How to change the prompt.

Issue:

Reasoning:

A user may want to change his or her prompt to get additional information listed while navigating through their session.

Solution:

Microsoft DOS users

To change the prompt in MS-DOS you must utilize the prompt command followed by special codes used in conjunction with the prompt command. Below are some commonly used prompts.

prompt $p$g

Changes the prompt to the standard used prompt in MS-DOS listing the drive with the current path, similar to what is seen below.
C:\>

prompt $t $d$_$p$g

Change the prompt to list the time and date above the standard prompt, similar to what is seen below.
13:38:49.78 Mon 02/17/2003
C:\>

If you wish to make these changes permanent, edit the autoexec.bat and add the prompt line you used at the prompt.

Unix / Linux users

Changing the prompt in Unix / Linux varies depending on what shell you are using.

If you are using the C Shell, type:

set prompt="`hostname`>"

Displays the hostname in the prompt, similar to the below prompt:
ComputerHope>

set prompt="`pwd`>"

Displays the working directory with the prompt:
/root>

set prompt="`hostname`(`pwd`)>"

Displays the hostname along with the working directory:
ComputerHope(/root)>

set prompt=\[`id -nu`@`hostname -s`\]\#\

Displays the user who is logged in along with the hostname, similar to the below prompt:
[root@computerhope]#

If you wish to make the prompt permanent in the C Shell, edit the .cshrc file and add the same line you used at the prompt.

Additional information:

Additional information on the MS-DOS prompt command can be found on our prompt command help page.

In DOS, how can I modify my prompt or the screen color?

Note: The software discussed here is no longer in common use at Indiana University, and UITS may no longer be able to verify the document's accuracy. The UITS Support Center may no longer have the manuals and other materials required to support this software adequately.
You can use the prompt command to personalize the DOS prompt. The format of the command is: prompt text where text is a line of text that specifies the format of the prompt.

Changing Prompt Information

Place the following special codes in the text string to produce special information or characters:

Code	Result
$_	Enter/Linefeed
$$	Dollar sign
$b	\| (pipe)
$d	Current date
$e	ASCII escape code (code 27)
$g	> (greater-than sign)
$h	Backspace
$l	< (less-than sign)
$n	Current drive
$p	Current drive and path
$q	= (equal sign)
$t	Current time
$v	DOS version number

For example, a typical use of the prompt command is:
prompt $p$g This produces a prompt that consists of the current drive and path followed by a greater-than sign. Once you have found a prompt that you like, you should include the prompt command that produces it as an entry in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file, located in the root directory.

Changing Colors

If you wish to produce text of different colors, you will need to install the ANSI screen driver. Make sure that the file ANSI.SYS exists on your hard drive and is correctly referenced in an entry in your CONFIG.SYS file, similar to the following: DEVICE = C:\DOS\ANSI.SYS The above example assumes that the ANSI.SYS file is located in your DOS directory on the C: drive. Replace the drive letter and/or path information as necessary on your own computer.
Note: ANSI.SYS replacements such as NANSI.SYS or FCONSOLE.DEV may also work, but may be incompatible with some software.
You can change the colors of the text in the DOS prompt (and the color attributes of the screen) using the following escape sequence: $e[xx;yy;zzm where xx = attribute code, yy = foreground color code, and zz = background color code.
A table of the color codes follows:

Code	Color
0	Turn Off Attributes
1	High Intensity
2	Normal Intensity
4	Underline (mono only)
5	Blink
7	Reverse Video
8	Invisible
30	Black
31	Red
32	Green
33	Yellow
34	Blue
35	Magenta
36	Cyan
37	White
40	Black
41	Red
42	Green
43	Yellow
44	Blue
45	Magenta
46	Cyan
47	White

For example, the following command will result in a bright red C:\> prompt and bright yellow text on a blue background.
C:\> prompt $e[1;31;44m$p$g$e[1;33;44m Including color specifications in the prompt command changes not only the color of the prompt, but also the color of other text that you type or display. In the above example, the prompt will appear red, but other text will show up as yellow on blue.

