How to open cmd in windows 7. How the command line works in Windows XP,7,8,10

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Often in the description of a solution to any problem in Windows 7, there is a mention of the command line. What is it? This is the name of the system shell that lacks a graphical interface. User interaction with it is carried out by entering queries (commands).

Functions

There are a huge number of functions for it. Using the command line, you can perform any standard PC setup, check the system status, and display the configuration. It can completely replace the graphical interface. And at the same time, its capabilities are wider than those available in the standard Windows shell.

But still, most users need a graphical interface. Therefore, you should resort to working with the terminal as a last resort, when there are no alternative solutions to problems. Now let's take a closer look at simple ways to launch it and useful commands.

Launch

You can come up with a large number of ways to launch the command line in Windows 7, since the system allows it. But there are three easy options for the average user: in the dialog box "Run", via menu "Start" and through the executable file.

Method 1: Run Dialog Box

Dialog window "Run" is a partial replacement for Windows Terminal. Some commands are similar for them. However, it can also be used to launch the command line.

The easiest way to launch this utility is by simultaneously pressing Win + R. But you can also find it in the menu "Start", chapter "Standard". Enter cmd and click on the button "OK", after which the desired program will start.

Note: the command line opened in this way has limited functionality, since it is only granted user access. Accordingly, some actions will not be available. To unlock them, you need to enable them as an administrator.

Method 2: Start Menu

Menu "Start" designed to quickly call various system elements. Launch it, go to "All programs", open the section there "Standard". It will contain a shortcut to activate the command line.

Attention: unlike the previous option, in this case it is possible to launch the terminal with administrator rights. To do this, right-click on the desired element and select the second item.

Method 3: Executable file

Both previous methods were associated with indirect options for opening the terminal. But it can also be launched directly, through an executable file. His name - cmd.exe, located on the system drive, along the path Windows/System32.

An alternative access option is to search in Explorer. You can also find the element "Command line" in Start, right-click on it, select "Properties", and then "File location".

For executable filecmd.exe, you can create a shortcut, for example, on the desktop. This will make starting the console much easier in the future. Right-click on the document, select "Send - Desktop...". In this case, you can automatically launch the command line with administrator rights. To do this, open the shortcut properties, go to the section "Compatibility" and check the box next to the appropriate item.

Teams

Request help will display everything teamsWindows 7, available for input at the moment. For most of them, parameters or values can be set. We will consider those queries that may be useful to the average user.

PC shutdown timer

Team shutdown is responsible for turning off the computer. It has the following attributes:

-s - turns off the PC immediately after entering.
-s -t 50 - turns off the PC after a certain time (50 is the number of seconds, the number can be changed to any).
-a - cancel the shutdown timer.

The specified attributes are written with a space after the command. It looks like this: “request attribute”. For example, to turn off the PC after 3 minutes you need to enter the following:

shutdown -s -t 180

Displaying computer configuration

Computer configuration information can be obtained through systeminfo.
It will display the status of network connections, installed amount of RAM, applied updates and other information.

Disk check

Team chkdsk causes the state of the logical disk partitions. And using it with the following attributes will perform the check:

Checking system components

To call this function, use the request sfc. It allows you to check the condition of system components and restore them if damage is detected. This is a useful command that is often required when fixing executable file errors.

It starts with the following attributes:

/scannow - immediately starts the scanning procedure.
/scanonce - assigns a scan to reboot the PC.
/scanboot - scanning is always enabled when Windows boots.

The system console came to Windows from the older MS-Dos operating system, which did not yet have any graphical interface. All work with the PC was carried out using text commands. Users of those times knew hundreds of service words and various parameters for launching applications, setting up a network, changing computer settings, and so on. The current command line in Windows 7 is fraught with various secrets that can seriously help when working with a PC. The article describes how to open the utility and also provides a list of common commands.

How to open using GUI

There are several ways to open the console.

The first does not require the use of a keyboard, which is suitable for users who are not used to entering commands:

You can also create a shortcut by calling the context menu by right-clicking. Select the action “Send” and then “To Desktop”. This will give you the opportunity to quickly open the program.

