> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.tackstudio.co/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Naming

> Placeholders, indexes, prefixes, and suffixes.

The name field supports three placeholders, which you can combine freely:

| Placeholder | Resolves to                                                                                                                                                                                                       |
| ----------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `[c]`       | The parent composition’s name.                                                                                                                                                                                    |
| `[l]`       | The layer’s name. Only resolves when the new comp contains a single layer: one selected layer, or each comp when [pre-composing separately](/pre-compose-pro/using-the-dialog#pre-compose-all-layers-separately). |
| `[#]`       | An auto-incrementing number. Use more hashes for zero-padding: `[##]` gives `01`, `[###]` gives `001`, and so on.                                                                                                 |

## How the index works

When the name contains `[#]`, Pre-compose Pro looks through your project for existing comps matching the same pattern and continues from the highest number it finds, so `[c]_precomp_[##]` produces `MyComp_precomp_01`, then `MyComp_precomp_02` the next time, with no duplicates.

<Callout icon="lightbulb" color="#F05F3F">
  The index placeholder must be at the **end** of the name. A default name like `shot_[#]_element` will be rejected.
</Callout>

## Prefix and suffix

In [Settings](/pre-compose-pro/settings-and-shortcuts) you can define a **prefix** and **suffix** that are automatically added to every name, so if your naming convention marks every pre-comp the same way (a `_precomp` suffix, say) you never have to type it.

## Default name

Settings also has a **Default** field: the name the dialog starts with each time it opens. It supports the same placeholders, so once set, it means most pre-composes are just **Enter** and done.