Windows Vista Command Prompt Commands (Part 2)

This is the second part of a 3-part, alphabetical list of commands available from the Windows Vista Command Prompt.

See Windows Vista Command Prompt Commands Part 1 for the first set of commands.

append - lpr | makecab - tscon | tsdiscon - xcopy

Makecab

The makecab command is used to losslessly compress one or more files. The makecab command is sometimes called Cabinet Maker.

The makecab command is the same as the diantz command.

Md

The md command is the shorthand version of the mkdir command.

Mem

The mem command shows information about used and free memory areas and programs that are currently loaded into memory in the MS-DOS subsystem.

The mem command is not available in any 64-bit version of Windows Vista.

Mkdir

The mkdir command is used to create a new folder.

Mklink

The mklink command is used to create a symbolic link.

Mode

The mode command is used to configure system devices, most often COM and LPT ports.

More

The more command is used to display the information contained in a text file. The more command can also be used to paginate the results of any other Vista Command Prompt command. More »

Mount

The mount command is used to mount Network File System (NFS) network shares.

The mount command is not available by default in Windows Vista but can be enabled by turning on the Services for NFS Windows feature from Programs and Features in Control Panel.

Mountvol

The mountvol command is used to display, create, or remove volume mount points.

Move

The move command is used to move one or files from one folder to another. The move command is also used to rename directories.

Mrinfo

The mrinfo command is used to provide information about a router's interfaces and neighbors.

Msg

The msg command is used to send a message to a user. More »

Msiexec

The msiexec command is used to start Windows Installer, a tool used to install and configure software.

Muiunattend

The muiunattend command starts the Multilanguage User Interface unattended setup process.

Nbtstat

The nbtstat command is used to show TCP/IP information and other statistical information about a remote computer.

Net1

The net1 command is used to display, configure, and correct a wide variety of network settings.

The net command should be used instead of the net1 command. The net1 command was made available in some early versions of Windows as a temporary fix for a Y2K issue that the net command had. The net1 command remains in Windows Vista only for compatibility with older programs and scripts that utilized the command.

Net

The net command is used to display, configure, and correct a wide variety of network settings. More »

Netcfg

The netcfg command is used to install the Windows Preinstallation Environment (WinPE), a lightweight version of Windows used to deploy workstations.

Netsh

The netsh command is used to start Network Shell, a command-line utility used to manage the network configuration of the local, or a remote, computer.

Netstat

The netstat command is most commonly used to display all open network connections and listening ports. More »

Nfsadmin

The nfsadmin command is used to manage Server for NFS or Client for NFS from the command line.

The nfsadmin command is not available by default in Windows Vista but can be enabled by turning on the Services for NFS Windows feature from Programs and Features in Control Panel.

Nlsfunc

The nlsfunc command is used to load information specific to a particular country or region.

The nlsfunc command is not available in any 64-bit version of Windows Vista.

Nslookup

The nslookup is most commonly used to display the hostname of an entered IP address. The nslookup command queries your configured DNS server to discover the IP address.

Ocsetup

The ocsetup command starts the Windows Optional Component Setup tool, used to install additional Windows features.

Openfiles

The openfiles command is used to display and disconnect open files and folders on a system.

Path

The path command is used to display or set a specific path available to executable files.

Pathping

The pathping command functions much like the tracert command but will also report information about network latency and loss at each hop.

Pause

The pause command is used within a batch or script file to pause the processing of the file. When the pause command is used, a Press any key to continue... message displays in the command window.

Ping

The ping command sends an Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) Echo Request message to a specified remote computer to verify IP-level connectivity. More »

Pkgmgr

The pkgmgr command is used to start the Windows Package Manager from the Command Prompt. Package Manager installs, uninstalls, configures, and updates features and packages for Windows.

Pnpunattend

The pnpunattend command is used to automate the installation of hardware device drivers.

Pnputil

The pnputil command is used to start the Microsoft PnP Utility, a tool used to install a Plug and Play device from the command line.

Popd

The popd command is used to change the current directory to the one most recently stored by the pushd command. The popd command is most often utilized from within a batch or script file.

Powercfg

The powercfg command is used to manage the Windows power management settings from the command line.

Print

The print command is used to print a specified text file to a specified printing device.

Prompt

The prompt command is used to customize the appearance of the prompt text in Command Prompt.

Pushd

The pushd command is used to store a directory for use, most commonly from within a batch or script program.

Qappsrv

The qappsrv command is used to display all Remote Desktop Session Host servers available on the network.

Qprocess

The qprocess command is used to display information about running processes.

Query

The query command is used to display the status of a specified service.

Quser

The quser command is used to display information about users currently logged on to the system.

Qwinsta

The qwinsta command is used to display information about open Remote Desktop Sessions.

Rasautou

The rasautou command is used to manage Remote Access Dialer AutoDial addresses.

Rasdial

The rasdial command is used to start or end a network connection for a Microsoft client.

Rcp

The rcp command is used to copy files between a Windows computer and a system running the rshd daemon.

The rcp command is not available by default in Windows Vista but can be enabled by turning on the Subsystem for UNIX-based Applications Windows feature from Programs and Features in Control Panel and then installing the Utilities and SDK for UNIX-based Applications available here.

Rd

The rd command is the shorthand version of the rmdir command.

Recover

The recover command is used to recover readable data from a bad or defective disk.

Reg

The reg command is used to manage the Windows Registry from the command line. The reg command can perform common registry functions like adding registry keys, exporting the registry, etc.

Regini

The regini command is used to set or change registry permissions and registry values from the command line.

Regsvr32

The regsvr32 command is used to register a DLL file as a command component in the Windows Registry.

Relog

The relog command is used to create new performance logs from data in existing performance logs.

Rem

The rem command is used to record comments or remarks in a batch or script file.

