How to rename a computer with PowerShell

In this post, I want to show you how to rename a local or remote computer with the PowerShell cmdlet: Rename-Computer.

To rename a computer with PowerShell, use the Rename-Computer cmdlet with the following syntax:

Rename-Computer `
    -ComputerName <String> `
    -NewName <String> `
    -LocalCredential <PSCredential> `
    -DomainCredential <PSCredential> `
    -Restart

The workaround in a remote computer>

The workaround in a remote computer #

For computers that are in a workgroup, run the PowerShell console as administrator, and then type:

Rename-Computer `
    -ComputerName "RemoteComputer" `
    -NewName "NewName" `
    -LocalCredential RemoteComputerAdminUser `
    -Restart

For computers that are in a domain, run the PowerShell console as administrator, and then type:

Rename-Computer `
    -ComputerName "RemoteComputer" `
    -NewName "NewName" `
    -DomainCredential DomainAdminUser `
    -Restart

You can use a CSV file to rename multiple computers.>

You can use a CSV file to rename multiple computers. #

The format used in the CSV file:

VMName01,VM-Name-01
VMName02,VM-Name-02
VMName03,VM-Name-03
VMName04,VM-Name-04
VMName05,VM-Name-05

Here is a simple script that allows you to rename several computers declared in a CSV file

# Rename-Computers-CSV.ps1
# v0.1
# wwww.jorgebernhardt.com

$File = 'c:\scriptComputerList.csv'
$Credential=Get-Credential


$computerList= Import-Csv `
    -Path $File `
    -Delimiter "," `
    -Header OldName,NewName

foreach ($Computer in $computerList)
{
 Rename-Computer `
    -ComputerName $Computer.OldName `
    -NewName $Computer.NewName `
    -DomainCredential $Credential `
    -Force `
    -Restart
}

The workaround in a local computer>

The workaround in a local computer #

For computers that are in a workgroup, run the PowerShell console as administrator, and then type:

Rename-Computer `
    -NewName "ComputerName" `
    -LocalCredential localhostAdminUser `
    -Restart

For computers that are in a domain, run the PowerShell console as administrator, and then type:

Rename-Computer `
    -NewName "ComputerName" `
    -DomainCredential DomainAdminUser `
    -Restart

It uses the Force parameter to suppress the confirmation prompt and the PassThru parameter to return the command results.

Thanks for reading my post. I hope you find it useful.

If you want to know more about the Rename-Computer cmdlet, check out this link.