)
These variables are derived from the EXIF DateTimeOriginal tag embedded in the image file. If no EXIF datetime is available (for example, for non-image files), ZenTransfer falls back to the current time.
Date
| Variable | Alias | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
{date} | {shot} | Date as YYYYMMDD | 20260416 |
{datemil} | {datm} | Date and time with milliseconds | 20260416143022123 |
{datesort} | {dats} | Sortable date YYYYMMDD | 20260416 |
{datesortdash} | {dtsd} | Sortable date with dashes | 2026-04-16 |
{day} | Day of month without padding | 6 | |
{day0} | Day of month, zero-padded | 06 | |
{dow} | Day of week, full name | Thursday | |
{dow3} | Day of week, 3-letter | Thu | |
{month} | {mn} | Month without padding | 4 |
{month0} | {mn0} | Month, zero-padded | 04 |
{monthname} | {mnn} | Month full name | April |
{monthname3} | {mnn3} | Month 3-letter | Apr |
{monthnameap} | {mnap} | Month, AP style (5+ letters abbreviated) | April, Sept., Jan. |
{year2} | {yr2} | 2-digit year | 26 |
{year4} | {yr4} | 4-digit year | 2026 |
{ordinalday} | {oday} | Day of year (1-366) | 106 |
Time
| Variable | Alias | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
{ampm} | AM or PM | PM | |
{hour} | 12-hour without padding | 2 | |
{hour0} | {hr0} | 12-hour, zero-padded | 02 |
{hour24} | {h24} | 24-hour, zero-padded | 14 |
{minute} | {min} | Minute, zero-padded | 30 |
{second} | {sec} | Second, zero-padded | 22 |
{subsecond} | {ssec} | Microseconds (6 digits) | 123000 |
{time} | Time as HHMMSS | 143022 | |
{timesort} | {tims} | Sortable time HHMMSS | 143022 |
{timesortdash} | {tmsd} | Sortable time with dashes | 14-30-22 |
{timesortlong} | {tmsl} | Time with microseconds | 143022123000 |
Combined sort formats
| Variable | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
{sort} | Date and time YYYYMMDDHHMMSS | 20260416143022 |
{sortlong} | Date, time, and microseconds | 20260416143022123000 |
Other
| Variable | Alias | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
{gmtoffset} | {gmt0} | UTC offset | +00:00 |
Modification date/time variables
These variables are derived from the EXIF ModifyDate tag, which records when the image was last modified (e.g. in Lightroom or Photoshop). If no EXIF modification date is available, ZenTransfer falls back to the creation date (same as the unprefixed date/time variables above).
All mod-prefixed variables mirror the structure of the unprefixed date/time variables.
Mod date
| Variable | Alias | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
{moddate} | {mdat} | Modification date YYYYMMDD | 20260416 |
{moddatemil} | {moddatm} | Date+time with milliseconds | 20260416160522123 |
{moddatesort} | {moddats} | Sortable date YYYYMMDD | 20260416 |
{moddatesortdash} | {moddtsd} | Sortable date with dashes | 2026-04-16 |
{modday} | {mdy} | Day of month | 16 |
{modday0} | {mdy0} | Day of month, zero-padded | 16 |
{moddow} | {mdow} | Day of week, full name | Thursday |
{moddow3} | {mdw3} | Day of week, 3-letter | Thu |
{modmonth} | {mmn} | Month | 4 |
{modmonth0} | {mmn0} | Month, zero-padded | 04 |
{modmonthname} | {mmnn} | Month full name | April |
{modmonthname3} | {mmn3} | Month 3-letter | Apr |
{modmonthnameap} | {modmnap} | Month, AP style | April, Sept. |
{modyear2} | {myr2} | 2-digit year | 26 |
{modyear4} | {myr4} | 4-digit year | 2026 |
{modordinalday} | {mododay} | Day of year (1-366) | 106 |
Mod time
| Variable | Alias | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
{modampm} | AM or PM | PM | |
{modhour} | {mhr} | 12-hour | 4 |
{modhour0} | {mhr0} | 12-hour, zero-padded | 04 |
{modhour24} | {mh24} | 24-hour, zero-padded | 16 |
{modminute} | {mmin} | Minute | 05 |
{modsecond} | {msec} | Second | 22 |
{modsubsecond} | {modssec} | Microseconds | 123000 |
{modtime} | {mtim} | Time as HHMMSS | 160522 |
{modtimesort} | {modtims} | Sortable time HHMMSS | 160522 |
{modtimesortdash} | {modtmsd} | Sortable time with dashes | 16-05-22 |
{modtimesortlong} | {modtmls} | Time with microseconds | 160522123000 |
Mod combined
| Variable | Alias | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
{modsort} | {msrt} | Sortable datetime | 20260416160522 |
{modsortlong} | {msrl} | With microseconds | 20260416160522123000 |
{modgmtoffset} | {modgmt0} | UTC offset | +00:00 |
Current time variables (now)
These variables always use the current wall-clock time at the moment the file is processed, regardless of EXIF data.
