Command Prompt: what it is and how to use it on a Dell Computer

This article provides information about the most commonly used command-line commands and useful information.

Summary: this article provides information about the most commonly used command-line commands and useful information. Show less this article provides information about the most commonly used command-line commands and useful information.

This article could have been automatically translated. If you have comments about its quality, please send them to us using the form at the bottom of this page.

Article content

Symptoms

Cause

Solution

Home:

What is a command line?

On Windows operating systems, a command prompt is a program that emulates an input field in a text-based user interface screen with the graphical user interface (GUI) of Windows.

The command line can be used to execute input commands and perform advanced administrative functions. It can also be used to solve some types of problems related to Windows.

Figure 1: Command Line window

How to open a Command Prompt window?

Depending on your installed operating system, select the tab that corresponds to your version of Windows.

Note: the following examples show how to open an elevated command prompt. This opens a command prompt with administrator privileges.

Opening the Command Prompt in Windows 7

Click the Windows Start button.

In the search box, type cmd.

In the search results, right-click cmd and select Run as administrator (Figure 2).

This will open a Command Prompt window (Figure 3).

To change the root directory, type cd\ and press Enter (Figure 4).

Figure 4: command line in the root

Note: the root directory is the best place to enter any required commands or instructions.

Open the Command Prompt in Windows 8/8. 1

Move the mouse pointer to the lower-left corner of the screen and right-click or press Windows key + X.

In the administrators task menu, select Power User Task (Administrator) (Figure 5).

This will open a Command Prompt window (Figure 6).

To change the root directory, type cd\ and press Enter (Figure 7).

Figure 7. Command line in the root

Note: the root directory is the best place to enter any required commands or instructions.

Open Command Prompt in Windows 10

Move the mouse pointer to the lower-left corner of the screen and right-click or press Windows key + X.

From the end user task menu, select Command Prompt (administrator) (Figure 8).

This will open a Command Prompt window (Figure 9).

To change the root directory, type cd\ and press Enter (Figure 10).

Figure 10. Command line in the root

Note: the root directory is the best place to enter any required commands or instructions.

The most frequently used commands.

cd (change directory) Command used to switch the directory (path) in which you are working.

For example, cd\windows\system32 moves the screen to the system32 folder in the Windows folder.

With a command, you can use several additional switches to perform additional actions. (for more information about the available commands, see the Microsoft guide below.)

• ipconfig this command will display the current network information for the tabs, including IP address, default gateway, subnet mask, etc.
• ping this command is used as a network troubleshooting tool. It will send a packet of data to another computer on the network and wait for a response, and then display the results of the operation.

For a list of commands, see the Microsoft command prompt reference guide

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

How to cancel a command?

How do I shut down or restart my computer from the command prompt screen?

• Shutdown / s will shut down the system you are working on.
• Disabling /i from the command prompt opens the remote shutdown dialog box. This will display the options available through an easy-to-use interface, including network systems.

How do I access previously used commands?

To switch between previously executed commands, you can use the arrow keys. For example, the up and down arrows will contain recently used commands. Use the right and left arrows to display letter-by-letter commands.

Where can I find a comprehensive list of available commands?

Microsoft command prompt a-Z reference list

What tools are available?

Command line tools (Microsoft)