PowerShell Script to combine files in a directory into a single text file

CombineTextFiles.ps1

param(
    [string]$FolderPath,
    [string]$Extension = "txt",
    [ValidateSet("name", "date", "name-reverse", "date-reverse")]
    [string]$Sort = "name",
    [switch]$Recursive
)

Write-Host "------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------"
Write-Host ""
Write-Host "NOTE - You can customize the script behavior with arguments, for example: "
Write-Host "  .\ConcatenateTextFiles.ps1 [-FolderPath <path>] [-Extension <file extension to combine>] [-Sort <option>] [-Recursive]"
Write-Host ""
Write-Host "  Sorting Options:"
Write-Host "    -Sort name         Sort files by name in ascending order (default)"
Write-Host "    -Sort date         Sort files by modification date in descending order (newest first)"
Write-Host "    -Sort name-reverse Sort files by name in descending order"
Write-Host "    -Sort date-reverse Sort files by modification date in ascending order (oldest first)"
Write-Host "  Additional Options:"
Write-Host "    -Recursive         Search for files in subfolders as well"
Write-Host ""
Write-Host "  Note: You can specify the extension with or without a leading period (e.g., 'txt' or '.txt')"
Write-Host ""
Write-Host ""

if (-not $FolderPath) {
    $FolderPath = Read-Host "Please enter the folder path containing the text files"
}

# Remove quotes from the folder path if present
$FolderPath = $FolderPath.Trim('"')

# Ensure the extension starts with a period
$Extension = $Extension.TrimStart('.')
$Extension = ".$Extension"

if (Test-Path -Path $FolderPath -PathType Container) {
    $timestamp = Get-Date -Format "yyyyMMddHHmmss"
    $outputFilePrefix = "CombinedTextFile_"
    $outputFileName = "$outputFilePrefix$timestamp.txt"
    $outputFilePath = Join-Path -Path $FolderPath -ChildPath $outputFileName
    $separator = "-" * 40  # Separator line
    $combinedContent = @()

    # Update the Get-ChildItem command to use the Recursive parameter if specified
    $getChildItemParams = @{
        Path = $FolderPath
        Filter = "*$Extension"
        File = $true
    }
    if ($Recursive) {
        $getChildItemParams['Recurse'] = $true
    }

    $files = Get-ChildItem @getChildItemParams | Where-Object { !$_.Name.StartsWith($outputFilePrefix) }

    switch ($Sort) {
        "name" {
            $files = $files | Sort-Object -Property Name
        }
        "date" {
            $files = $files | Sort-Object -Property LastWriteTime -Descending
        }
        "name-reverse" {
            $files = $files | Sort-Object -Property Name -Descending
        }
        "date-reverse" {
            $files = $files | Sort-Object -Property LastWriteTime
        }
    }

    $files | ForEach-Object {
        $fileName = $_.FullName.Substring($FolderPath.Length + 1)
        $fileContent = Get-Content $_.FullName
        $combinedContent += "$separator $fileName $separator"
        $combinedContent += $fileContent
        $combinedContent += ""
    }

    $combinedContent | Out-File -FilePath $outputFilePath -Encoding UTF8
    Write-Host "Text files concatenated successfully. Output file: $outputFilePath"
}
else {
    Write-Host "Invalid folder path or folder does not exist."
}