15 Awesome Windows Run Commands You

Might Not Know About

ASHISH MUNDHRA

02 Jul 2012

The everyday Windows user believes that both command prompt, and the Run dialog box is meant for
geeks and nerds. Well, without doubt using them sure gives a vibe that you fall in the higher IQ pool, but
they really aren’t all about codes and the geekiness that the average user tends to associate them with.
There are many ways a normal user could use them, especially the Run box, to speed up things and that’s
exactly what this post is all about.
We will show you 15 awesome Run commands that’d help you bypass a series of clicks, thereby making
things faster in your daily usage of Windows. Do note that the Run hasn’t disappeared in Windows
8 either. It might not show up like it did in its predecessors, but a simple Win+R keystroke would bring it
up. Hence knowing how to use it is only going to help you.

I think it’s safe to assume that almost all of you have used the Run box at least once to open up tools
quickly that are embedded deep into the system. Commands like Calc, Regedit, winword, notepad, etc.
are pretty famous among the masses, and they are definitely helpful at times. We are going to go a bit
beyond these very general commands today and share the ones that you probably don’t know about.
Note: Again, to run these commands, press Win+R button to open the Run box, type in the command you
want to run and press the enter key.

1. %PROGRAMFILES%
We have to open program files most of the time to run and manage installed applications. This command
will open your Program Files folder directly no matter on which drive Windows is installed on your
computer. It’s better than opening Windows Explorer and then navigating to the folder manually.

2. %USERPROFILE%
Just like the previous command, this will open up the user profile directory for the particular user. You
can access your picture, music, videos and other personal folders easily from here.

3. CONTROL
If you want to open your system Control Panel, this command will open it up for you directly. You’ll be
surprised how few people know this one. So many of my so called geeky friends had no notion about this
one.
We will be seeing how to open certain Control Panel settings directly as we proceed.

4. CLEANMGR

Probably, the easiest way to clean up the junk files accumulated in your computer. Run the command to
open up the Windows Disk Cleanup Manager, select the drive you want to clean and click ok. Computer
will then scan the particular drive for junk files and give the option to clean them.

5. COMPMGMT.MSC
The command will open Computer Management, directly which you open conventionally by right-
clicking on My Computer (or Computer), and selecting Manage. One can manage shared folders, manage
disk services and take care of other management stuff using that window.

6. FIREWALL.CPL
Want to disable or enable firewall quickly? Type in firewall.cpl in the Run box and press enter. Takes you
right into Windows Firewall.

7. FSMGMT.MSC
Keep track of all the shared folder and devices using this command. You can control sharing on your
computer easily from here.
8. OPEN WEB BROWSER (IEXPLORE, CHROME,
FIREFOX, OPERA)
These commands will open up Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox, and Opera on your system
respectively if they are installed on your computer. That’s not all. You can append the URL of the website
at the end of the browser name to open the website directly. For e.g. if you want to open Guiding Tech on
Chrome, open Run Command and type in Chrome www.guidingtech.com and press enter. For the note,
this command is my personal favorite (no points for guessing why).

9. MSINFO32
Probably, the easiest way to see your computer’s complete system info. Here you can find all the
hardware and software information you will need to know about your computer.
10. NETPLWIZ
This command is useful for a multi-user computer. Administrators can directly open User Account
advance configuration and configure any account they would like. Other users, however, can edit and
change their personal account preferences.

11. OSK

Abbreviation for On Screen Keyboard, this one opens it on your computer screen. You can use these on
screen keyboards to fight keyloggers while browsing through a shared public computer.

12. LOGOFF/SHUTDOWN
As the name speaks, these commands quickly logoff a user or shut down the computer respectively. You
can also use “shutdown –a” to abort a system shutdown, but you have to be very quick while using the
command.

13. UTILMAN
We have seen how osk can open the on screen keyboard Windows utility, but if you want to use magnifier
or a narrator, this command will open up the full utility manager for you.

14. WUAPP
This command will open up the Windows Update Manager for you. You can then install and configure
your Windows updates from here.

