START

Start a program, command or batch script, opens in a new window.

Always include a TITLE this can be a simple string like «My Script» or just a pair of empty quotes «»
According to the Microsoft documentation, the title is optional, but depending on the other options chosen you can have problems if it is omitted.

If command is an internal cmd command or a batch file then the command processor is run with the /K switch to cmd.exe. This means that the window will remain after the command has been run.

In a batch script, a START command without /wait will run the program and just continue, so a script containing nothing but a START command will close the CMD console and leave the new program running.

Document files can be invoked through their file association just by typing the name of the file as a command.
e.g. START «» MarchReport.DOC will launch the application associated with the .DOC file extension and load the document.

To minimise any chance of the wrong exectuable being run, specify the full path to command or at a minimum include the file extension: START «» notepad.exe

If you START an application without a file extension (for example WinWord instead of WinWord.exe) then the PATHEXT environment variable will be read to determine which file extensions to search for and in what order.
The default value for the PATHEXT variable is: .COM;.EXE;.BAT;.CMD

Start — run in parallel

The default behaviour of START is to instantiate a new process that runs in parallel with the main process. For arcane technical reasons, this does not work for some types of executable, in those cases the process will act as a blocker, pausing the main script until it’s complete.

In practice you just need to test it and see how it behaves.

Often you can work around this issue by creating a one line batch script ( runme.cmd ) to launch the executable, and then call that script with START runme.cmd

Start /Wait

The /WAIT option should reverse the default ‘run in parallel’ behaviour of START but again your results will vary depending on the item being started, for example:

The above will start the calculator and wait before continuing. However if you replace calc.exe with Winword.exe , to run Word instead, then the /wait will stop working, this is because Winword.exe is a stub which launches the main Word application and then exits.

A similar problem will occur when starting a batch file, by default START will run the equivalent of CMD /K which opens a second command window and leaves it open. In most cases you will want the batch script to complete and then just close it’s CMD console to resume the initial batch script. This can be done by explicitly running CMD /C .

Add /B to have everything run in a single window.

In a batch file, an alternative is to use TIMEOUT to delay processing of individual commands.

START vs CALL

Starting a new process with CALL, is very similar to running START /wait , in both cases the calling script will (usually) pause until the second script has completed.

Starting a new process with CALL, will run in the same shell environment as the calling script. For a GUI application this makes no difference, but a second ‘called’ batch file will be able to change variables and pass those changes back to the caller.

In comparison START will instantiate a new CMD.exe shell for the called batch. This will inherit variables from the calling shell, but any variable changes will be discarded when the second script ends.

Run a program

To start a new program (not a batch script), you don’t have to use CALL or START , just enter the path/file to be executed, either on the command line or within a batch script. This will behave as follows:

• On the command line, CMD.EXE does not wait for the application to terminate and control immediately returns to the command prompt.
• Running a program from within a batch script, CMD.EXE will pause the initial script and wait for the application to terminate before continuing.
• If you run one batch script from another without using either CALL or START , then the first script is terminated and the second one takes over.

Multiprocessor systems

Processor affinity is assigned as a hex number but calculated from the binary positions (similar to NODRIVES)

Hex Binary Processors
1 00000001 Proc 1
3 00000011 Proc 1+2
7 00000111 Proc 1+2+3
C 00001100 Proc 3+4 etc

start /NODE 1 app1.exe
start /NODE 1 app2.exe

These two processes can be further constrained to run on specific processors within the same NUMA node.

In the following example, app1 runs on the low-order two processors of the node, while app2 runs on the next two processors of the node. This example assumes the specified node has at least four logical processors. Note that the node number can be changed to any valid node number for that computer without having to change the affinity mask.

start /NODE 1 /AFFINITY 0x3 app1.exe
start /NODE 1 /AFFINITY 0xc app2.exe

Running executable (.EXE) files

When a file that contains a .exe header, is invoked from a CMD prompt or batch file (with or without START), it will be opened as an executable file. The filename extension does not have to be .EXE. The file header of executable files start with the ‘magic sequence’ of ASCII characters ‘MZ’ (0x4D, 0x5A) The ‘MZ’ being the initials of Mark Zibowski, a Microsoft employee at the time the file format was designed.

Command Extensions

If Command Extensions are enabled, external command invocation through the command line or the START command changes as follows:

Non-executable files can be invoked through their file association just by typing the name of the file as a command. (e.g. WORD.DOC would launch the application associated with the .DOC file extension). This is based on the setting in HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\FileExts\.ext\OpenWithList , or if that is not specified, then the file associations — see ASSOC and FTYPE.

When executing a command line whose first token is the string CMD without an extension or path qualifier, then CMD is replaced with the value of the COMSPEC variable. This prevents picking up CMD.EXE from the current directory.

When executing a command line whose first token does NOT contain an extension, then CMD.EXE uses the value of the COMSPEC environment variable. This prevents picking up CMD.EXE from the current directory.

When executing a command line whose first token does NOT contain an extension, then CMD.EXE uses the value of the PATHEXT environment variable to determine which extensions to look for and in what order. The default value for the PATHEXT variable is: .COM;.EXE;.BAT;.CMD Notice the syntax is the same as the PATH variable, with semicolons separating the different elements.

When searching for an executable, if there is no match on any extension, then looks to see if the name matches a directory name. If it does, the START command launches the Explorer on that path. If done from the command line, it is the equivalent to doing a CD /D to that path.

Errorlevels

If the command is successfully started ERRORLEVEL =unchanged , typically this will be 0 but if a previous command set an errorlevel, that will be preserved (this is a bug).
If the command fails to start then ERRORLEVEL = 9059
START /WAIT batch_file — will return the ERRORLEVEL specified by EXIT

Run a minimised Login script:
START «My Login Script» /Min Login.cmd

Start a program and wait for it to complete before continuing:
START «» /wait autocad.exe

Open a file with a particular program :
START «» «C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Winword.exe» «D:\Docs\demo.txt»

Open Windows Explorer and list the files in the current folder (.) :
C:\any\old\directory> START .

Open a webpage in the default browser, note the protocol is required (https://)
START https://ss64.com

Open a webpage in Microsoft Edge:
%windir%\explorer.exe microsoft-edge:https://ss64.com

Connect to a new printer: (this will setup the print connection/driver )
START \\print_server\printer_name

How can I return to the previous directory in windows command prompt?

I often want to return to the previous directory I was just in in cmd.exe, but windows does not have the «cd -» functionality of Unix. Also typing cd ../../.. is a lot of typing.

Is there a faster way to go up several directory levels?

And ideally return back afterwards?

4 Answers 4

On Windows CMD, I got used to using pushd and popd . Before changing directory I use pushd . to put the current directory on the stack, and then I use cd to move elsewhere. You can run pushd as often as you like, each time the specified directory goes on the stack. You can then CD to whatever directory, or directories , that you want. It does not matter how many times you run CD. When ready to return , I use popd to return to whatever directory is on top of the stack. This is suitable for simple use cases and is handy, as long as you remember to push a directory on the stack before using CD.

Run cmd.exe using the /k switch and a starting batch file that invokes doskey to use an enhanced versions of the cd command.

Here is a simple batch file to change directories to the first parameter (%1) passed in, and to remember the initial directory by calling pushd %1.

md_autoruns.cmd:

We will also need a small helper batch file to remember the directory changes and to ignore changes to the same directory:

mycd.bat:

And a small aliases file showing what to do to make it all work:

aliases:

Now you can go up a directory level by typing ..

Add another . for each level you want to go up.

When you want to go back, type cd — and you will be back where you started.

Aliases to jump to directories like wk or tools (shown above) swiftly take you from location to location, are easy to create, and can really help if you work in the command line frequently.

Changing default startup directory for command prompt in Windows 7

How do I change default startup directory for command prompt in Windows 7?

I usually do the following to start command prompt from C:\

I want to do the following to start command prompt from C:\

23 Answers 23

While adding a AutoRun entry to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Command Processor like Shinnok’s answer is the way to go it can also really mess things up, you really should try to detect a simple cmd.exe startup vs a script/program using cmd.exe as a child process:

Make a shortcut pointing to cmd.exe somwhere (e.g. desktop) then right-click on the copy and select «properties». Navigate to the «Shortcut» menu and change the «Start in:» directory.

