MS-DOS Command List

Command Description
Append The append command can be used by programs to open
files in another directory as if they were located in the
current directory.
Assign The assign command is used to redirect drive requests to a
different drive. This command can also show drive
assignments and reset drive letters to their original
assignments.
Attrib The attrib command  is used to change the attributes of a
single file or a directory.
Break The break command sets or clears extended CTRL+C
checking on DOS systems.
Call The call command is used to run a script or batch program
from within another script or batch program. The call
command has no effect outside of a script or batch file. In
other words, running the call command at the MS-DOS
prompt will do nothing.
Cd The cd command is the shorthand version of the chdir
command.
Chcp The chcp command displays or configures the active code
page number.
Chdir The chdir command is used to display the drive letter and
folder that you are currently in. Chdir can also be used to
change the drive and/or directory that you want to work in.
Chkdsk The chkdsk command , often referred to as check disk, is
used to identify and correct certain hard drive errors.
Choice The choice command is used within a script or batch
program to provide a list of choices and return the value of
that choice to the program.
Cls The cls command clears the screen of all previously entered
commands and other text.
Command The command command starts a new instance of the
command.com command interpreter.
Copy The copy command  copies one or more files from one
location to another.
Country The country command is used in the CONFIG.SYS file to tell
MS-DOS to use country-specific text conventions during
processing.
Ctty The ctty command is used to change the default input and
output devices for the system.
Date The date command is used to show or change the current
date.
Dblspace The dblspace command is used to create or configure
DoubleSpace compressed drives.
 MS-DOS Command List
Debug The debug command starts Debug, a command line
application used to test and edit programs.
Defrag The defrag command is used to defragment a drive you
specify. The defrag command is the command line version of
Microsoft's Disk Defragmenter.
Del The del command is used to delete one or more files. The
del command is the same as the erase command.
Deltree The deltree command is used to delete a directory and all
the files and subdirectories within it.
Device The device command is used in the CONFIG.SYS file to load
device drivers into memory.
Devicehigh The devicehigh command is used in the CONFIG.SYS file to
load device drivers into upper memory.
Dir The dir command  is used to display a list of files and folders
contained inside the folder that you are currently working in.
The dir command also displays other important information
like the hard drive's serial number, the total number of files
listed, their combined size, the total amount of free space left
on the drive, and more.
Diskcomp The diskcomp command is used to compare the contents of
two floppy disks.
Diskcopy The diskcopy command is used to copy the entire contents
of one floppy disk to another.
Dos The dos command is used in the CONFIG.SYS file to specify
the memory location for DOS.
Doskey The doskey command is used to edit command lines, create
macros, and recall previously entered commands.
Dosshell The dosshell command starts DOS Shell, a graphical file
management tool for MS-DOS. The dosshell command was
only available up to MS-DOS 6.0 but most MS-DOS 6.22
installations were upgrades from previous versions so the
dosshell command is usually still available.
Drvspace The drvspace command is used to create or configure
DriveSpace compressed drives. DriveSpace, executed using
the drvspace command, is an updated version of
DoubleSpace. DriveSpace is an updated version of
DoubleSpace, executed using the dblspace command.
Echo The echo command is used to show messages, most
commonly from within script or batch files. The echo
command can also be used to turn the echoing feature on or
off.
Edit The edit command starts the MS-DOS Editor tool, which is
used to create and modify text files.
Edlin The edlin command starts the Edlin tool, which is used to
 MS-DOS Command List
create and modify text files from the command line. Edlin
was only available up to MS-DOS 5.0 so unless your version
of MS-DOS 6.22 was upgraded from 5.0, you likely won't see
the edlin command.
Emm386 The emm386 command is used to give MS-DOS access to
more than 640 KB of memory.
Exe2bin The exe2bin command is used to convert .EXE files to
binary format.
Erase The erase command is used to delete one or more files. The
erase command is the same as the del command.
Exit The exit command is used to end the command.com session
that you're currently working in.
Expand The expand command is used to extract the files and folders
contained in Microsoft Cabinet (CAB) files.
Fasthelp The fasthelp command provides more detailed information
on any of the other MS-DOS commands.
Fastopen The fastopen command is used to add a program's hard
drive location to a special list stored in memory, potentially
improving the program's launch time by removing the need
for MS-DOS to locate the application on the drive.
Fc The fc command is used to compare two individual or sets of
files and then show the differences between them.
Fcbs The fcbs command is used in the CONFIG.SYS file to
specify the number of file-control blocks for file sharing.
Fdisk The fdisk command is used to create, manage, and delete
hard drive partitions.
Files The files command is used in the CONFIG.SYS file to
specify the maximum number of files that can be open at the
same time.
Find The find command is used to search for a specified text
string in one or more files.
For The for command is used to run a specified command for
each file in a set of files. The for command is most often
used within a batch or script file.
Format The format command  is used to format a drive in the file
system that you specify.
Goto The goto command is used in a batch or script file to direct
the command process to a labeled line in the script.
Graphics The graphics command is used to load a program that can
print graphics.
Help The help command  provides more detailed information on
any of the other Command Prompt or MS-DOS commands.
If The if command is used to perform conditional functions in a
batch file.