Sample Prompts

For some interesting prompts, cut and paste as entries in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file one of the following command lines that begin with the prompt command:

GO IU!:

prompt $e[5;37GOm$e[5;31mIU$e[0;33m$p$g

Merry Christmas:

prompt $e[1;5;37m *$_$e[0;32;40m 1$_ $e[1;31;42m u $_$e[33;42m x o $e[30;40m$e[K$_ _$_$e[31m MERRY$_CHRISTMAS!$_$e[37m$p$g

Jack o' Lantern:

prompt $e[1;32;40m Z$_$e[33;43m $e[40m$e[K$_$e[43m $_ __ $e[37;40m$e[37;40m$e[K$_ BOO!$_$_$e[35m $p$g$e[37m

Choo choo train:

prompt $e[44;37;5m$e[16C$e[0;44;1;31m$_111$e[36m111$e[31m111$e[3 5m11 1\]$_$e[32;5mx x x x x x x$e[0;1;44;37m$e[1A$p$g

MS-DOS and command line overview

Below is a listing of each of the MS-DOS commands currently listed on Computer Hope and a brief explanation of what each of the commands do. The below commands are all MS-DOS commands, which means not all the below commands will work in your version of MS-DOS and/or Windows command line. Clicking on the command will open the help page for that command with full details about it.