15. WRITE
Last but not the least. Just as the notepad command is used to open Windows Notepad, write launches the
default Windows WordPad. Oh, you never knew this existed, did you? Try it out.

CONCLUSION
Those were few of my favorite Run commands out of hundreds of them. Now, we are counting on you,
our intelligent readers to expand the list. Come on, chip in with some of the cool Run commands you’ve
been using all this time. Drop a comment!
Many people familiar with prior versions of Windows are curious what happened to the
built-in Administrator account that was always created by default. Does this account still
exist, and how can you access it?

The account is created in Windows 10, 8, 7, or Vista, but since it’s not enabled you can’t
use it. If you are troubleshooting something that needs to run as administrator, you can
enable it with a simple command.

Warning: The built-in Administrator account has a lot more privileges than a regular
administrator account—privileges that can easily get you into trouble if you use it
regularly. We recommend only enabling the built-in Administrator account if you are
certain you need it to troubleshoot a specific problem and then disabling it when you are
done. If you’re unsure whether you need it, you probably shouldn’t use it at all.

Enable Built-in Administrator Account in Windows

First you’ll need to open a command prompt in administrator mode by right-clicking and
choosing “Run as administrator” (or use the Ctrl+Shift+Enter shortcut from the search
box).

Note that this works the same in all versions of Windows. Just search for cmd and then
right-click on the command prompt icon in the Start menu or Start screen.

If you are in Windows 8.x or 10 you can right-click on the Start button and choose to
open a command prompt that way.
Now type the following command:

net user administrator /active:yes

Enabling the Built-in Administrator Account
You can use any of the following methods to enable the built-in Administrator
account:

1. Use an answer file

2. Log on by using audit mode
3. Use the Local Users and Groups MMC (Server versions only)
Use an answer file

You can enable the built-in Administrator account during unattended installations by
setting the AutoLogon setting to Administrator in the Microsoft-Windows-Shell-Setup
component. This will enable the built-in Administrator account, even if a password is not
specified in the AdministratorPassword setting.

You can create an answer file by using Windows® System Image Manager (Windows
SIM).

The following sample answer file shows how to enable the Administrator account,
specify an Administrator password, and automatically log on to the system.

Note
Both the Microsoft-Windows-Shell-Setup\ Autologon section and the Microsoft-
Windows-Shell-Setup\ UserAccounts \ AdministratorPassword section are needed for
automatic logon in audit mode to work. The auditSystem configuration pass must
include both these settings.

The following XML output shows how to set the appropriate values:
<component name="Microsoft-Windows-Shell-Setup" processorArchitecture="x86"
publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" language="neutral" versionScope="nonSxS"
xmlns:wcm="http://schemas.microsoft.com/WMIConfig/2002/State"
xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
<AutoLogon>
<Password>
<Value>SecurePasswd123</Value>
<PlainText>true</PlainText>
</Password>
<Username>Administrator</Username>
<Enabled>true</Enabled>
<LogonCount>5</LogonCount>
</AutoLogon>
<UserAccounts>
 <AdministratorPassword>
<Value>SecurePasswd123</Value>
<PlainText>true</PlainText>
</AdministratorPassword>
</UserAccounts>
</component>

To prevent having to enter a password for the built-in Administrator account after you
complete the out-of-box experience, set Microsoft-Windows-Shell-
Setup\UserAccounts\AdministratorPassword in the oobeSystem configuration pass.

The following XML output shows how to set the appropriate values:
<UserAccounts>
<AdministratorPassword>
<Value>SecurePasswd123</Value>
<PlainText>true</PlainText>
</AdministratorPassword>
</UserAccounts>

For Windows Server® 2012, the built-in Administrator password must be changed at first logon. This
prevents the built-in Administrator account from having a blank password by default.
Log on by using audit mode

If the computer has not yet gone through Out-Of-Box Experience (OOBE), you can enter the
built-in Administrator account by re-entering audit mode. For more information, see Boot
Windows to Audit Mode or OOBE.
Use the Local Users and Groups MMC (server versions only)

Change the properties of the Administrator account by using the Local Users and Groups
Microsoft Management Console (MMC).

