MOST USEFULL COMMANDS IN WINDOWS

1. assoc – Displays which programs will open the file with .xyz extension
It can be used either to displays or modifies file extension associations. If you just type assoc then it
will display the list of all files extension and associated a program which is used to open that file. For
example, assoc .doc will show you the name of program which the file is associated with.
2. attrib – Displays and changes file attributes (i.e. make hidden file visible)
It displays, sets, or removes the read-only, archive, system, and hidden attributes assigned to files or
directories. For example, if you want to edit boot.ini file which is a hidden file then you can use attrib
command to unhide it and edit it with edit command.
Attrib tips: 1. “+” - Adds an Attribute 2. “–“ Removes an Attribute
Example: c:\>attrib resume.doc +hc:\>attrib rk-resume.doc +a -h
All Switches: a r h s where a = Archive, r = Read-Only, h = Hidden, s = System
3. bootcfg - Configures, queries, or changes Boot.ini file settings
For example: if you have two OS installed in your computer and you want to change the time in
seconds after which default OS will be loaded, use this command bootcfg /timeout 10 where 10 stands
for 10 seconds.
4. chdir or cd – Displays a list of files and subdirectories in a directory and also can change
Directory or folder (i.e. Directory is called folder in windows world)
It displays the name of the current directory or can change the current folder. It will display the name of
the current drive and folder if used like this c:\>cd.
Some more examples:
Folder by folder method: c:\>cd winnt; c:\winnt>cd system32
Absolute path method: c:\>cd c:\winnt\system32
Move to parent folder: c:\>cd..
Move to root folder: c:\>cd/
5. chkdsk – Checks a disk and displays a status report
This command will check the disk for errors and corrects them if instructed so to do with the use of
switches. If is used without parameters, chkdsk displays the status of the disk in the current drive. This
is one of the handy tools for me. Whenever I have doubt that my HDD might have some problem I run
this command chkdsk /f / r in command prompt.
6. chkntfs – Displays or modifies the checking of disk at boot time
It displays or specifies whether automatic system checking (chkdsk) is scheduled to be run on a NTFS
volume when the computer is started. It is mostly used with switches. If no switch is specified, chkntfs
will display if the specified drive is dirty or scheduled to be checked on next boot.
Example: chkntfs c:
7. cipher - Displays or alters the encryption of folders and files on NTFS volumes
If it is used without parameters, cipher displays the encryption state of the current folder and any files it
contains.
8. cls - Clears the Command Prompt window screen
If you have been typing lot of DOS command in command prompt and your screen is full with
command then try cls. It will clear the screen.
9. comp – Compare the content of two files or set of files
This utility is similar to diff in Linux Operating System
10. control – Launch Control Panel from command prompt
This is applicable in Windows XP only. This is unpublished command and only used in windows XP.
This allows you to launch control panel applets from the command line.
11. Copy – copy one or more files to another location
Here is the example how it can be used to copy files from one location to another. This command is
always used in this format :
Copy “path of file to be copied” “path of the location where file has to be copied”
Example:
c:\>copy myresume.doc c:\resumeExample
c:\>copy a:\resume\rk-resume.doc c:\temp\resume
12. defrag – Defragmentation
This command is very helpful when you experience that your computer is very slow. First you delete
all the windows temp files and internet temporary files and then run this command to defrag the hard
disk. This will locate and consolidate fragmented boot files, data files, and folders on local volumes.
13. del - Deletes one of more specified files
Use it with cautious. This will delete specified file from hard disk. Use it only if you are comfortable
with DOS and know difference between directories, folder or files.
Delete from current directory: c:\>del myresume.doc
Delete From Absolute Path: c:\>del c:\resume\rk-resume.doc
14. dir - Displays a list of a directory's files and subdirectories
If it is used without parameters, dir displays the disk's volume label and serial number, followed by a
list of directories and files on the disk, including their names and the date and time each was last
modified. For files, dir displays the name extension and the size in bytes. dir also displays the total
number of files and directories listed, their cumulative size, and the free space (in bytes) remaining on
the disk.
Some examples:
Lists the contents current directory: c:\>dir
Lists Contents of absolute path: A:\documents\pictures\bitmaps>dir c:\”program files”
Switches: /w /p /s
Sorting Switches: /oe /oen /od /on /one /x
Wildcards: * ?
Wildcard usage: c:/windows/system32>dir *.exe – will display files with .exe extension or
c:/windows/system32>dir *.* - will display the file with any extensions.