Launch using the keyboard

The second method looks simpler if you have a lot of applications installed that clutter up the list of programs:

And finally, the third method, favored by experienced and advanced users who are accustomed to controlling their PC from the keyboard:

Management secrets

The Windows 7 command line may seem quite unfriendly to ordinary personal computer users. To work comfortably with it, you need to learn simple secrets:

If you want to paste copied text into the console, the usual Control+V combination will not work. To copy, you need to call up the contextual drop-down menu by pressing RMB, and then select “Paste”.
Using the F1 key you can enter the last used line character by character (one press - one character).
The F3 key copies the previous command to the input line.
The Alt + F7 combination is convenient to use to clear the history of working with the utility.
By pressing the Tab button, you will “sort through” the files and folders in the open directory.

Knowing these secrets will make it much easier for you to work with this interface.

It is hardly possible to imagine functional work on a computer without using the command line. Whether you like it or not, sooner or later you will still have to use it to make settings in the operating system, absolutely regardless of whether Windows XP, 7 or 8 is installed on your PC. However, where computer geniuses ate the dog, novice users have to be content painful questions. And the main one among them is how to launch the command line on the now popular Windows 8 and 7 operating systems? Perhaps it would be simply cruel not to answer it.

Method No. 1: Launch through the search menu

Using the search is the simplest method, which can be used equally effectively to launch the command line on computers running Windows versions 7, XP and 8. However, the execution options will be somewhat different from each other.

Windows 7 OS:

Open the Start menu and type the word “command” into the search bar. As a result, the system will perform a search on its own and display the command line shortcut. All you have to do is right-click on it and select “Run as...” from the menu that appears:

In addition, you can use another search value, for example, by entering the word cmd in the search bar:

In any case, no matter what method you choose, as a result of such actions, the system will open the command line needed for work:

In this version of the Microsoft operating system, you can use the cmd command using the search bar in Metro. To do this, open the Windows 8 start screen and enter cmd into the search. As a result, the “Command Prompt” icon should appear on the left. Right-click on it and click the “Run as …” tab at the bottom of the screen:

Method #2: Using Task Manager

For some reason, this method is used infrequently by users, although in terms of efficiency and speed it is not inferior to the method described above. True, as in launching the command line using the cmd command through the “Run” or “Search” utility, you will have to act somewhat differently in Windows 7 and 8.

Windows 7 OS:

To launch the task manager, press Esc, Shift and Ctrl on the keyboard at the same time. Next, in the window that opens, find the “File” tab and select the “New task (Run...)” option in it by clicking the left mouse button:

As a result, the “Create a new task” window will appear. In this case, you also cannot do without the cmd command. To execute it and launch the command line accordingly, enter the cmd value in the empty field of the system window and confirm your choice by simply pressing the OK button:

Windows 8 OS:

To begin, just like on computers with Windows 7 installed on them, simultaneously press the Shift, Ctrl and Esc buttons on the keyboard. After that, in the window that opens, select the “File” tab, and in it the “Run a new task” section. As a result, the “Create task” utility will open. It is quite appropriate to use the cmd command in it. Enter the word cmd in the “Open” line, and then click OK:

Method No. 3: Launch using Explorer

This method does not require running a cmd command or running third-party programs. To launch the command line on your computer in this case, it will be enough to use the “Explorer” function provided by the developers of Windows 7 and 8.

Open “My Computer” and enter Work Disk C. Then enter “Command Prompt” into the search and press Enter. As a result, the system will find the shortcut we need. After that, all that remains is to right-click on it and select “Run as...” from the proposed menu:

While in the Metro UI, click the Windows Explorer tab, then go to Computer and select drive C. Then open “File”, find the “Open command line…” item in the menu and select the required option to log in:

Let's reveal a little secret here. Once you have entered the command line, you can use the help command to get all the necessary help information about it:

This trick can come in handy if you accidentally forget the meaning of a particular command or are initially unsure of its effectiveness.

Method number 4: Start from a folder

For those who want to launch a command line on a PC to configure a specific folder, it is enough to use this method. Startup time is reduced by half.

All we need is to find the required folder and, while holding down the Shift button on the keyboard, right-click on this folder, and then select “Open command window” in the proposed menu:

Everything is much simpler in this OS. All you need to do is go to the desired folder and press the Alt and 2 buttons on your keyboard without changing the keystroke sequence.