The following solution worked well for me. Navigate to the command prompt shortcut in the start menu:

C:\Users\ your username \AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Accessories\Command Prompt

Right click on the shortcut file to open the properties dialog. Inside the «Start in:» textbox you should see %HOMEDRIVE%%HOMEPATH%. If you want the prompt to start in C:\ just replace the variables with «C:\» (without quotes).

update

It appears that Microsoft has changed this behavior recently and so now an additional step is required. After performing the steps above copy the modified shortcut «Command Prompt» and rename it to «cmd». Then when typing «cmd» in the start menu it should once again work.

How can I open a cmd window in a specific location?

How can I open a cmd window in a specific location without having to navigate all the way to the directory I want?

41 Answers 41

Open Command Window Here

This PowerToy adds an «Open Command Window Here» context menu option on file system folders, giving you a quick way to open a command window (cmd.exe) pointing at the selected folder.

EDIT : This software will not work on any version of Windows apart from Windows XP.

This might be what you want:

Note that in order to change drive letters, you need to use cd /d . For example:

If you have Windows Vista or later, right-click on the folder icon in Explorer while holding the Shift key, and then click on the «Open command window here» or «Open PowerShell window here» context menu option.

If you’re already in the folder you want, you can do one of the following:

• [only Win8+] Click the Explorer Ribbon’s File button, then click on «Open command window here» or «Open PowerShell window here».
• Shift — right-click on the background of the Explorer window, then click on «Open command window here» or «Open PowerShell window here». (recommended by Kate in the comments)
• [only Vista or Win7] Hold down Shift when opening the Explorer File menu, then click on «Open command window here». If you can’t see the menu bar, open the File menu by pressing Alt — Shift — F — Alt — F to open the File menu, plus Shift .

For Windows XP, use the PowerToy mentioned by dF to get the same function.

Assuming that in File Explorer you have opened the target directory/folder, do this:

Click on address bar, alternatively press Alt + D

Now when address bar is highlighted, type cmd in the bar.

Press Enter key

You will notice that command prompt from that folder

From Windows 7 up to some versions of Windows 10, it is very simple to open a command prompt anywhere you wish, without navigation using command «cd». Try the following one. Click the mouse’s right button by holding Shift key .

It will produce an option like this. Then simply select the «Open command window here » option. The latest versions of Windows 10 have replaced this feature with «Open Powershell here».

On Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Windows 10 simply hold down the Shift key and right-click on a folder.

The context menu will contain an entry titled: «Open command window here»

Update: Type «cmd» in the address bar of Explorer and press enter

Update 2: In windows 10, go to file menu and select «Open Windows PowerShell». There is an option for running as administrator.

Use the /K switch. For example

Will create a cmd window at the C:\Windows directory

Just write cmd in the address bar, it will open in the current folder.

In windows go to folder location in file explorer remove path and type cmd and press enter. and path will open in cmd.

Also, here is a shortcut to open a console in any windows folder:

• Open any folder on windows explorer.
• Press Alt + D to focus the adress bar
• type cmd and press enter

Very practical shortcut.

Create a shortcut and edit the «Start In» property of the shortcut to the directory you want the cmd.exe to start in.

In Windows 8, you can click the address bar and type «cmd» (without quotes) and hit enter. This will open the cmd window in the current path.

Easiest way is to goto the address bar of the Windows Explorer and type cmd there. It will automatically open the command prompt window for you.

I just saw this question and cannot help to post my AutoHotkey script for cmd on Windows XP. You can spot the hot keys in the script. The nice thing is when your current windows is Explorer, the cmd will open in the path showing in the address bar.

I keep this script in a folder where I store all green tools (including AutoHotkey). For a new machine, I just copy the folder, double click the script to associate .ahk with AutoHotkey and create a shortcut in my startup folder. It is faster than installing PowerToys.