15. driverquery - Displays a list of all installed device drivers and their properties.

16. fc - Compares two files or set of files and displays the differences between them
17. find – Advanced file search with filter capability
It Searches for a specific string of text in a file or files. After searching the specified file or files, find
displays any lines of text that contain the specified string.
For example, I have a file called resume.doc in c driver and I want to search word “resume”. You can
do it with or without filterWithout filter:
find “resume” c:\resume.doc – this will search the file resume.doc only for word “resume”
dir c:\ /s /b find "resume" – this will search complete hard disk to find word “resume” using filter
18. getmac - This command displays the Media Access Control (MAC) address for one or more
network adaptors on system
It is very useful for IT professional.
19. gpresult - This utility generates a summary of the user settings and computer group policy settings.
20. gpupdate - you can use this utility to manually apply computer and user policy.
21. help – This provides help information for windows command
If it is used without parameters, help lists and briefly describes every system command. If you want to
get help for command dir, just type help dir in command prompt and hit enter to see the details about
dir command.
22. hostname – shows what is name of your computer
It displays the host name portion of the full computer name of the computer.
23. ipconfig – Windows IP Configuration tool – very useful for IT professional
It displays all current TCP/IP network configuration values and refreshes Dynamic Host Configuration
Protocol (DHCP) and Domain Name System (DNS) settings. If it is used without parameters, ipconfig
displays the IP address, subnet mask, and default gateway for all adapters. Type ipconfig /? in
command prompt to get more help.
24. mkdir or md - Creates a directory or subdirectory
mkdir creates any intermediate directories in path, if there it is not already there.
25. mmc - Microsoft Management Console (MMC)
If you are using the mmc command-line options, you can open a specific MMC console, open MMC in
author mode, or specify that the 32-bit or 64-bit version of MMC is opened.
26. mode – configure system devices like COM ports etc
If it is used without parameters, mode displays all the controllable attributes of the console and the
available COM devices. This is very useful for IT Professional to know the device setting like COM
settings.
27. more - Displays one screen of output at a time
This is always used with another command.
For example, dir *.* more will show the result one screen at a time.
28. move - move files and rename files and directories
It moves one or more files from one directory to the specified directory.
Example - c:\>move resume.doc c:\resumefolder
29. msconfig - Windows configuration tool
This is an ultimate tool to change the services and utilities that start when your Windows machine boots
up. Type this command in run directly.
30. narrator – Let your computer to dictate text to you
This is turns ON the system narrator. It can also be found in accessibility options in control panel.
31. nbtstat – NetBIOS Statistics
It displays NetBIOS over TCP/IP (NetBT) protocol statistics, NetBIOS name tables for both the local
computer and remote computers, and the NetBIOS name cache. This is useful for IT professional.
32. netstat – Displays protocol statistics and current TCP/IP Connections
It displays active TCP connections, ports on which the computer is listening, Ethernet statistics, the IP
routing table, IPv4 statistics - for the IP, ICMP, TCP, and UDP protocols, and IPv6 statistics - for the
IPv6, ICMPv6, TCP over IPv6, and UDP over IPv6 protocols. If it is used without parameters, netstat
displays active TCP connections.
33. netsh - A network configuration tool console
when you type netsh in command prompt, netsh> prompt appears. You can use different netsh
command here. Type '?' in netsh command to list all the available command and type "exit" to get
back to a command prompt.
34. nslookup – It displays information that you can use to diagnose DNS (Domain Name System)
infrastructure.
This command-line tool is available only if the TCP/IP protocol is installed in your computer. It is an
useful tool for IT Professionals.
35. pathping – Know packet loss at any given router or link
It provides information about network latency and network loss at intermediate hops between a source
and destination. As it displays packet loss at any given router or link so it is very helpful in determining
which routers or subnets might be having problem in the network. This is the most useful tool for a
network professional. If it is used without parameters, pathping will display help.
36. perfmon – See the performance of your windows XP
This allows you to open a Windows XP Performance console which is already configured with settings
files from Windows NT 4.0 version of Performance Monitor.
37. ping – Check if your network connection is OK
This command is used to check the IP-level connectivity to another TCP/IP computer by sending
Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) Echo Request messages. Then the another computer sends
back the Echo Reply message, along with round-trip times. Ping is the primary TCP/IP command used
to troubleshoot connectivity, reachability, and name resolution. If it is used without parameters, ping
displays help.