Method No. 5: Launching through the Run utility

This method is great for computers with Windows 7 and previous versions of the OS. In this case, we will again need the benefits of the cmd command, but first we still need to call the Run utility. This can be done by simultaneously pressing the R and buttons on the keyboard. After the utility starts, enter the cmd value into the empty field in the window and press OK on the screen or Enter on the keyboard.

The earliest operating systems did not have the graphical interface familiar to modern users. Previously, computer controls were used exclusively text commands.

However, today, despite the variety of possibilities that provide easy and convenient communication between the user and the PC, they are still used. There are also operating systems that work only by entering text commands into them. They are commonly used by database administrators, programmers, and other IT professionals.

An excellent example of controlling the operating system using text commands - Windows 7 command line. It is present in any distribution of this OS and can be run on any PC running this operating system. You don't need to be an administrator or any kind of IT specialist to learn how to use it. Let's look at this issue in more detail.

A little theory and facts

The Windows command line is a toolkit that allows the user to perform various actions on the operating system or on individual programs by entering text commands. The command line usually consists of a command interpreter (shell) and a text interface. First responsible for transmitting and executing commands operating system, second- provides the user with the opportunity entering these same commands and viewing the result of their execution.

The command line offers great capabilities for managing the operating system. Almost everything that can be configured in Windows using the mouse can be done through it. The conclusion follows that the command line is capable of performing a fairly large list of tasks, each of which is performed in turn entering a unique command. It is precisely because of the need to remember the syntax of these commands and the ability to use them that most ordinary users have difficulty working with the command line.

Even so, using the command line is not that difficult of a task. The main thing here is to learn to understand the very principle of its operation, which will be discussed in more detail later.

Why does the average user need the command line?

Surely, each of you has come across various articles on the Internet in which the authors urge you to use one or another command to solve a certain problem. For example, through the command line you can do file management, stored on any media, change parameters system operation or even create Internet connection. However, the above can be easily accomplished using a regular mouse and keyboard.

The importance of the command line lies in the fact that any operations with the system can be performed in the event that access to the graphical interface is lost or there is no other solution.

Here are some examples:

Registration in the system dynamic DLLs(often it is necessary to do this when copying a new DLL file to the Windows system folder - registration will “let the system know” that a new library has appeared);
Setting up a network adapter computer as a wireless Wi-Fi access point;
You can even access the Internet by connecting to the network through one of your existing connections.

You also cannot do without using the command line in case impossibility of control computer using a graphical interface. For example, there are more than one type of virus program that disables Windows Explorer, preventing the user from accessing folders or launching programs.

Using the command line, you can not only launch the application, but also go to any folder in order to work on any files (copying, moving, setting a new name, and so on). And this is only part of the command line capabilities. Let's now move on to practice.

How to Open Command Prompt in Windows 7

The first thing you need to do is run the command line, preferably as an administrator.

It is launched in one of the following ways:

After performing one of the above actions, you will call the command line - usually this is a small black window.

Why do you need administrator rights? The fact is that there are a number of teams that are capable of change system settings. You can execute such commands only with administrator rights. This is done for safety. Therefore, if you are in a guest account, you will not be able to call the command line as an administrator, and therefore not be able to execute commands related to system settings.

How to use the command line

Due to the fact that there are quite a large number of teams, their entire list cannot be displayed in one article. For this reason, we will look at the simplest commands that can be executed without administrator rights. Let's begin.

After launching the command line, you will see a window similar to this:

The address line preceding the blinking cursor is the address current folder on your hard drive (or any other connected device). Navigating through folders (changing the current folder) is one of the simplest actions. Let's run this command. To do this, you need to enter the cd command into the window and specify the full path to the name of the folder we need, and then press Enter to start execution. For example, if you need to go to the address " C:\Program Files", to do this, just enter cd C:\”Program Files”

Important! When navigating to a folder with a space in the name, it must be specified in quotes.

Thus, you can get to any directory on your hard drive. You also need to know that if the folder is located in the current command line folder, then using " CD"it opens without the need to specify the full path ( just specify the folder name after the command).

To move out of the current folder to a higher level folder, i.e. parental, use the cd .. command (the two dots mean the parent directory).

Now let's do it moving to another local drive. To do this, simply specify the drive letters followed by a colon. For example, we want to get to the drive “D:\” - we write the command d: and then press Enter.

