Windows and pipe with spaces in the path/file name Posted 02-10-2017 07:51 PM (3461 views) I have used paths with embedded spaces before without issues while using pipes in SAS, but this one has me investigating more than I care on a Friday evening. Enclosing the folder name in double quotes tells Windows the spaces are part of the folder name. The directory contains spaces so I have fixed this issue by using speech marks. ... Subscribed for interest. Ok, consider the following lines of code: c:\Program Files\Application Folder\Program Name\executable.exe. But I feel like I've tried most things that could reasonably be expected to work. The problem: We want to loop through a file where either the name or path has a space in it. Can I control a program using a batch file once its been started? If I have no spaces in the path of the second parameter everything is OK. ;//Run, C:\Program Files\Open Office\3.1.1\OpenOffice.org 3\program\scalc.exe file with spaces.xls ;//Run, "C:\Program Files\Open Office\3.1.1\OpenOffice.org 3\program\scalc.exe" file with spaces.xls...some do work, what didn't work for you? I am trying to run an exe within a python script, but I'm having trouble with spaces in the directory name. The first option is easy to check, replace "cmd.exe" with "executable.exe" and remove that from commandText.The second will require examining the code for executable. normaly its no problem to run a program like: Wshell.Run c:\windows\notepad.exe , 3,false Is there a way to run programs with a space in the path for exaple For example: Command Line used in CMD - robocopy "c:\folder name" s:\folder1\folder2\folder3\folder name" /mir. If I add a space it doesn't work. I've tried single and double quotes and doubling up the backslashes, but still haven't landed a … But in this case it refers to the name of the EXE file. e.g. Why is this a problem? It's unfortunate because Windows doesn't always handle spaces in filenames particularly well. I looked at a number of web forums, and it seems that the standard way of opening a file whose type is already associated with a default application (like Excel for .xls) is by using START, for example: Start c:\test.xls. I am trying to get a VB Script to execute a file--an Excel file--that resides in a path with spaces in the name. Suppose, the path to streamripper.exe is contained in a variable and has spaces in it's path as the above examples. I'm using AutoIT to run an instance of PSEXEC against a remote PC to audit Local Admins in my environment using net.exe (C:\Windows\System32> net localgroup administrators). My question is how can i make matlab know i want to execute the a.exe file. T-Sql calling an .exe is working but problem with space in the path – Learn more on the SQLServerCentral forums ... and the other one really has to not have spaces in it. Dear All, I am trying to execute the following command in matlab windows OS. I would suspect the problem is either with cmd or in the way executable is handling the arguments. Summary: Learn how to run a script with a space in the path. I'm looking to run an executable in a directory but the path contains several spaces in the folder names. What is the syntax to use in the yaml file to execute a batch file with spaces in the path? Invoke-Expression -command "\install\sub directory\test.bat" Which complains: The term '\install\sub' is not recognized as the name of a cmdlet, function, script file, or operable program. This is all on the just-released v1.3.2. Actually, aside from running the process through cmd instead of running it directly, your code produces the right results. It's a must implement in any stable batch file. which I have tested to work, and Adobe Acrobat would be invoked to open the file. shep.Run """C:\Program Files\7-Zip\7z.exe"" e C:\temp\4\7-Zip.7z -y -oc:\temp\4\ *.txt -r" and in both cases all worked great :). A good rule of thumb on Windows when you run a command through C (which Lua uses) and the command contains double quotes, is to surround the whole command with … Or you can use: cd "new dir" START C:\"Program Files (x86)"\Google\Chrome\Application\chrome.exe. The jar file was in "C:\Jboss\Libraries\" but the java.exe needed to import it was in "C:\Program Files\Java\jdk1.6.0._04\bin\" at first I didn't notice the space, and ran the command: This ofcause fails, since "C:\Program Files" has a space. … In my code I also use absolute paths. Invoke-Expression -command "\Windows\system32\mspaint.exe" but if there is a space in the path PowerShell spits the dummy e.g. A batch file can only execute or start another program. Also, suppose your R35 directory has spaces contained within. Say another program launches your MATLAB executable, and wants to feed it some folder on the command line. In other words, a path with no spaces. The following example will display the usage statement of the program, so I know that the space in the path to the exe is being handled correctly