 MS-DOS Command List
Include The include command is used in the CONFIG.SYS file to
allow you to use the commands from one CONFIG.SYS
block within another.
Install The install command is used in the CONFIG.SYS file to load
memory-resident programs into conventional memory.
Interlnk The interlnk command is used to connect two computers via
a serial or parallel connection to share files and printers.
Intersvr The intersvr command is used to start the Interlnk server and
to copy Interlnk files from one computer to another.
Join The join command is used to attach a drive letter to a
directory located on another drive. It's similar to the subst
command which associates a drive letter with a local
directory.
Keyb The keyb command is used to configure a keyboard for a
specific language.
Label The label command is used to manage the volume label of a
disk.
Lastdrive The lastdrive command is used in the CONFIG.SYS file to
set the maximum number of drives that can be accessed.
Lh The lh command is the shorthand version of the loadhigh
command.
Loadfix The loadfix command is used to load the specified program
in the first 64K of memory and then runs the program.
Loadhigh The loadhigh command is used to load a program into high
memory and is usually used from within the autoexec.bat
file.
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.
Memmaker The memmaker command is used to start MemMaker, a
memory optimization tool.
Menucolor The menucolor command is used in the CONFIG.SYS file to
set text colors.
MenudefaultThe menudefault command is used in the CONFIG.SYS file
to set the startup configuration that will be used if no key is
pressed within the specified timeout period.
Menuitem The menuitem command is used in the CONFIG.SYS file to
create a startup menu from which you can select a group of
CONFIG.SYS commands to be processed upon reboot.
Mkdir The mkdir command is used to create a new folder.
Mode The mode command is used to configure system devices,
most often COM and LPT ports.
 MS-DOS Command List
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 Command Prompt
or MS-DOS command.
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.
Msav The msav command starts Microsoft Antivirus.
Msbackup The msbackup command starts Microsoft Backup, a tool
used to back up and restore one or more files.
Mscdex The mscdex command is used to provide CD-ROM access
to MS-DOS.
Msd The msd command starts Microsoft Diagnostics, a tool used
to display information about your computer.
Nlsfunc The nlsfunc command is used to load information specific to
a particular country or region.
Numlock The numlock command is used in the CONFIG.SYS file to
specify the state of the NumLock key.
Path The path command is used to display or set a specific path
available to executable files.
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.
Power The power command is used to reduce the power consumed
by a computer by monitoring software and hardware
devices.
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 or MS-DOS.
Qbasic The qbasic command starts QBasic, the MS-DOS based
programming environment for the BASIC programming
language.
Rd The rd command is the shorthand version of the rmdir
command.
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.
 MS-DOS Command List
Restore The restore command is used to restore files that were
backed up using the backup command. The backup
command was only available up to MS-DOS 5.00 but the
restore command was included by default with later versions
of MS-DOS to provide a way to restore files that were
backed up in previous versions of MS-DOS.
Rmdir The rmdir command is used to delete an existing or
completely empty folder.
Scandisk The scandisk command is used to start Microsoft ScanDisk,
a disk repair program.
Set The set command is used to display, enable, or
disable environment variables  in MS-DOS or from the
Command Prompt.
Setver The setver command is used to set the MS-DOS version
number that MS-DOS reports to a program.
Share The share command is used to install file locking and file
sharing functions in MS-DOS.
Shell The shell command is used in the CONFIG.SYS file to
specify the command interpreter that DOS should use.
Shift The shift command is used to change the position of
replaceable parameters in a batch or script file.
Smartdrv The smartdrv command installs and configures
SMARTDrive, a disk caching utility for MS-DOS.
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.
Stacks The stacks command is used in the CONFIG.SYS file to set
the number and size of stack frames.
Submenu The submenu command is used in the CONFIG.SYS file to
create a multi-level menu from which you can select startup
options.
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 in Windows except a local path is used instead of
a shared network path. The subst command replaced the
assign command beginning with MS-DOS 6.0.
Switches The switches command is used in the CONFIG.SYS file to
configure DOS in a special way, like to tell DOS to emulate
different hardware configurations.
Sys The sys command is used to copy the MS-DOS system files
and command interpreter to a disk. The sys command is
used most often to create a simple bootable disk or hard
drive.
Time The time command is used to show or change the current
 MS-DOS Command List
time.
Tree The tree command is used to graphically display the folder
structure of a specified drive or path.
Type The type command is used to display the information
contained in a text file.
Undelete The undelete command is used to undo a deletion performed
with the MS-DOS delete command.
Unformat The unformat command is used to undo the formatting on a
drive performed by the MS-DOS format command.
Ver The ver command is used to display the current MS-DOS
version number.
Verify The verify command is used to enable or disable the ability
of Command Prompt, or MS-DOS, to verify that files are
written correctly to a disk.
Vol The vol command  shows the volume label and a serial
number of a specified disk, assuming this information exists.
Vsafe The vsafe command is used to start VSafe, a basic virus
protection system for MS-DOS.
Xcopy The xcopy command  can copy one or more files or directory
trees from one location to another. The xcopy command is
generally considered a more "powerful" version of the copy
command though the robocopy command trumps even
xcopy.