1. Open MMC, and then select Local Users and Groups.

2. Right-click the Administrator account, and then select Properties.

The Administrator Properties window appears.

3. On the General tab, clear the Account is Disabled check box.

4. Close MMC.

Administrator access is now enabled.

Disabling the Built-in Administrator Account
For new installations, after the end user creates a user account in OOBE, the built-in
Administrator account is disabled.
For upgrade installations, the built-in Administrator account remains enabled when there is no
other active local administrator on the computer, and when the computer is not joined to a
domain.

Use either of the following methods to disable the built-in administrator account:

1. Run the sysprep /generalize command

When you run the sysprep /generalize command, the next time that the computer starts,
the built-in Administrator account will be disabled.

2. Use the net user command

Run the following command to disable the Administrator account:

net user administrator /active:no

1. You can run this command after you configure the computer and before you deliver the
computer to a customer.

Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and system builders are required to disable
the built-in administrator account before delivering the computers to customers. To do
this, you can use either of the following methods.
Configuring the Built-in Administrator Password
Instructions

 When you run the sysprep /generalize command on Windows Server 2012 and
Windows Server 2008 R2, the Sysprep tool resets the built-in Administrator
account password. The Sysprep tool only clears the built-in Administrator
account’s password for server editions, not for client editions. The next time that
the computer starts, Setup displays a prompt for a password.

Note
In Windows Server 2012, Windows Server 2008 R2, and Windows Server 2008, the
default password policy requires a strong password for all user accounts. To
configure a weak password, you can use an answer file that includes the Microsoft-
Windows-Shell-Setup\ UserAccounts \ AdministratorPassword setting. You cannot
configure a weak password, either manually or by using a script such as the net
user command.
 How to enable and disable the Windows
Administrator account
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/tutorials/enable-disable-windows-administrator-
account/
The built-in Administrator account is disabled by default in Windows 8, Windows 7, and Windows Vista.
It is disabled to enhance security as this is a common account targeted by hacking scripts and hackers
when they try and access your computer without your permissions. In my opinion, you should leave the
Administrator account disabled, but as there have been many requests for this information, I have
decided to write this guide. This guide will provide three methods that will allow you to enable your
Administrator account in Windows 8, Windows 7, and Windows Vista. It is important to note that in
order to perform either of these methods you will need to be logged in with an account with Administrator
privileges. Also, if you are enabling the Administrator account for the first time you will also need to
assign it a strong password as it does not have a password by default.
Please note that methods 1 and 2 will only work in Windows Vista, 7, and 8 Professional, Business,
Ultimate, and Enterprise versions.

Method 1: Enable the Administrator account through the Computer Management

Console
Please note this method only works in Windows Vista & 7 Professional, Business, Ultimate, and
Enterprise, and Windows 8.
In Windows 8, from the Start Screen type Computer and when the icon appears right-click on it. You
should now see some options appear at the bottom of the screen. Left-click on the Manage option and
skip to step 2.

In Windows XP, Vista, and 7, right-click on the Computer icon on your desktop and select Manage as
shown in the image below. If you do not have this icon, you can click on the Start button and the right
click on the Computer menu option.

Manage Computer option

If prompted by a User Account Control screen, click on the Yes button.

The Computer Management screen will now open. Expand the System Tools folder, then the Local
Users and Groups folder, and finally single-click on the Users folder so it becomes highlighted. In the
right hand pane you will now see a list of the accounts on your computer, including the Administrator
account.

Right-click on the Administrator account and click on the Properties menu option as shown in the image
below.

Properties menu option

The Administrator Properties screen will now open as shown in the image below.
Administrator Properties screen

Uncheck the Account is disabled checkbox if you would like to enable the
Administrator account. If you wish to disable the account, then put a checkmark in this
box instead.

1. Press the OK button and then close the Computer Management screen.

2. If you have enabled the Administrator account, please assign it a password as it

does not have one by default. It is also suggested that you rename the account
using the instructions here.

