- How to set the path and environment variables in Windows
- Setting the path and variables in Windows 10
- Setting the path and variables in Windows 8
- Setting the path and variables in Windows Vista and Windows 7
- Setting the path and variables in Windows 2000 and Windows XP
- What is the default Windows %PATH%?
- Setting path in the MS-DOS and Windows command line
- Recognized Environment Variables
- In This Topic
- Variables that are processed for the operating system and in the context of each user
- Variables that are recognized only in the user context
How to set the path and environment variables in Windows
Setting the path and environment variables will differ depending on the version of Windows you have on your computer. Choose a link below for your version of Windows.
Administrator privileges are usually required to modify the path and environment variables.
Setting the path and variables in Windows 10
- From the desktop, right-click the very bottom-left corner of the screen to get the Power User Task Menu.
- From the Power User Task Menu, click System.
- In the Settings window, scroll down to the Related settings section and click the System info link.
- In the System window, click the Advanced system settings link in the left navigation pane.
- In the System Properties window, click the Advanced tab, then click the Environment Variablesbutton near the bottom of that tab.
- In the Environment Variables window (pictured below), highlight the Path variable in the System variables section and click the Edit button. Add or modify the path lines with the paths you want the computer to access. Each different directory is separated with a semicolon, as shown below.
You can edit other environment variables by highlighting the variable in the System variables section and clicking Edit. If you need to create a new environment variable, click New and enter the variable name and variable value.
To view and set the path in the Windows command line, use the path command.
Setting the path and variables in Windows 8
- From the desktop, right-click the very bottom-left corner of the screen to get the Power User Task Menu.
- From the Power User Task Menu, click System.
- Click the Advanced System Settings link in the left column.
- In the System Properties window, click the Advanced tab, then click the Environment Variablesbutton near the bottom of that tab.
- In the Environment Variables window (pictured below), highlight the Path variable in the System variables section and click the Edit button. Add or modify the path lines with the paths you want the computer to access. Each different directory is separated with a semicolon, as shown below.
You can edit other environment variables by highlighting the variable in the System variables section and clicking Edit. If you need to create a new environment variable, click New and enter the variable name and variable value.
To view and set the path in the Windows command line, use the path command.
Setting the path and variables in Windows Vista and Windows 7
- From the desktop, right-click the Computer icon and select Properties. If you don’t have a Computer icon on your desktop, click Start, right-click the Computer option in the Start menu, and select Properties.
- Click the Advanced System Settings link in the left column.
- In the System Properties window, click the Advanced tab, then click the Environment Variablesbutton near the bottom of that tab.
- In the Environment Variables window (pictured below), highlight the Path variable in the System variables section and click the Edit button. Add or modify the path lines with the paths you want the computer to access. Each different directory is separated with a semicolon, as shown below.
You can edit other environment variables by highlighting the variable in the System variables section and clicking Edit. If you need to create a new environment variable, click New and enter the Variable name and Variable value.
To view and set the path in the Windows command line, use the path command.
Setting the path and variables in Windows 2000 and Windows XP
The path is now managed by Windows 2000 and Windows XP and not the autoexec.bat or autoexec.nt files, as was done with earlier versions of Windows. To change the system environment variables, follow the steps below.
- From the desktop, right-click My Computer and click Properties. If you don’t have a My Computer icon on your desktop, click Start, right-click the My Computer option in the Start menu, and select Properties.
- In the System Propertieswindow, click the Advancedtab.
- In the Advanced section, click the Environment Variablesbutton.
- In the Environment Variables window (as shown below), highlight the Path variable in the System Variable section and click the Edit button. Add or modify the path lines with the paths you want the computer to access. Each different directory is separated with a semicolon, as shown below.
You can edit other environment variables by highlighting the variable in the System variables section and clicking Edit. If you need to create a new environment variable, click New and enter the Variable name and Variable value.
To view and set the path in the Windows command line, use the path command.
What is the default Windows %PATH%?
The path is based on programs installed on the computer, so there is no «default path.» However, the Windows minimum path is often the path below.
Keep in mind that as you install programs, the path is updated with the paths for the newly installed programs. So, if you have erased your path after installing other programs, those programs may be affected.
Setting path in the MS-DOS and Windows command line
To view and set the path in MS-DOS and in the Windows command line, use the path command.
Recognized Environment Variables
When using the XML files MigDocs.xml, MigApp.xml, and MigUser.xml, you can use environment variables to identify folders that may be different on different computers. Constant special item ID list (CSIDL) values provide a way to identify folders that applications use frequently but may not have the same name or location on any given computer. For example, the documents folder may be C:\Users\ \My Documents on one computer and C:\Documents and Settings on another. You can use the asterisk (*) wildcard character in MigUser.xml, MigApp.xml and MigDoc.xml files. However, you cannot use the asterisk (*) wildcard characters in the Config.xml file.
In This Topic
Variables that are processed for the operating system and in the context of each user
You can use these variables within sections in the .xml files with context=UserAndSystem , context=User , and context=System .
Variable | Explanation |
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Variable | Explanation |
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