and that the program was executed. Let’s say we’ve got an HTML file in C:\Scripts, and it’s called “Test Document.html”. I am passing cmd two Arguments. – Georg W. Sep 18 '18 at 13:19 If you try to pass an absolute path into a MATLAB executable, with spaces in it, in as a command line argument you will have a problem. To to use files with spaces you can either use the escape character or youse the double quotes. Sometimes: Use the Caret Character to Escape Spaces ( ^ ) In the Command Prompt, the caret character ( ^ ) will let you escape spaces—in theory. Use quotes like this: start "" "Y:\foo bar\baz" The start builtin command can be used to create new console windows, if you give it a console-based program (or nothing at all, in which case it starts the default cmd.exe shell).. I rarely deal with windows, so maybe I'm missing something. I've read some solutions online about using some code and \" or whatever, but I don't think that applies to me, as I'm using the App and I don't even have arguments. Huh, I can't say I have run into issues running files with spaces in the name. Question: How do I run a script with a space in the path? Hello, I would like to ask about using batch file to open a series of PDF files. So if the argument is the name of a file with the correct extension, the correct application will open, with that file name … The Program Files (x86) folder name includes spaces in it. Issue Type: Bug I checked the issue reproes in the latest code version. I am trying to run a command line from a program that can not use long names or spaces. The path to the file being called is "C:\Program Files\TEST\TEST SCANNER\scan.exe" The "Program Files" easily converts to Progra~1 but because the third level only has 4 charachters and then a space, it will not work. How can I get around the problem with the spaces to be able to run the executable from the command prompt? I needed to run the java.exe to import at .jar file. Hi. I'm running PS 5.1, and I can just right-click scripts with spaces and choose 'Run with Powershell'. Some of the early users then tried to run the script from a path such as X:\Scripts\Exchange Analyzer and reported errors. This method does the job. This answer is only a partial solution: It will work if there are spaces in the path but it will not work if there are spaces in the filename. The following code does not resutl in the file executing, but I'm unsure why: Set objShell = WScript.CreateObject("WScr ipt.Shell" ) What am I missing? If the name of the file to run is actually “c:winntsystem32Ica PassThroughpn.exe”, you would enter it at the command prompt as: “c:winntsystem32Ica PassThroughpn.exe” The double quotes in your code do not form part of the filename string being passed to the .run method, they are required to indicate a literal string. slip system('C:\program files\a.exe') It seems the system command can only recognize 'c:\program'. No. However the usual trick I use to capture command line output does not appear to work well with PSEXEC, as the bottom portion of the output is missing from the return. Here’s an example of what went wrong. if in wsh script we have file paths with "spaces" then we need to embrace those paths with- ""file path"". in my case it is ""C:\Program Files\7-Zip\7z.exe… It will work in reverse (sort of) because a file of a particular type will open the default application for that type. How would you then construct your Run string? Answer 1: PS > c:my` foldermyscript.ps1 Answer 2: PS> &(“c:my foldermyscript.ps1”) Question: What is the easiest way to create an array? i.e. I'm going to test this on a Windows 7 system and see what happens. start /d "C:\Program Files\" JoyScribe.exe start C:\Documents and Settings\hdiqa21\Desktop\Auditor Prod Log - QA21.doc start D:\Program Files\QA Navigator CS\QA Navigator.exe If the first argument is quoted, start assumes it's the title for the new console window, so give it an empty title. Thanks. Spaces are allowed in long filenames or paths, which can be up to 255 characters with NTFS. example: cd new\ dir/ \ is called escape character, used to not expansion of space, so now bash read the space as part of file name. file name spaces; We get this question all the time from third party developers who work with us. The issue I have now is that my vbs that is called to run this process, doesnt work with the spaces. (You’ll find this character in the number row on your keyboard. runas command for username with spaces Hi everyone, I'm trying to make a shortcut open with a different user automatically (without having to hold shift and clicking open with different user), and I read that I could right click on the shortcut, click Properties, and … CMD= r'"C:\program files\some directory\engine\theexe.exe"' Task Scheduler path with spaces Hi, I need to execute some files in the Task Scheduler that have spaces in the path of the "Start a program". 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