For anyone who is interested, you can find this script at rwin on github

If you are starting cmd from taskbar, this is what you need to do:

right click —> rightclick on Command Prompt —> Properties

Then in the properties window change the value of Start in:

This solution doesn’t work for opening command prompt as administrator

Update: This is built into Windows now. See this answer.

The XP powertoy is a good option, but I thought I’d post another, in case you’d like to «roll your own». Create a text file, name it anything.reg, paste in the code below, save it, then double-click on it to add it to the registry (or just add the info to the registry manually if you understand what’s going on in this .reg file).

Update: After an Windows-update, Win10 removed the cmd-here feature. To reactivate it you’ve to use:

The entry ShowBasedOnVelocityId is mandatory

For windows 7 or later, inside the target folder address bar just type cmd. That is it. It will open up command prompt with path set to your present directory.

command ‘pushd’ will set currect folder so:

This will add entries to the context-menu to launch a command window that is automatically navigated to the directory you clicked.

This took a lot of effort to make so if you’re feeling generous then feel free to send a paypal donation to help me overcome the PTSD of debugging and testing it 🙂

An uninstaller if you need one:

I see that there are multiple answers, some are quite complex 🙂 , strange to see them. You just have to open any windows folder window, navigate to your desired folder and focus on address bar and enter «cmd» and press enter, you would be presented with new command prompt window directly with the folder path or location that we already navigated in windows folder window. In case you want to see these steps with clear images you can check out

In File Explorer, press and hold the Shift key, then right click or press and hold on a folder or drive that you want to open the command prompt at that location for, and click/tap on Open Command Prompt Here option.

Make the shortcut to cmd.exe with params /S /K pushd «C:\YOUR FOLDER\»

For windows : Select the folder which you want to open in command prompt — After selection, Keeping the ‘Shift key’ pressed. Right click there and choose option «open command window here»

This answer is for windows 10.

Create a command prompt shortcut in the folder wherever you want, then right click on that shortcut

In Windows Explorer — shift + right mouse click above folder «Open command window here» option show up in the menu. Or in language of your Windows version.

In Windows go to the specific folder, then click on the file explorer path and remove it then type cmd and click enter.. and in cmd your specific folder with its path will open..

There is a simplier way I know. Find cmd.exe in start menu and send it to Desktop as shortcut. Then right-click it and choose properties. You will see «Start in» box under the «Target». Change that directory as whatever you’d like to set. Click OK and start cmd.exe which is in your Desktop. In my opinion, it’s a very easy and certain solution 🙂

This program always opens cmd.exe in the current path of your Explorer: https://github.com/jhasse/smart_cmd

You can also pin it to your taskbar and then use WindowsKey+1 as a keyboard shortcut.

With a Just-one-line file in batch:

START «Desire_Path» // Without quotes puth the location that you want to start in with cmd

Example (Open a text editor, place the code in there and save the file with a .bat extension):

Then just double click on it

****Note: if you want the explorer to complete the task don´t put the CD command.

*To do the opossite:

In order for you to open a particular directory with the explorer.exe aplication while using cmd you can use the command START and the absolute route of the folder that you want to display.

This method is using cmd.exe and Send to shortcut so cmd.exe can open directory directly. This alternative method is in case of not having Open command window here in right click menu.

1. Open ‘File Explorer’ and enter shell:sendto in location bar to navigate to Send to folder.
2. Copy a Command Prompt shortcut or create a new shortcut .lnk file.
3. Edit the properties of the shortcut and edit the target to %windir%\system32\cmd.exe /k cd /d and press ‘OK’ to save the change.
4. Right click on a folder and expand Send to menu to use the cmd shortcut.

This shortcut should open a cmd window with directory selected by the right click.

This method should work under Window 7 and 10 at least. Name the shortcut as Command Prompt (cd) to specify the task of the shortcut.

Possible error messages:

• Show ‘The directory name is invalid.’ if other than folder is selected.
• Show ‘The system cannot find the drive specified.’ if the folder is not existed.
• Show ‘The filename, directory name, or volume label syntax is incorrect.’ if multiple files are selected.

Little about shortcut: The directory would be automatically added to the end of the shortcut as a parameter when using under Send to , so the shortcut does not need to type in the directory.