Command	Description	Type
ansi.sys	Defines functions that change display graphics, control cursor movement, and reassign keys.	File
append	Causes MS-DOS to look in other directories when editing a file or running a command.	External
arp	Displays, adds, and removes arp information from network devices.	External
assign	Assign a drive letter to an alternate letter.	External
assoc	View the file associations.	Internal
at	Schedule a time to execute commands or programs.	External
atmadm	Lists connections and addresses seen by Windows ATM call manager.	Internal
attrib	Display and change file attributes.	External
batch	Recovery console command that executes a series of commands in a file.	Recovery
bootcfg	Recovery console command that allows a user to view, modify, and rebuild the boot.ini	Recovery
break	Enable / disable CTRL + C feature.	Internal
cacls	View and modify file ACL's.	External
call	Calls a batch file from another batch file.	Internal
cd	Changes directories.	Internal
chcp	Supplement the International keyboard and character set information.	External
chdir	Changes directories.	Internal
chdsk	Check the hard disk drive running FAT for errors.	External
chkntfs	Check the hard disk drive running NTFS for errors.	External
choice	Specify a listing of multiple options within a batch file.	External
cls	Clears the screen.	Internal
cmd	Opens the command interpreter.
color	Easily change the foreground and background color of the MS-DOS window.	Internal
command	Opens the command interpreter.
comp	Compares files.	External
compact	Compresses and uncompress files.	External
control	Open Control Panel icons from the MS-DOS prompt.	External
convert	Convert FAT to NTFS.	External
copy	Copy one or more files to an alternate location.	Internal
ctty	Change the computers input/output devices.	Internal
date	View or change the systems date.	Internal
debug	Debug utility to create assembly programs to modify hardware settings.	External
defrag	Re-arrange the hard disk drive to help with loading programs.	External
del	Deletes one or more files.	Internal
delete	Recovery console command that deletes a file.	Internal
deltree	Deletes one or more files and/or directories.	External
dir	List the contents of one or more directory.	Internal
disable	Recovery console command that disables Windows system services or drivers.	Recovery
diskcomp	Compare a disk with another disk.	External
diskcopy	Copy the contents of one disk and place them on another disk.	External
doskey	Command to view and execute commands that have been run in the past.	External
dosshell	A GUI to help with early MS-DOS users.	External
drivparm	Enables overwrite of original device drivers.	Internal
echo	Displays messages and enables and disables echo.	Internal
edit	View and edit files.	External
edlin	View and edit files.	External
emm386	Load extended Memory Manager.	External
ename	Recovery console command to enable a disable service or driver.	Recovery
endlocal	Stops the localization of the environment changes enabled by the setlocal command.	Internal
erase	Erase files from computer.	Internal
exit	Exit from the command interpreter.	Internal
expand	Expand a Microsoft Windows file back to it's original format.	External
extract	Extract files from the Microsoft Windows cabinets.	External
fasthelp	Displays a listing of MS-DOS commands and information about them.	External
fc	Compare files.	External
fdisk	Utility used to create partitions on the hard disk drive.	External
find	Search for text within a file.	External
findstr	Searches for a string of text within a file.	External
fixboot	Writes a new boot sector.	Recovery
fixmbr	Writes a new boot record to a disk drive.	Recovery
for	Boolean used in batch files.	Internal
format	Command to erase and prepare a disk drive.	External
ftp	Command to connect and operate on a FTP server.	External
ftype	Displays or modifies file types used in file extension associations.	Recovery
goto	Moves a batch file to a specific label or location.	Internal
graftabl	Show extended characters in graphics mode.	External
help	Display a listing of commands and brief explanation.	External
if	Allows for batch files to perform conditional processing.	Internal
ifshlp.sys	32-bit file manager.	External
ipconfig	Network command to view network adapter settings and assigned values.	External
keyb	Change layout of keyboard.	External
label	Change the label of a disk drive.	External
lh	Load a device driver in to high memory.	Internal
listsvc	Recovery console command that displays the services and drivers.	Recovery
loadfix	Load a program above the first 64k.	External
loadhigh	Load a device driver in to high memory.	Internal
lock	Lock the hard disk drive.	Internal
logoff	Logoff the currently profile using the computer.	External
logon	Recovery console command to list installations and enable administrator login.	Recovery
map	Displays the device name of a drive.	Recovery
md	Command to create a new directory.	Internal
mem	Display memory on system.	External
mkdir	Command to create a new directory.	Internal
mode	Modify the port or display settings.	External
more	Display one page at a time.	External
move	Move one or more files from one directory to another directory.	Internal
msav	Early Microsoft Virus scanner.	External
msd	Diagnostics utility.	External
msdex	Utility used to load and provide access to the CD-ROM.	External
nbtstat	Displays protocol statistics and current TCP/IP connections using NBT	External
net	Update, fix, or view the network or network settings	External
netsh	Configure dynamic and static network information from MS-DOS.	External
netstat	Display the TCP/IP network protocol statistics and information.	External
nlsfunc	Load country specific information.	External
nslookup	Look up an IP address of a domain or host on a network.	External
path	View and modify the computers path location.	Internal
pathping	View and locate locations of network latency.	External
pause	Command used in batch files to stop the processing of a command.	Internal
ping	Test / send information to another network computer or network device.	External
popd	Changes to the directory or network path stored by the pushd command.	Internal
power	Conserve power with computer portables.	External
print	Prints data to a printer port.	External
prompt	View and change the MS-DOS prompt.	Internal
pushd	Stores a directory or network path in memory so it can be returned to at any time.	Internal
qbasic	Open the QBasic.	External
rd	Removes an empty directory.	Internal
ren	Renames a file or directory.	Internal
rename	Renames a file or directory.	Internal
rmdir	Removes an empty directory.	Internal
route	View and configure windows network route tables.	External
runas	Enables a user to run a program as a different user.	External
scandisk	Run the scandisk utility.	External
scanreg	Scan registry and recover registry from errors.	External
set	Change one variable or string to another.	Internal
setlocal	Enables local environments to be changed without affecting anything else.	Internal
setver	Change MS-DOS version to trick older MS-DOS programs.	External
share	Installs support for file sharing and locking capabilities.	External
shift	Changes the position of replaceable parameters in a batch program.	Internal
shutdown	Shutdown the computer from the MS-DOS prompt.	External
smartdrv	Create a disk cache in conventional memory or extended memory.	External
sort	Sorts the input and displays the output to the screen.	External
start	Start a separate window in Windows from the MS-DOS prompt.	Internal
subst	Substitute a folder on your computer for another drive letter.	External
switches	Remove add functions from MS-DOS.	Internal
sys	Transfer system files to disk drive.	External
telnet	Telnet to another computer / device from the prompt.	External
time	View or modify the system time.	Internal
title	Change the title of their MS-DOS window.	Internal
tracert	Visually view a network packets route across a network.	External
tree	View a visual tree of the hard disk drive.	External
type	Display the contents of a file.	Internal
undelete	Undelete a file that has been deleted.	External
unformat	Unformat a hard disk drive.	External
unlock	Unlock a disk drive.	Internal
ver	Display the version information.	Internal
verify	Enables or disables the feature to determine if files have been written properly.	Internal
vol	Displays the volume information about the designated drive.	Internal
xcopy	Copy multiple files, directories, and/or drives from one location to another.	External

