1.5 - Windows Command Line Tools

What are elevated privileges and how do you access them?

You must be a member of the Administrators group.

Access by right-clicking Command Prompt and choosing "Run as Administrator" or use cmd with Ctrl+Shift+Enter.

How do you get help for a command in Command Prompt?

Use help [command] (e.g., help dir, help chkdsk) or

[command] /? (e.g., dir /?).

What does the dir command do?

Lists files and directories in the current working directory.

What does the cd or chdir command do?

Changes the working directory. Use backslash \ to specify volume or folder names (e.g., cd C:\Users\professor).

What does “cd ..” (two dots/periods) do in Command Prompt?

Navigates to the folder above the current folder (parent directory).

What does md or mkdir do?

Makes (creates) a new directory.

What does rd or rmdir do?

Removes (deletes) a directory.

What does chkdsk /f do?

Fixes logical file system errors on the disk.

What does chkdsk /r do and what does it imply?

Locates bad sectors and recovers readable information. Implies /f (also fixes logical errors).

What should you do if a volume is locked when running chkdsk?

Run chkdsk during startup (schedule it to run before Windows boots).

What does the format command do and what is the warning?

Formats a disk for use with Windows. BE CAREFUL — YOU CAN LOSE DATA. Example: format c:

What is DiskPart and what is the warning?

Tool to manage disk configurations. BE CAREFUL — YOU CAN LOSE DATA.

Access via diskpart to start the DiskPart command interpreter.

What are the /v and /y options for the copy command?

/v — Verifies that new files are written correctly.

/y — Suppresses prompting to confirm overwriting an existing destination file.

Most advanced copying tool for Windows?

Robocopy

What does the hostname command do and when is it useful?

Displays the name of the device (Windows Device name).

Useful when troubleshooting with multiple terminal tabs or remote sessions to confirm which computer you're on.

Name can be changed in System settings.

What does winver do and when is it useful?

Displays the “About Windows” dialog for a quick check of Windows version and build. Useful in troubleshooting to confirm you're running the latest version.

What does whoami display?

• User and group information

• security identifier (SID)

• privileges, and other details.

• Useful when many windows are open with different systems and permissions.

What does whoami /all do?

Displays all user and group information, including security identifier (SID) and all privileges in one command.

What does gpupdate do and how do you force an update?

Forces a Group Policy update (normally updated at login). Use gpupdate /target:{computer|user} /force (e.g., gpupdate /target:user /force).

When is Group Policy normally updated?

At login. Use gpupdate to force an immediate update.

What does gpresult do and what are example uses?

Verifies policy settings for a computer or user.

Use gpresult /r for a basic report or

gpresult /user sgc/professor /v for verbose user-specific results.

What does sfc /scannow do?

• Scans the integrity of all protected system files and repairs corrupted files.

• Use sfc /scannow.