DOS Command reference

Getting multiple files in a single batch file

Encoding Binary files in Batch files

Strings.com

For NT commands see Help for all NT Version 4.0 commands

APPEND   Locating Application Files.
ATTRIB   Specifying the Read-only and Archive Attributes
BACKUP   Backing Up Files between Drives
BREAK    Checking Whether Break Was Invoked
CHCP     Changing the Code Page
CHDIR    Changing the Current Directory
CHKDSK   Checking Disk Space
CLS      Clearing the Screen
COMMAND  Invoking a Second Command Processor
COMP     Comparing Files
COPY     Copying Files
CTTY     Changing to a Remote Terminal
DATE     Displaying the Current Date
DEL      Deleting Files
ERASE    Erasing Files
DIR      Listing Files in a Directory
DISKCOMP Comparing Disks
DISKCOPY Copying Disks
EXE2BIN  Converting .EXE Files to .BIN Files
FASTOPEN Storing Recently Opened Files in Memory
FDISK    Partitioning the Hard Disk
FIND     Finding Strings Within Files
FORMAT   Formatting Disks
GRAFTABL Loading Graphics Characters
GRAPHICS Printing a Graphics Screen
JOIN     Joining Drives via a Directory
KEYB     Loading Foreign Keyboards (PC-DOS 3.3 only)
KEYBxx   Loading Foreign Keyboards
LABEL    Modifying Volume Labels
MKDIR    Creating New Subdirectories
MODE     Setting Device Modes
MORE     Displaying One Screen at a Time
NLSFUNC  Selecting Code Pages with CHCP
PATH     Searching a Specified Path
PRINT    Printing Files
PROMPT   Changing the System Prompt
RECOVER  Recovering Damaged Files
RENAME   Renaming Files
REPLACE  Replacing Selected Files
RESTORE  Restoring Backed-up Files
RMDIR    Removing Directories
SELECT   Selecting Keyboard and Date Format When Installing DOS
SET      Setting Operating Parameters
SHARE    Loading Support for Network File-Sharing
SORT     Sorting Text Data
SUBST    Substituting Drive Designators
SYS      Copying System Files to Another Disk
TIME     Displaying the Current Time
TREE     Displaying Directory Trees
TYPE     Displaying the File Contents
VER      Displaying the DOS Version
VERIFY   Verifying Data
VOL      Displaying the Disk Volume Name
XCOPY    Copying Selected Files

Creating a Zero Length File

The old DOS method of creating a zero length file by issing: REM>ZERO.DAT works under Windows 9x but won't work under Windows NT/2000/XP. The command: TYPE ZERO.DAT > ZERO.DAT will work under all versions of Windows and DOS. assuming that ZERO.DAT does not exist before the type command.

Output files from the input file name with a different extension

Lots of batch files require you to supply file name parameters without extension so that an output file can be made with a new extension or they will require the full output file name as a seperate parameter. Automatically providing an output file name with a new extension turns out to be pretty easy: Just make the output file with %1ext and then ren %1ext *.ext where %1 is the full input file name and ext is whatever you want the extension to be. This works in '98, NT and XP.

See also:

• http://www.allenware.com/icsw/icswidx.htm Interactive Batch Course on the World Wide Web. The best technical writing I've ever seen on this subject. Clear, complete, concise... Just excellent.
• http://dos.rsvs.net/DOSPAGE/BATCHCOM.HTM DOS batchfile programming (inlcuding Windows 98)
• http://panda.bg.univ.gda.pl/pub/teksty/pc/muf17.txt
• http://home.infi.net/~wtnewton/batch/index.html
• http://users.cybercity.dk/~bse26236/
• http://www.robvanderwoude.com/index.html

Questions:

• spamamiami55@spam@ at walla.com asks:

  Hi guys
  I want to copy file using XCOPY/D:mm-dd-yyyy command
  I would like the batch file to automatically enter a date as a variable.(not the current date). I was looking all over the net for answer. can't find any....please help

  James Newton replies: Rob has that at http://www.robvanderwoude.com/datetime.html but doing math on a date may require NT or XP. I'm not sure it has been done in standard DOS.+

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