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Change your DOS/Command prompt

Are you sick of seeing the same old prompt whenever you go to the "DOS/Command Prompt" -- "C:\>" for example?Here's how to change it to something more exciting:

If you're in Windows, go to the "DOS Prompt" or the "Command Prompt"
Type

PROMPT

followed by the format characters for your new prompt (only a few format characters are listed below to keep the compatibility. to find out all the codes available to you in your operating system, type "PROMPT/?" without the quotes and press ENTER):

$d -- current date
$t -- current time
$g -- ">" character
$p -- current path/directory

for example:

PROMPT $t $p $g
Press ENTER

Applicable Keywords : MS-DOS 3.x, Windows NT, Windows NT 3.x, Windows NT 4.x, Windows, Windows 3.x, Windows 95

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Computing.Net > Forums > Windows XP > changing cmd prompt directory

You have searched for "change directory dos prompt." You might be interested in the following threads:

See more for "change directory dos prompt."

changing cmd prompt directory

Name: neenie
Date: August 8, 2005 at 14:00:06 Pacific
OS: Win XP Sv pack 2
CPU/Ram: 1.5/512 mb

Comment:

Is there an easy way to change the command prompt to always go to a specific directory?
Mine goes to c:/documents and settings/neenie
But I want it to automatically go to about four subdirectories (subfolders...whatever) below 'neenie'.
As in c:/documents and settings/neenie/my documents/programming/language/c
Thanks!

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Response Number 1

Name: XpUser
Date: August 8, 2005 at 14:38:27 Pacific

Reply:

Chdir (Cd)Displays the name of the current directory or changes the current folder. Used with only a drive letter (for example, chdir C:), chdir displays the names of the current drive and folder. Used without parameters, chdir displays the current drive and directory.
Syntax
chdir [[/d] [Drive:][Path] [..]] [[/d] [Drive:][Path] [..]]
cd [[/d] [Drive:][Path] [..]] [[/d] [Drive:][Path] [..]]
Parameters
/d
Changes the current drive or the current directory for a drive.
[drive:][Path]
Specifies the drive (that is, if it is different from the current drive) and directory to which you want to change.
[..]
Specifies that you want to change to the parent folder.
/?
Displays help at the command prompt.
Remarks
Working with command extensions
With command extensions enabled (that is, the default), the current directory path matches the folder names exactly as they appear on your hard drive, using the same uppercase or lowercase folder-name format. For example, if the folder on your hard drive is called C:\Temp, CD C:\TEMP sets the current directory to C:\Temp to match the folder-name format of the folder on your hard drive.
To disable command extensions for a particular process, type:
cmd e:off
When you disable command extensions, chdir does not treat white spaces as delimiters. As a result, you can change to a subdirectory name that contains a white space without having to surround [Path] in quotation marks. For example, the following path changes to the \Start menu subdirectory:
cd \winnt\profiles\username\programs\start menu
For more information about enabling and disabling command extensions, see cmd in Related Topics.
Changing to the root directory
The root directory is the top of the directory hierarchy for a drive. To return to the root directory, type:
cd\
Changing the default directory on one drive from another drive
To change the default directory on a drive different from the one you are on, type one of the following:
chdir [Drive:\[directory]]
cd [Drive:\[directory]]
To verify the change to the directory, type one of the following:
chdir [Drive:]
cd [Drive:]
The chdir command, with different parameters, is available from the Recovery Console.
Examples
When you use it with a drive name, chdir displays the current directory for that drive. For example, if you type cd c: at the C:\Temp directory prompt, the following appears:
C:\Temp
To change your current directory to a directory named Reports, type one of the following commands:
chdir \reports
cd \reports
To change your current directory to a subdirectory \Specials\Sponsors, type:
cd \specials\sponsors
Or, if your current directory is \Specials, type the following command to change to the \Specials\Sponsors subdirectory:
cd sponsors
To change from a subdirectory to its parent directory, type:
cd ..
To display the name of the current directory, you can use chdir or cd without a parameter. For example, if your current directory is \Public\Jones on drive B, typing chdir the following appears:
B:\Public\Jones
If you are working on drive D and you want to copy all files in the \Public\Jones and \Public\Lewis directories on drive C to the root directory on drive D, type:
chdir c:\public\jones
copy c:*.* d:\
chdir c:\public\lewis
copy c:*.* d:\
If you want to copy all files in the \Public\Jones and \Public\Lewis directories to your current location on drive D, type:
chdir c:\public\jones
copy c:*.* d:
chdir c:\public\lewis
copy c:*.* d:
i_XpUser

