Run... Command

Basic Run Command Information

It is accessible in one of two ways: through the start menu (Figure 1) and through the shortcut key Win+R. The dialog itself looks very unassuming, and quite user unfriendly if you ask me (Figure 2). Its main purpose, as you can see from the dialog information, is to open a program, folder, document, or Internet resource which Windows will then open.

Figure 1 - Run on the Start Menu Figure 2 - The Run Dialog

Common Tasks with Run

Below are a list of commands you can type into the Run dialog:

Run Calculator	calc
Run Command Prompt	cmd
Run Firefox (if installed)	firefox
Run Internet Explorer	iexplore
Run Microsoft Word (if installed)	winword
Run Microsoft Excel (if installed)	excel
Run Microsoft Outlook (if installed)	outlook
Run Notepad	notepad
Run Wordpad	wordpad
Open Control Panel	control panel
Open Program Files folder	%programfiles%
Shutdown Windows	shutdown
Restart Windows	shutdown -r
Log Off Windows	logoff
Registry Editor	regedit
Task Manager	taskmgr
Windows Update Launches	wupdmgr

Creating Your Own Run Commands

If you are like me, you will use a few programs very frequently. One way to make them start faster is to give them their own Run command:

1. Win+R to open the Run dialog
2. Enter %windir% to open the Windows directory
3. Alt+F W S to open the File menu, choose the New menu item, then the Shortcut menu item
4. Go through the wizard to create a shortcut to the desired program
5. The name you give the shortcut is what you type in the Run dialog to start the program

Infrequently Used Run Commands

Below are a list of commands you can type into the Run dialog, split into several categories: programs, control panels, computer administration tools, and special folders.

Programs

Character Map	charmap
Check Disk Utility	chkdsk
Clipboard Viewer	clipbrd
Free Cell	freecell
Hearts Card	mshearts
Microsoft Chat	winchat
Minesweeper	winmine
On Screen Keyboard	osk
Remote Desktop	mstsc
Spider Solitare	spider
Telnet Client	telnet
Windows Magnifier	magnify

Control Panels

Accessibility Controls	access.cpl
Add Hardware Wizard	hdwwiz.cpl
Add/Remove Programs	appwiz.cpl
Administrative Tools	control admintools
Automatic Updates	wuaucpl.cpl
Date and Time	timedate.cpl
Display Properties	desk.cpl
Folders Properties	control folders
Fonts	control fonts
Fonts Folder	fonts
Game Controllers	joy.cpl
Internet Properties	inetcpl.cpl
Keyboard Properties	control keyboard
Mouse Properties	control mouse
Network Connections	control netconnections
Network Setup Wizard	netsetup.cpl
ODBC Data Source Administrator	odbccp32.cpl
Password Properties	password.cpl
Phone and Modem Options	telephon.cpl
Power Configuration	powercfg.cpl
Printers and Faxes	control printers
Printers Folder	printers
Regional Settings	intl.cpl
Scanners and Cameras	sticpl.cpl
Security Center	wscui.cpl
Sounds and Audio	mmsys.cpl
User Account Management	nusrmgr.cpl
Windows Firewall	firewall.cpl

Computer Administration Tools

Computer Management	compmgmt.msc
Device Manager	devmgmt.msc
Disk Cleanup Utility	cleanmgr
Disk Defragment	dfrg.msc
Disk Management	diskmgmt.msc
Disk Partition Manager	diskpart
Dr. Watson System Troubleshooting	drwtsn32
Driver Verifier Utility	verifier
Event Viewer	eventvwr.msc
Group Policy Editor (XP Prof)	gpedit.msc
Local Security Settings	secpol.msc
Local Users and Groups	lusrmgr.msc
Performance Monitor	perfmon
Resultant Set of Policy	rsop.msc
Scheduled Tasks	control schedtasks
Services	services.msc
Shared Folders	fsmgmt.msc
System Configuration Editor	sysedit
System Configuration Utility	msconfig
Utility Manager	utilman
Windows System Security Tool	syskey

Computer Administration Tools

Application Data Folder	%appdata%
Home Directory Drive	%homedrive%
Home Directory	%homepath%
Shared Home Directory	%homeshare%
Temporary Folder	%temp%
Windows Root Drive	%systemdrive%
Windows Root Directory	%windir%

For an even more exhaustive list, check out 156 Useful Run Commands.

Using Run as a Command Prompt

One of the strengths of the Run command is its ability to do almost everything the command line can do. You should note, however, that if you're running a program that outputs something and exits, that the output will only show up for a few seconds and then disappear.

Take the ipconfig command for example. If you were to type that into Run, it would open a command prompt, run the ipconfig command, and then close because the command finished running! To fix this, type cmd into the Run dialog, and then type ipconfig into the command prompt.