Smart hot folders use three naming patterns: source file name (source), target job name (target job), and target file name (target file).

• The source file name pattern determines which source files will be accepted by a smart hot folder.
  If the source file name does not match the source file name pattern, the source file is rejected and placed in the Jobs\SmartHotFolders\<Smart Hot Folder Name>\Processed\Rejected folder.

• The target job name pattern determines the job name by back-referencing the source file naming pattern.
  If an existing job is not found that matches the target job name, the smart hot folder creates a job.
  Note: No target job name pattern is required for smart hot folders that only move or rename files.

• The target file name pattern determines the name of the source file once it has been moved.
  If the source file is moved to more than one hot folder in a job, its file name in each of the hot folders must be different.

Note: Naming patterns are not available for target group name.

Building valid naming patterns

Each naming pattern must be constructed with valid syntax, or a smart hot folder will not behave as expected.
The following diagram shows the components of a valid naming pattern. These apply to all three naming patterns in a smart hot folder (source, target job, and target file).

• Wild cards must be enclosed in square brackets.
• The following wild cards are accepted:
  • [%] to match letters (A-Z, a-z)
  • [#] to match numbers (0-9)
  • [$] to match letters or numbers (A-Z, a-z, 0-9)
• Adding a descriptor after the wild card (with no space) creates a back reference. Choose a descriptor that clearly identifies the information that is being referenced.
  Important: You must add a descriptor to use the same wild card more than once within a naming pattern. For example, the naming pattern [%].[%] is not valid because it repeats the same wild card more than once. To make it valid, add a descriptor after each wild card, such as [%Name].[%Ext].

• Adding a character delimiter (a colon and number after the descriptor) to a wild card in the file naming patterns limits the number of characters that are matched. For example, [$Name:6] matches the first six letters or numbers of the source file name.
  Important: Do not use a character delimiter in the target job naming pattern. A job will not be found or created.

• Non-variable words and characters in the naming pattern must exactly match the source file name. For example, to match the source file naming pattern Job[#ID].[%Ext], all source files must start with Job.

Balancing generic and specific naming patterns

• A source file naming pattern that is very specific (contains many back references) may cause the smart hot folder to reject many of the source files or to create a new job for every source file dropped.
• A source file naming pattern that is very generic (contains few back references or few wild cards) may cause the smart hot folder to create too many jobs.

• More specific target job name patterns (many back references) create more jobs. For example, in the following smart hot folder, a new job is created for every source file; the target job naming pattern is too specific and will match anything.

  Dropped file names	Catalog_200404_001.eps Catalog_200404_002.eps
  File naming patterns	Source: [%]_[#Date:6]_[$].ps
  	Target job: [%]_[#Date]_[$].ps
  Recommended	Target job: [%]_[#Date]_pages