Duplicating files is a fairly basic process. Just select a file in the Finder, right-click it, and choose ‘Duplicate’ from the pop-up menu. Your Mac will append the word ‘copy’ to the duplicate’s file name. For instance, the duplicate of a file named MyFile would be named MyFile copy. That’s certainly OK for making a single copy of a file, but what if you wanted to have a version number instead of the word ‘copy’ added to the file name?

There are various ways to do that. Many applications, such as word processors and image manipulation programs, can be set up to do that automatically. But if you’re working directly in the Finder, there may not seem to be any easy way to add a versioning number beyond manually changing the duplicate file’s name.

If you use OS X 10.5 (Leopard) or later, try this simple tip to duplicate a file. Hold down the option key and drag the file to a new position within the same folder. Your Mac will dutifully add a version number instead of the word ‘copy’ to the file’s name. Each time you create a new duplicate, your Mac will add an incremental version number to the copy.

Bonus tip:

If you’re in list view when you create versioned duplicates, you may have a little trouble dragging the file to an empty place in the list. Try dragging the file until you see a green ‘+’ (plus) sign appear. Make sure no other folder is highlighted as well; otherwise, the file will be duplicated to the selected folder.