Response Number 2

Name: neenie
Date: August 8, 2005 at 15:27:53 Pacific

Reply:

Thanks, but I know how to switch from one directory to another from cmd.
My question was/is how can I change the command prompt to AUTOMATICALLY go to a specific directory?
Meaning, I want to have a cmd shortcut that will AUTOMATICALLY go a directory that I use all of the time. I already KNOW how to navigate from one directory to another from the prompt,...I want to set my command prompt to automatically go to a specific directory.
Specifically, instead of my command prompt automatically going to c:/doucuments and settings/neenie , I want it to AUTOMATICALLY go to c:/documents and settings/neenie/blah/blah blah/more blah/ blah blah blah
I can't think of any other way to make this more clear. But thanks anyway.

Response Number 3

Name: Ewen
Date: August 8, 2005 at 22:17:55 Pacific

-1

Reply:

Good response from XpUser... a little bit acid from meanie!
Once I thought I was wrong, now I'm not so sure!

Response Number 4

Name: aamarbutt
Date: August 10, 2005 at 14:04:53 Pacific

Reply:

I have same question: Everytime I open my CMD, It opens into my H:\> dir, instead of C:\>. This happens to all login users to network, running Windows xp and login into AD/wind 2003, running Kix a login script from sysvol.
Is anyone knows what it caused for command to open into Home directory? and How I can change so it shouhd open into either current user profile or local C: drive ?

Response Number 5

Name: Ewen
Date: August 10, 2005 at 21:52:11 Pacific

Reply:

aamar butt you should repost your question as a fresh post. It is unlikely that anyone will find it tacked onto the end of someone elses.
Once I thought I was wrong, now I'm not so sure!

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Response Number 6

Name: abhyamodak
Date: August 16, 2005 at 08:24:59 Pacific

Reply:

Hey there
I stumbled upon the same task today and found your post. I was lucky to find the solution to this.
Please visit http://windowsxp.mvps.org/autoruncmd.htm
or follow these steps
(1) At command prompt, type regedit.exe
(2) Navigate to "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Command Processor
(3) In the right hand panel, modify Autorun. If there is no Autorun present, Click Edit-> New->String Value
(4) Call it Autorun and type "cd\" if you want to set it to C: (provided Windows in installed on C drive). Say to want it to be C:\Abhi, type cd\Abhi.
I hope I am making this clear enough. I have tried it; and it works.
Sincerely
Abhijit

Response Number 7

Name: Brittny
Date: September 8, 2005 at 13:29:37 Pacific

-2

Reply:

Thanks for posting that! I also stumbled upon this website and that was VERY helpful information!!
Thanks!
-Brittny
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