Method 2: Enable the Administrator account through the Local Policy Editor

Please note this method only works in Windows Vista, 7, & 8 Professional, Business, Ultimate,
and Enterprise.

1. In Windows Vista or Windows 7 click on the Start button and type Local Security
Policy and press Enter on your keyboard. When the Local Security Policy opens, skip to
step 2.

In Windows 8, from the Start Screen type Run and then press Enter on your keyboard.
When the Run dialog box opens, type secpol.msc and then press Enter on your your
keyboard. Please continue to step 2.
2. If prompted by a User Account Control screen, click on the Yes button.
3. When the Local Security Policy screen opens, expand the Security Settings folder,
then the Local Policies folder, and then click on the Security Options folder so it is
highlighted. You will now be at a screen showing the local security options for Windows
as shown below.
 Local Security Policy screen

Scroll through the list and double-click on the policy named Accounts: Administrator
account status as shown in the image above.

4. The policy properties screen will now open as shown in the image below.

Accounts: Administrator account status Properties screen

Either select Enabled or Disabled depending whether or not you wish to enable or
 disable the built-in Administrator account. When done, click on the OK button to save
your changes.

5. You can now close the Local Policy Editor.

6. If you have enabled the Administrator account, please assign it a password as it
does not have one by default. It is also suggested that you rename the account
using the instructions here.

Method 3: Enable the Administrator account through an Elevated Command Prompt

Open an Elevated Command Prompt and enter the following commands in the prompt. After
you enter each command you need to press Enter on your keyboard.

To enable the Administrator account type the following command in the Elevated Command
Prompt and press Enteron your keyboard.

net user administrator /active:yes

An image of what this should look like is:

Enable the Administrator account

If you have enabled the Administrator account, please assign it a password as it does not
have one by default. It is also suggested that you rename the account using the
instructions here.
To disable the Administrator account type the following command in the Elevated Command
Prompt and press Enter on your keyboard.

net user administrator /active:no

An image of what this should look like is:

Disable the Administrator account

You can now type Exit and press Enter on your keyboard to exit the Elevated Command
Prompt.

Use the System File Checker

tool to repair missing or
corrupted system files
Applies to: Windows 8.1Windows 8.1 EnterpriseWindows 8.1 Pro More
System File Checker is a utility in Windows that allows users to scan for
corruptions in Windows system files and restore corrupted files. This article
describes how to run the System File Checker tool (SFC.exe) to scan your
system files and to repair missing or corrupted system files. If a Windows
Resource Protection (WRP) file is missing or is corrupted, Windows may not
behave as expected. For example, some Windows functions may not work,
or Windows may crash.

Run the System File Checker tool (SFC.exe)

To do this, follow these steps:

1. Open an elevated command prompt. To do this, do the following as

your appropriate:
Show all

Windows 8.1 or Windows 8

Windows 10, Windows 7, or Windows Vista

To do this, click Start, type Command Prompt or cmd in

the Search box, right-click Command Prompt, and then click Run as
administrator. If you are prompted for an administrator password or
for a confirmation, type the password, or click Allow.
 2. If you are running Windows 10, Windows 8.1 or Windows 8, first
run the inbox Deployment Image Servicing and Management
(DISM) tool prior to running the System File Checker. (If you are
running Windows 7 or Windows Vista, skip to Step 3.)

Type the following command, and then press Enter. It may

take several minutes for the command operation to be
completed.

DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth

 Important: When you run this command, DISM uses Windows
Update to provide the files that are required to fix corruptions.
However, if your Windows Update client is already broken, use
a running Windows installation as the repair source, or use a
Windows side-by-side folder from a network share or from a
removable media, such as the Windows DVD, as the source of
the files. To do this, run the following command instead:

DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

/Source:C:\RepairSource\Windows/LimitAccess
Note: Replace the C:\RepairSource\Windows placeholder
with the location of your repair source. For more information
about using the DISM tool to repair Windows, reference Repair
a Windows Image.