This is done using the command " dir" Enter it and the command line will display a list of the contents of the “D:\” drive. Team " dir" can be called from any folder - even to view the contents of a directory on another drive (to do this, you must enter the full path to the name of the desired folder). For example, run: dir c:\windows

Let's look at another command - " copy" As the name implies, it is used to copy data. For example, you are on the drive " D:\" and you need to copy the file " 1.txt"to a flash drive. To do this, enter copy 1.txt F: Instead of “F:”, you can specify any other drive letter (in our case, copy to drive “C” :\ "") or the full path to the directory where you want to copy files or folders.

A more advanced version of the copy command is the " robocopy", unlike its predecessor, it can copy not only files, but also folders, including their contents.

You don't have to remember the names of all the commands. For withdrawal full list with a brief description type: help

For more detailed information, for example, robocopy, type: help robocopy

note that help displays all descriptions on Russian language, of course, if you have a Russified version of Windows.

Everything discussed here is only a small part of the command line capabilities. If you are interested in using it, we recommend visiting the official Microsoft website, where there is complete information on working with it.

Video on the topic

The command line or console is one of the types of text interface in which instructions are given to the operating system by entering certain text combinations (commands) from the keyboard. In many situations, this interface allows you to perform actions faster than the usual graphical one, and in some situations it is simply irreplaceable - for example, when working with the Ipconfig or Ping utilities. Therefore, every user should know how to launch the command line and how to interact with it.

Running the Command Prompt in Windows 7

There are two methods to display the command line:

If you plan to use the text interface frequently, you can create a shortcut on your desktop for quick access.

Right-click on any free area of the desktop. Select from the pop-up menu "Create - Shortcut".
Enter the cmd command in the window that opens and click "Further".
Enter a name for the created shortcut and confirm the action by clicking on the button "Ready".

A shortcut will appear on your desktop that will allow you to open the console like any other program. You can simplify this procedure even further by specifying a keyboard shortcut that, when pressed, will cause the cmd. exe will open automatically. To do this, right-click on the created shortcut and go to properties. Place the cursor next to the “Short call” item. Now press any key - for example, the English letter C. As a result of these manipulations, the shortcut will be assigned the combination Ctrl+Alt+C - when these keys are pressed simultaneously, the console will open.

What to do if the text interface does not start

Sometimes users encounter a situation where cmd. exe flatly refuses to function normally - when you try to open it, it starts for a split second, after which it closes by itself. This phenomenon is a signal that a virus has entered your PC and damaged the integrity of the operating system. Your task is to drive out the uninvited alien and restore the OS.

If the above manipulations do not produce results, the best solution would be to completely reinstall the OS. Copy important files from the system disk to a flash drive or to any other location and reinstall the system. Before installation, completely format the system disk.

Basic Commands

Figuring out how to launch a text interface is only half the battle. Now we need to find out how it can be useful.

One of the functions of the Windows 7 console is the ability to absolutely legally extend the trial period of using the system for up to 120 days by entering the appropriate code. This command can only be set as an administrator. Call cmd. exe using one of the methods described above, and then right-click on it and select “Run as administrator” from the drop-down menu. Now enter the slmgr command in the window that opens. vbs /rearm, press Enter and restart your PC. The Windows trial period will increase to 30 days. These manipulations can be repeated three times, which in total will increase the trial period to 120 days.

In addition, there is a list of commands that will help you quickly perform the necessary actions:

del - deletes selected files;
copy - copies information to another directory;
fc - used to detect differences in given files;
find - helps to find a given text string in an electronic document;
replace - completely replaces the selected files;
move - moves information to another directory;
print - outputs data from the specified document to the printer;
md - creates a new folder;
rd - permanently deletes the directory along with its contents;
ren - used to rename a file or folder;
tree - displays a detailed report on the graphical directory structure of a directory or disk;
robocopy - launches an improved file copying tool;
xcopy - copies individual electronic documents and directory trees;
type - displays the contents of the specified text files;
cmd - opens an additional command line window;
cls - clears the console screen;
color - sets the selected text and background color for the program;
exit - ends the session with the text interface.

According to popular belief, interacting with the command line is the prerogative of experienced users, but in fact, anyone can master this useful tool. So don't be afraid to learn something new and expand your horizons.