Network Rename Tool

When you bring up the connections list or hover over the Network tray icon, the connection names that are displayed are taken from a list of network profiles, which you can only edit by modifying the Registry.

Network Rename Tool is a small, open-source utility designed to make this task easier. Via a minimalistic UI, you can see all network profiles saved to the Registry and edit each connection’s name freely.

Some of you may note that Windows allows you to change the name of connections from the Control Panel, but this name isn’t actually displayed anywhere else. Windows instead uses the network profile name, which you can only edit from the Registry.

The utility does not need to be installed, as it consists of a single, tiny executable file that you can launch from anywhere on your PC. It will grab the necessary info from the Registry and lets you perform modifications from a simplistic UI.

In the application’s main window, the registry key, profile name and description of each network are listed. The description is what you can normally modify from the Control Panel, while the profile name is what is actually displayed everywhere else.

After changing the profile name, you can just close the program instantly, as the modifications will be saved automatically. However, you may need to restart your PC for the new name to be displayed in the tray pop-up.

As you can tell from the screenshots, Network Rename Tool isn’t the most eye-catching application out there, as the UI essentially consists of a simple table that lists all your connections.

In short, this utility can certainly come in handy, as it enables you to rename your connections without editing the Registry manually. It does the job, but users will not be impressed by its rudimentary UI.