Ren

The ren command is the shorthand version of the rename command.

Rename

The rename command is used to change the name of the individual file that you specify.

Replace

The replace command is used to replace one or more files with one or more other files.

Reset

The reset command, executed as reset session, is used to reset the session subsystem software and hardware to known initial values.

Rexec

The rexec command is used to run commands on remote computers running the rexec daemon.

The rexec command is not available by default in Windows Vista but can be enabled by turning on the Subsystem for UNIX-based Applications Windows feature from Programs and Features in Control Panel and then installing the Utilities and SDK for UNIX-based Applications available here.

Rmdir

The rmdir command is used to delete an existing and completely empty folder.

Robocopy

The robocopy command is used to copy files and directories from one location to another. The robocopy command is superior to the more simple copy command because robocopy supports many more options. This command is also called Robust File Copy.

Route

The route command is used to manipulate network routing tables.

Rpcinfo

The rpcinfo command makes a remote procedure call (RPC) to an RPC server and reports what it finds.

The rpcinfo command is not available by default in Windows Vista but can be enabled by turning on the Services for NFS Windows feature from Programs and Features in Control Panel.

Rpcping

The rpcping command is used to ping a server using RPC.

Rsh

The rsh command is used to run commands on remote computers running the rsh daemon.

The rsh command is not available by default in Windows Vista but can be enabled by turning on the Subsystem for UNIX-based Applications Windows feature from Programs and Features in Control Panel and then installing the Utilities and SDK for UNIX-based Applications available here.

Rsm

The rsm command is used to manage media resources using Removable Storage.

Search for the rsm command in the C:\Windows\winsxs folder in Windows Vista if you're having trouble executing the command.

Runas

The runas command is used to execute a program using another user's credentials.

Rwinsta

The rwinsta command is the shorthand version of the reset session command.

Sc

The sc command is used to configure information about services. The sc command communicates with the Service Control Manager.

Schtasks

The schtasks command is used to schedule specified programs or commands to run a certain times. The schtasks command can be used to create, delete, query, change, run, and end scheduled tasks.

Sdbinst

The sdbinst command is used to deploy customized SDB database files.

Secedit

The secedit command is used to configure and analyze system security by comparing the current security configuration to a template.

Set

The set command is used to enable or disable certain options in Command Prompt.

Setlocal

The setlocal command is used to start the localization of environment changes inside a batch or script file.

Setver

The setver command is used to set the MS-DOS version number that MS-DOS reports to a program.

The setver command is not available in any 64-bit version of Windows Vista.

Setx

The setx command is used to create or change environment variables in the user environment or the system environment.

Sfc

The sfc command is used to verify and replace important Windows system files. The sfc command is also referred to as System File Checker and Windows Resource Checker. More »

Shadow

The shadow command Is used to monitor another Remote Desktop Services session.

Share

The share command is used to install file locking and file sharing functions in MS-DOS.

The share command is not available in any 64-bit version of Windows Vista.

Shift

The shift command is used to change the position of replaceable parameters in a batch or script file.

Showmount

The showmount command is used to display information about NFS mounted file systems.

The showmount command is not available by default in Windows Vista but can be enabled by turning on the Services for NFS Windows feature from Programs and Features in Control Panel.

Shutdown

The shutdown command can be used to shut down, restart, or log off the current system or a remote computer. More »

Sort

The sort command is used to read data from a specified input, sort that data, and return the results of that sort to the Command Prompt screen, a file, or another output device.

Start

The start command is used to open a new command line window to run a specified program or command. The start command can also be used to start an application without creating a new window.

Subst

The subst command is used to associate a local path with a drive letter. The subst command is a lot like the net use command except a local path is used instead of a shared network path.

Sxstrace

The sxstrace command is used to start the WinSxs Tracing Utility, a programming diagnostic tool.

Systeminfo

The systeminfo command is used to display basic Windows configuration information for the local or a remote computer.

Takeown

The takeown command is used to regain access to a file that that an administrator was denied access to when reassigning ownership of the file.

Taskkill

The taskkill command is used to terminate a running task. The taskkill command is the command line equivalent of ending a process in Task Manager in Windows.

Tasklist

Displays a list of applications, services, and the Process ID (PID) currently running on either a local or a remote computer.

Tcmsetup

The tcmsetup command is used to setup or disable the Telephony Application Programming Interface (TAPI) client.

Telnet

The telnet command is used to communicate with remote computers that use the Telnet protocol.

The telnet command is not available by default in Windows Vista but can be enabled by turning on the Telnet Client Windows feature from Programs and Features in Control Panel.

Tftp

The tftp command is used to transfer files to and from a remote computer that's running the Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) service or daemon.

The tftp command is not available by default in Windows Vista but can be enabled by turning on the TFTP Client Windows feature from Programs and Features in Control Panel.

Time

The time command is used to show or change the current time.

Timeout

The timeout command is typically used in a batch or script file to provide a specified timeout value during a procedure. The timeout command can also be used to ignore keypresses.

Title

The title command is used to set the Command Prompt window title.

Tlntadmn

The tlntadmn command is used to administer a local or remote computer running Telnet Server.

The tlntadmn command is not available by default in Windows Vista but can be enabled by turning on the Telnet Server Windows feature from Programs and Features in Control Panel.

Tracerpt

The tracerpt command is used to process event trace logs or real-time data from instrumented event trace providers.

Tracert

The tracert command is used to show details about the path that a packet takes to a specified destination. More »

Tree

The tree command is used to graphically display the folder structure of a specified drive or path.

Tscon

The tscon command is used to attach a user session to a Remote Desktop session.

Continue: Tsdiscon through Xcopy

Click the link above to see list 3 of 3 detailing the remainder of the commands available from the Command Prompt in Windows Vista. More »