38. recover - This command can recover readable information from a damaged disk and is very
easy to use.
Consult the online command reference in windows xp help before using this command.
39. reg – Console Registry tool for windows (Don’t use it if you don’t already know about it)
It can add, change, and display registry subkey information and values in registry entries.
40. regedit – Registry Editor (Don’t use it if you don’t already know about it)
41. rmdir or rd – It removes (i.e. deletes) a directory
Removes a Directory: c:\resume>rd temp-resume
42. route – It displays and modifies the entries in the local IP routing table
If it is used without parameters, route will display help.
43. schtasks – Schedule Task
This schedules commands and programs to run periodically or at a specific time. It can also add or
remove tasks from the schedule, starts and stops tasks on demand, and displays & changes scheduled
tasks.
44. shutdown – It allows you to shut down or restart your computer
If it is used without parameters, shutdown will display help.
45. start – This starts a separate Command Prompt window to run a specified program or
command
If it is used without parameters, start opens a second command prompt window.
46. sigverif - verify driver signature in Windows XP only
Microsoft has created driver signatures to maintain the integrity of your system. Critical files have been
digitally signed so that any changes to these files can be quickly detected. A signed driver is Microsoft
tested and approved. You can check the drivers to verify that if they are all intact by typing sigverif in
command prompt.
47. sysedit - System Configuration File Editor
This is an old tool that was very handy for the Windows 9X days. But msconfig is used in place of
sysedit now days.
48. systeminfo – Know your Computer configuration
It displays detailed configuration information about your computer and its operating system. It includes
operating system configuration, security information, product ID, and hardware properties, such as
RAM, disk space, and network cards etc.
49. sfc - System File Checker
This is also very useful command. It scans and verifies the versions of all protected system files after
you restart your computer.
50. tasklist – Know what programs are running currently on your computer
It displays a list of applications and services with their PID (Process ID) for all tasks running on your
computer.
51. taskkill – Close the application from command prompt
You can close any tasks or application currently running directly from command prompt. Only thing
you should know is the PID of that particular task. You can find out the PID by running tasklist
command which displays the corresponding PID for an applivcation.
52. telnet – Connect to your remote computer
You can connect to your remote computer or remote IP device through telnet command. You can telnet
your remote computer if you the IP address of that computer.
For example, type telnet 192.168.100.244 in command prompt and then it will prompt you to enter
user name and password of the remote computer to check your authenticity.
53. tracert – Trace route – very useful for network professional
You can determine the path taken to a destination by sending Internet Control Message Protocol
(ICMP) Echo Request messages to the destination with incrementally increasing Time to Live (TTL)
field values. If it is used without parameters, tracert displays help.
For example, you can try tracert google.com.
54. Time – you can display or change the system time from command prompt by typing time
It will then prompt you to enter the new time you want to change.
55. tree – It displays the directory structure of a path or of a disk drive graphically
Windows XP doesn’t have direct command to print directory content so you can do that by combining
following commands together. Try this tree DOS command and redirect the output to a text file.
tree > directorycontent.txt
print directorycontent.txt
56. type – view txt files in command prompt without opening it with Notepad
It displays the contents of a text file. Type command is mostly used to view text file without modifying
it. Lengthy text file can be splited into multiple pages with the help of switches.
57. ver - Displays the Windows XP version number
58. WMIC - Windows Management Instrumentation Command tool
You can view an amazing amount of low-level system information from a command line scripting
interface with this command.
59. xcopy - Copies files and directories, including subdirectories.
Tips:
1. What is cmd.exe: you can launch command prompt by typing cmd in run prompt in the start
menu.
2. What is SyetmRoot: The SystemRoot is the directory where the operating systems core files are
located. Typically it is c:\Windows on Windows XP.
3. Where the applications are installed: Typically c:\program files\ is the location where most user
installed applications are installed.
4. What is the location of my Desktop and My Documents: The typical location of Desktop and My
Documents is c:\documents and settings\.
For example: The user Rakesh’s documents would be located in c:\documents and
settings\Rakesh\my documents (also desktop icons, documents, start menu icons and personal
preferences will be stored here).
5. Shortcut to avoid typing lengthy file or folder name in command prompt: when your are
working with a command and you need to type lengthy file or folder name, you can drag file or folder
from Windows Explorer.
6. How to get help for DOS Command: To view help at the command-line, at the command prompt,
type the command name followed by “/” and “?”.
Example: dir /? - will display all the help information for dir command
Also Visit Microsft command Resources: