File names from your Mac, readable on Windows

WinName is a free menu bar app that renames the files and folders you save on your Mac, so that Windows shows their names correctly.

Download free

macOS 14 or later · Apple silicon and Intel · Notarized by Apple

How it works

What Windows shows: ㅂㅜㄴㄱㅣ ㅂㅗㄱㅗㅅㅓ.pptx
With WinName: 분기 보고서.pptx

Has this happened to you?

You send 분기 보고서.pptx from your Mac. On the other person's Windows PC it arrives as ㅂㅜㄴㄱㅣ ㅂㅗㄱㅗㅅㅓ.pptx, with every Korean syllable broken into separate letters.

A Mac stores Korean file names in decomposed form, and Windows does not put the pieces back together. It happens with email attachments, messengers and sync folders such as OneDrive.

It is not only Korean. Japanese voiced kana (が, ぱ) and accented Latin letters (é, ü) are stored on a Mac in the same decomposed way, and WinName composes those as well.

How it works

Choose folders. On first launch WinName asks which folders to look after. Pick Desktop, Documents and Downloads, or add your own. Nothing is changed until you press Start.
Save as usual. WinName fixes the name of each document newly saved in those folders. It sits in the menu bar and opens no windows.
Send it. Attach the file to an email or leave it in a sync folder, and its name shows correctly on Windows.

What it changes

What it does	Before	After
Composes decomposed letters	ㅂㅜㄴㄱㅣ.pptx	분기.pptx
Replaces characters Windows does not allow with an underscore	Sales:2026?.xlsx	Sales_2026_.xlsx
Puts an underscore before names Windows reserves	CON.docx	_CON.docx
Removes dots and spaces at the end of a name	Meeting notes.	Meeting notes
Adds a number when the name is already taken	Report.pptx	Report (2).pptx

The characters Windows does not allow are \ : * ? " < > |. A slash typed into a name in Finder counts too.

Folder names are fixed by the same rules, and you can turn that off in Settings. WinName starts with common document types such as Office files, PDF and archives, and can be widened to every file.

Careful with your files

Only the folders you chose, and only newly saved files. Files that were already there change only when you review the new names under Existing Files and clean them up yourself.
Never overwrites another file. If the name is taken, it adds a number.
Waits for open documents. A document another app is using is renamed after it is closed.
You can undo it. Every change is recorded and can be put back to the original name. A file you put back is not changed again.
Names only. The contents of your files are never touched.
Your files stay on your Mac. Your files and file names do not leave your Mac. No account, no ads. WinName contacts the update server only to check for a new version.

Questions

Is it free?

Yes. WinName is free.

Does it fix files I already have?

Automatically, it changes only newly saved files. For files that are already there, open Existing Files in Settings, check the new names first, then clean them up in one go.

Does it work in OneDrive or iCloud Drive folders?

Yes. Choose the sync folder as a folder to watch. It has been checked with OneDrive and iCloud Drive.

What about USB drives and NAS shares?

You do not need it there. On USB drives (exFAT, FAT) and network shares (SMB), macOS already writes names in composed form, so WinName leaves files there alone.

Can a changed name cause trouble?

A script or another program's link that points to a file by its old name may not follow the new one. Leave such folders unwatched, or add them to the skip list.

What if I send an archive?

WinName does not change the names inside archives.

How do I remove it?

Quit it from its menu and delete WinName from the Applications folder. Names it has already changed stay as they are.

Download WinName

Download WinName 1.0 (DMG)

Requirements: macOS 14 or later. Runs on Macs with Apple silicon and Intel.
Languages: Korean, English and Japanese. You can choose in Settings.
Install: Open the downloaded file and drag WinName to the Applications folder. On first launch macOS asks whether WinName may access your folders.
Trust: Notarized by Apple.