Command line in Windows 7 - how to open? Activate Windows 7 (command prompt)

Ever since the computer has become an integral part of the life of modern society, we are used to working in a visual graphical interface. In a simple language, this is clicking the mouse on pictures, dragging them, etc. But at the dawn of computer technology everything was different. Then the commands of the machine were set exclusively in text mode. And now programmers and so-called advanced users can easily communicate with their computer with the help of text commands.

Sometimes the ability to use such a regime can make life simpler in life, and in some cases, it becomes simply necessary. Therefore, in this article we will discuss what a command line in Windows 7 is, how to open this line and why it might be needed.

Translator from human language to computer

In order for the computer to understand the user's requests, there is a special command shell in the operating system where the command line of Windows 7 acts as an interpreter. English-speaking people in this sense, of course, live easier, as the teams are written in the purest English. Well, the rest will have to learn a couple of dozen foreign words.

Command line in Windows 7. How to open this tool

First, we'll figure out how to launch the required environment for input. There are several ways to open the Windows 7 command prompt.

To use the first method, you have to remember the simplest command - "cmd". It is not difficult to do this. These letters are a computer abbreviation from the English word command, which is very consonant with the Russian "command". Applying the simplest examples of mnemonics, we get the letters we need ( KO M AN DANA).

Click on the "Start" button (the Windows icon), which is located in your lower left corner of the screen. In the window that opens, in the line "Find programs and files" (the lowest line) enter the command "cmd". The icon appears in the list of programs that appears. Clicking on it with the left mouse button, you can start the command prompt of Windows 7.

The next way to call the command line also starts with the "Start" button. But this time you can just click in the list on the line "All programs" and select the folder "Standard". Clicking on the folder, you will receive a number of programs. One of them will be the "Command line".

Command line in Windows 7. How to open, using the standard shortcut keys

To achieve the desired result, you can also use the "Win" + "R" key combination. (The "Win" key is located on the keyboard in the bottom row, the third on the left, with the Windows logo). By clicking this combination, you will open a special "Run" window. In the proposed field, you need to enter the command "cmd" that you already know and press the "Enter" key.

Why you might need a command line

Suppose you are using a trial period of free acquaintance with the operating system Windows 7. It is already coming to an end, but you have not yet fully understood whether it is worth translating it on a permanent basis. This is where you will find useful knowledge of working with the command line.

Microsoft has provided a completely legal option for an additional period (up to 120 days) to activate Windows 7. The command line in this case will be needed to enter the code. You can set this command only on behalf of the administrator. This precaution is by no means superfluous. After all, many specific changes to the computer can be entered, using the command line program. The administrator of Windows 7 should clearly be aware of what his actions will lead to.

To login with administrator rights by calling one of the previously described methods of the program, right-click on the program and select "Run as administrator" (at the very top of the list) in the context menu that opens.

After that, in the opened window enter "slmgr.vbs / rearm" (after the letters "vbs" there must be a space). And confirm the command by pressing the "Enter" key. Restart the computer and check the expiration date of the trial version. It should be 30 days. This procedure can be repeated, but no more than three times. So in total you will get 120 days to research the capabilities of the operating system.

List of main commands

In the execution of many basic and specific functions, the command line in Windows 7 will also help. How to open the necessary directory or folder and perform the necessary operations with them, you will learn from the following list of commands. And although it is far from being exhaustive, knowing this framework can one day coolly simplify your life. To facilitate the perception, try to group the teams into small blocks.

Commands for working with individual files and folders

• If you need to delete a file or a whole group of files, use the "del" command.
• To copy information to another folder or directory, use the "copy" command.
• To find the specified text string in the current file (or group consisting of several files), type "find".
• If you needed to compare several files to find the difference between them, use the letter combination "fc".
• To move the specified files to another folder, type "move".
• To create a new empty folder, just give the query "md".
• If necessary, delete the folder along with all the contents irrevocably use "rd".
• If you want to print text or graphic information from a specified file for printing, type "print".
• To completely replace the selected files, use the "replace" command.
• To rename a single file or folder, type "ren".
• To see the full report on the graphic structure of the disk or folder directories, use the "tree" command.
• Sometimes you need to run an improved file copy tool and even complete directory trees. In this case, type "robocopy"
• And for simple copying of files and directory trees, "xcopy" is used.
• If you want to see the full contents of the specified text files on your screen, give the command "type".

Command line management

For the direct management of the command line itself, a number of specific commands are used. Thanks to them you can afford to some extent individualize the work with this program by changing some of its parameters.

• To run the second additional copy of the command line, type "cmd". It opens in the next window.
• To completely clear the command-line screen, issue the command "cls".
• If you want to change the prompt itself on this command line, type "prompt".
• To assign the original title for the window to the time of the current session, command "title".
• The "color" command allows you to select and set the individual text color and background for the program interface.
• Exit from the command line is always performed using the command "exit".

Features of working with the command line in Windows 8

In Windows 7, running the command line on behalf of the administrator is relatively simple. But in order to open this program in the environment of Windows 8, you need to know some news and subtleties of this shell.

In Windows 8 there is no "Start" menu. In order to call the desired panel, you must right-click on any empty area of the desktop. After this action, an additional panel will appear at the bottom of the screen, on which you will find the icon "All applications" (bottom right corner).

Open the applications (by clicking on the icon with the left mouse button) and search in the appeared list for the icon with the inscription "Command line" (it will be located approximately in the central part of the panel). Click on this icon with the right mouse button (if you use the left key, then by default the command line will open as the current user) and in the additional control panel that appears at the bottom choose the option "Run as administrator".

Further work in this program is no different from working in an earlier version of Windows, which we reviewed above.

Timely assistant

Although working with the command line, according to general opinion, is the privilege of experienced users, in fact, everyone can master this tool. And an invaluable help in training will be played by the built-in assistant. It is called very easily remembered text command "Help".

Working with the command line, you can at any time set the command "Help" - and the program will give you a complete list of its capabilities. In order to get more detailed information about any particular team that interested you, just enter the query in the format "help + team name".

So do not be afraid to experiment and expand your horizons. Learn the possibilities of your own computer or laptop - and in the near future you can easily chat on an equal footing with those who received a specialized education.