| Variable | Alias | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
{now} | Current datetime YYYYMMDDHHMMSS | 20260416153000 | |
{nowdate} | Current date YYYYMMDD | 20260416 | |
{nowdatesortdash} | {nowdtsd} | Current date with dashes | 2026-04-16 |
{nowampm} | {nap} | AM or PM | PM |
{nowhour} | {nhr} | 12-hour | 3 |
{nowhour0} | {nhr0} | 12-hour, zero-padded | 03 |
{nowhour24} | {nh24} | 24-hour, zero-padded | 15 |
{nowminute} | {nmin} | Minute | 30 |
{nowsecond} | {nsec} | Second | 00 |
{nowsubsecond} | {nsub} | Microseconds | 000000 |
{nowsort} | {nows} | Sortable datetime | 20260416153000 |
{nowsortlong} | {nwsl} | Sortable with microseconds | 20260416153000000000 |
All other now-prefixed date variables follow the same pattern: {nowday}, {nowday0}, {nowmonth}, {nowmonth0}, {nowmonthname}, {nowyear4}, etc.
Today variables
These variables represent today's date using the current wall-clock time.
| Variable | Alias | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
{today} | {tday} | Today YYYYMMDD | 20260416 |
{todayday} | {tdy} | Day of month | 16 |
{todayday0} | {tdy0} | Day of month, zero-padded | 16 |
{todaydow} | {tdow} | Day of week | Thursday |
{todaydow3} | {tdw3} | Day of week, 3-letter | Thu |
{todaymonth} | {tmn} | Month | 4 |
{todaymonth0} | {tmn0} | Month, zero-padded | 04 |
{todaymonthname} | {tmnn} | Month full name | April |
{todaymonthname3} | {tmn3} | Month 3-letter | Apr |
{todaymonthnameap} | {tmap} | Month, AP style | April, Sept. |
{todayyear2} | {tyr2} | 2-digit year | 26 |
{todayyear4} | {tyr4} | 4-digit year | 2026 |
{todaysort} | {tdys} | Sortable date+time | 20260416153000 |
{todaymil} | {tdym} | Date+time with ms | 20260416153000000 |
{tomorrow} | {tmrw} | Tomorrow YYYYMMDD | 20260417 |
{yesterday} | {ystd} | Yesterday YYYYMMDD | 20260415 |
Control characters
These variables expand to literal control characters. They are useful in metadata values (multi-line descriptions, tab-separated fields) but should generally be avoided in rename templates since most filesystems reject these characters in filenames.
| Variable | Description |
|---|---|
{nl} | Newline (LF, \n) |
{cr} | Carriage return (\r) |
{tab} | Tab (\t) |
Random values
Each variable is evaluated once per file: if the same placeholder appears twice in one template it produces the same value, but each new file gets a fresh value. All random values use a cryptographically strong source.
| Variable | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
{rand3} | 3-digit random number from 000 to 999 | 047 |
{rand4} | 4-digit random number from 0000 to 9999 | 8391 |
{rand10} | Random number from 01 to 10 | 07 |
{rand100} | Random number from 001 to 100 | 042 |
{rand1000} | Random number from 0001 to 1000 | 0617 |
{uniqueid} | Random GUID | f47ac10b-58cc-4372-a567-0e02b2c3d479 |
{password} | 20 random characters from a-z, A-Z, 0-9 | aZ3kP9xQ2mL8nR4tV7wY |
EXIF/XMP tag variables
Any variable name that is not one of the built-in variables above is treated as an EXIF or XMP tag name and extracted from the file using exiftool.
| Variable | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
{Make} | Camera manufacturer | FUJIFILM |
{Model} | Camera model | X-T5 |
{LensModel} | Lens name | XF16-55mmF2.8 R LM WR |
{ISO} | ISO speed | 800 |
{FocalLength} | Focal length | 35.0 mm |
{ExposureTime} | Shutter speed | 1/250 |
{FNumber} | Aperture | 2.8 |
{Artist} | Photographer name | Jane Smith |
{Copyright} | Copyright notice | 2026 Jane Smith |
Any tag that exiftool can read from the file can be used as a variable. If the tag is not found in the file, it will be replaced with an empty string.
Template examples
| Template | Result |
|---|---|
{datesortdash}_{OriginalFilename} | 2026-04-16_DSCF4148.jpg |
{year4}/{month0}/{OriginalFilename} | 2026/04/DSCF4148.jpg |
{Make}_{Model}_{#roll:5}.{FileExtension} | FUJIFILM_X-T5_00042.jpg |
IMG_{today}_{#daily:4} | IMG_20260416_0001.jpg |
{datesortdash}_{timesortdash}_{Model} | 2026-04-16_14-30-22_X-T5.jpg |
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