Как найти command prompt

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If you’ve been a Windows user for a while now, we’re sure you would’ve fumbled your way into the Command Prompt at least once. The Command Prompt is a command-line interface application used to execute all the commands from a single place.

In fact, it’s this very option to control major aspects of execution and troubleshooting, which makes using Command Prompt a hugely popular tool among Windows power users. But did you know that there’s more than a single way to open the Command Prompt?

In this article, we’ve taken care of that by covering all the different methods to open the Command Prompt. Let’s begin with the simplest one first.

1. Open the Command Prompt via the Start Menu

The Start menu was first introduced with Windows 95 in 1995. Since then, it has been used as a central hub for listing all the important programs, files, and folders of your Windows computer.

Naturally, you can also use it to access the Command Prompt. To get started, go to the Start menu search bar, type in ‘command prompt,’ and select the Best match.

The Command Prompt will be launched, and you can now execute different commands to your liking.

However, note that for executing some commands you’ll need to have special privileges, and for that, you will have to launch the Command Prompt in the ‘elevated’ mode. The elevated mode, or the administrative account as it’s sometimes called, is nothing but a way to access a program as a ‘superuser,’ letting you take actions that might otherwise be restricted for a normal account.

To open the Command Prompt in an elevated mode, right-click on the Command Prompt icon from above and run it as Administrator.

2. Use the Run Dialog Box

The Run dialog box is a simple program that makes it super easy to access other programs, files, and folders through a simple command. Moreover, it can only be accessed with a keyboard and for this reason, it can come super handy when your mouse or GUI is giving you a hard time.

To access the Command Prompt through the Run dialog, follow the steps below:

1. Press Win + X to open the Run dialog box.
2. Type in ‘cmd’ in the dialog box and hit OK.

Complete the steps above, and the Command Prompt will launch.

3. How to Use the Task Manager to Open the Command Prompt

The Task Manager is a crucial Windows program, designed to give general information about the applications running on your computer. Interestingly, it can also be used to open different applications. In our case, this means you can also use it for running Command Prompt.

To get started, go to the Start menu search bar, and select Task Manager. Alternatively, press Ctrl + Alt + Delete key together, and the Task Manager will be launched.

After the Task Manager is open, follow the steps below:

1. Click on File > Run new task.
2. Once the dialog box pops up, type in ‘cmd,’ and click on OK.
3. If you want to launch the Command Prompt with administrative privileges, then check the “Create this task with administrative privileges,” and select OK.

And that’s how you can utilize the Task Manager with Windows 11. Make no mistake, though, as this is only the tip of the iceberg; Task Manager is a powerful app, and can help you do far more interesting and powerful things than what we’ve covered here.

4. Open the Command Prompt With a Desktop Shortcut

A desktop shortcut is a handy alternative for accessing your programs, especially if you have to use an application again and again. All you have to do is create a simple desktop shortcut of Command Prompt, and you’ll be set for accessing Command Prompt easily through your desktop.

To get started, right-click on the Desktop item, navigate to the New item, and select the Shortcut option.

A dialog box called ‘Create Shortcut’ will pop open. There, type ‘cmd’ and click on Next.

Now give a suitable name to the Command Prompt shortcut and click on Finish. This will create a working Command Prompt shortcut for your PC.

Whenever you have to launch the Command Prompt, simply click on the shortcut. Again, if you’d like to launch the Command Prompt with administrative privileges, right-click on the Command Prompt and select the Run as administrator option.

5. Use File Explorer to Open the Command Prompt

If you’re unsure as to what File Explorer is, there’s an extremely good chance you’ve already used it. Every time you open a folder or browse your PC’s files through Windows, you’ve done so through File Explorer. More formally, File Explorer is a file manager application that lets you access your Windows files and folders easily.

To access the Command Prompt from the File Explorer, all you have to do is use the address bar of File Explorer. To do this, open This PC, go to the address bar, and type in ‘cmd.’ Hit Enter.

As soon as you do this, the Command Prompt will be launched.

Alternatively, you can also access the Command Prompt by entering the file location of the cmd.exe file. Go to the top of the address bar and enter the following path in the address bar, and hit Enter.

 C:WindowsSystem32 

This will launch the System 32 folder, which contains numerous system executables and libraries. Once you’re in, locate and double-click on the cmd.exe file to launch the Command Prompt.

If you want to open the Command Prompt with administrative privileges, though, right-click on the cmd.exe file and click on Show more options from the context menu. With the complete list of options in front of you, now click on Run as administrator. This will launch the Command Prompt in elevated mode.

Launching the Command Prompt in Windows 11

And that’s all about Command Prompt, folks. Fundamentally a command-line interpreter, the Command Prompt is a great way to manage your system administration all from a single place. Although my personal favorite is the Start menu method because of how straightforward it is, we felt strongly about laying out all the different approaches at our disposal. So, if either of these methods fails, you now have multiple ways around it.