3. At the command prompt, type the following command, and then

press ENTER:

sfc /scannow
The sfc /scannow command will scan all protected system files, and
replace corrupted files with a cached copy that is located in a
compressed folder at %WinDir%\System32\dllcache.
The %WinDir% placeholder represents the Windows operating
system folder. For example, C:\Windows.

Note Do not close this Command Prompt window until the

verification is 100% complete. The scan results will be shown after
this process is finished.

4. After the process is finished, you may receive one of the

following messages:

 Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations.

This means that you do not have any missing or corrupted

system files.
  Windows Resource Protection could not perform the requested
operation.

To resolve this problem, perform the System File Checker

scan in safe mode, and make sure that the PendingDeletes
and PendingRenames folders exist
under %WinDir%\WinSxS\Temp.

 Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files and successfully

repaired them. Details are included in the
CBS.Log %WinDir%\Logs\CBS\CBS.log.

To view the detail information about the system file scan

and restoration, go to How to view details of the System
File Checker process.

 Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files but was unable

to fix some of them. Details are included in the
CBS.Log %WinDir%\Logs\CBS\CBS.log.

To repair the corrupted files manually, view details of the

System File Checker processto find the corrupted file, and
then manually replace the corrupted file with a known good
copy of the file.

More Information
How to view details of the System File Checker process

To view the details that included in the CBS.Log file, you can copy the
information to the Sfcdetails.txt file by using the Findstr command, and
then view the details in the Sfcdetails.txt. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Open an elevated command prompt as described in the previous step

1.
2. At the command prompt, type the following command, and then press
ENTER:
findstr
/c:"[SR]" %windir%\Logs\CBS\CBS.log >"%userprofile%\Desk
top\sfcdetails.txt"
Note The Sfcdetails.txt file contains details from every time that the
System File Checker tool has been run on the computer. The file
includes information about files that were not repaired by the System
File Checker tool. Verify the date and time entries to determine the
problem files that were found the last time that you ran the System
File Checker tool.

3. Open the Sfcdetails.txt file from your desktop.

4. The Sfcdetails.txt file uses the following format:
Date/Time SFC detail

The following sample log file contains an entry for a file that could not
be repaired:
2007-01-12 12:10:42, Info CSI
00000008 [SR] Cannot
repair member file [l:34{17}]"Accessibility.dll" of
Accessibility, Version =
6.0.6000.16386, pA = PROCESSOR_ARCHITECTURE_MSIL (8),
Culture neutral,
VersionScope neutral, PublicKeyToken = {l:8
b:b03f5f7f11d50a3a}, Type
 neutral, TypeName neutral, PublicKey neutral in the
store, file is missing

How to manually replace a corrupted system file with a known good copy of the file

After you determine which system file was corrupted and could not be
repaired through the detail information in the Sfcdetails.txt file, find where
the corrupted file located, and then manually replace the corrupted file with
a known good copy of the file. To do this, follow these steps:

Note You may be able to get a known good copy of the system file from
another computer that is running the same version of Windows with your
computer. You may perform a System File Checker process on that
computer to make sure the system file that you intend to copy is a good
copy.

1. Take administrative ownership of the corrupted system file. To do this,

at an elevated command prompt, copy and then paste (or type) the
following command, and then press ENTER:
takeown /f Path_And_File_Name

Note The Path_And_File_Name placeholder represents the path and

the file name of the corrupted file. For example, type takeown /f
C:\windows\system32\jscript.dll.
2. Grant administrators full access to the corrupted system file. To do this,
copy and paste (or type) the following command, and then press
ENTER:
icacls Path_And_File_Name /GRANT ADMINISTRATORS:F

Note The Path_And_File_Name placeholder represents the path and

the file name of the corrupted file. For example, type icacls
C:\windows\system32\jscript.dll /grant administrators:F.
3. Replace the corrupted system file with a known good copy of the file.
To do this, copy and paste (or type) the following command, and then
press ENTER:
Copy Source_File Destination

Note The Source_File placeholder represents the path and file name
of the known good copy of the file on your computer, and
the Destination placeholder represents the path and file name of the
corrupted file. For example, type copy E:\temp\jscript.dll
C:\windows\system32\jscript.dll.