Noob (of all noobs) terminology

tech-it-^ · 08-20-2006, 09:21 PM

I know this question is dumb. I know I will get many, and I mean many laughs out of this question but... anyway, I was wondering what exactly a batch file does, or how to creat a simple one? Please dont give me a definition online because I've been on google for an hour now. "A batch file is a series of commands that you might ordinarily issue at the system prompt in order to perform a computer operation. The most common uses are to start programs and to run utilities"... Well I get that definition but could i get a good noobish example. Or even a good example (details) on how to make one or run one. If you could give detailed examples that would be great. I've been to numerous sites so it really doesn't help unless its very very detailed. I'm starting from the ground up here (more like under the ground with this question) and I need some help. Thanks and sorry for the stupid question.

**Fox** · 08-20-2006, 09:31 PM

Basically it allows you to create a sort of 'recipe' of DOS commands that take place in sequence, and then be able to call up that recipe as if it were a program on your computer.

They can be made in several ways, but the easiest way I've found is to create a text file, type out the commands (one per line), and then save the file with the extension .bat.

For example, if I wanted to make a batch file that would rename every file in the folder it's executed in to have the extension .000, it would look something like this:

Code:

REN *.* *.000

if I wanted to do the same thing and not have anything show up on the screen while it's doing what it's doing, and then have it delete itself, it would look like this:

Code:

@echo off
REN *.* *.000
DEL *.bat

Be careful with batch files. They're not flagged by most Antivirus programs because they are used predominently as a tool, which is what they're meant for. But when you ask them to, they shoot to kill, and they don't warn you in advance unless you use a wildcard (*) for both the filename and extension. Suffice it to say, the files don't just go to the recycle bin- they go away, unless you have one of those fancy file recovery programs.

tech-it-^ · 08-21-2006, 04:00 AM

alright, well that makes it a little more clear for me. Thank you very much for responding. Though when you say "rename every file in the folder it's executed in to have the extension .000", how do you specify what folder? What is .000? Sorry, I know you put it in simple terms for me but it is still kind of foggy. Though for the most part it really helped me out. Thank you! Would you happen to be able to explain it a little more? Sorry, but I really appreciate it.

Volt-Schwibe · 08-21-2006, 06:29 AM

i can sorta clear up what he was meaning.

lets say, i have a huge folder full of txt files, and for some reason, i want them to all have .000 as the extension. (.000 is simply another extension, which could be associated later.)

let's say i wanted them to be .BAK, so i know they are backups...

i'd use the same batch file, but it would be

Code:

REN *.* *.BAK

the way you tell it which folder, in that case, is by putting the batch file inside the folder.

think of it this way. when you sit down at a dos command prompt, you type some commands to make things happen. you can stick those same files into a notepad file, and save them as .bat, and they are now a simple program.

i say program, but it's only barely a program.

if you wish to know what commands a batch file can process, i suggest reading about "dos commands" since a batch file is simply a series of dos commands turned into it's own script.

they have specific uses, but i have to admit, even in this day and age of windows xp, i use them at least once a week.

**Fox** · 08-21-2006, 12:32 PM

I actually used the sweeping extension rename to salvage a ton of pictures when my bro started freaking after downloading a variation of the loveletter virus. I just stuck it in the folder with all the pictures, ran it, and they were renamed and protected.

**jnob** · 08-21-2006, 03:04 PM

Another good way to gain some experience with dos commands is to open up a DOS prompt and type help. It will give you a list of DOS commands and a brief description of their function. From there if you want to find out more about the command you can just type it's name followed by /?. For example, if you wanted to know more about the attrib command you would just type attrib /? at the command prompt.

You can make batch files on the spot by typing edit batchname.bat, enter the commands here and save when exiting. So if you decided you want to set all the files in a folder to read-only so they can't be edited you can type:

c:\>edit makeRO.bat

then add the lines:

@ECHO OFF <if you don't want to see the files being converted>
attrib +R *.*

Then go to the file drop down menu (ALT+F) click exit (ALT+X) and click yes when it asks you if you want to save, now you have a batch file named makeRO that will make all the files in a folder read only.

tech-it-^ · 08-21-2006, 03:55 PM

thanks guys, I really appreciate it. It helps me out a lot. Sorry again for the dumb question.

tech-it-^ · 08-21-2006, 04:11 PM

alright i tried to test the rename and it didnt work out to good.
I typed this for the batch

first went to edit testit.bat

then in blue i put REN *.**.BAK
then: dir c:\documents and settings\batchtest

The batchtest is where i put some .txt documents and wanted to convert them BAK. am I suppose to put something in place of those * ? Did I put a space in or somthing or what? Sorry, it didnt work out for me...

**jnob** · 08-21-2006, 04:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tech-it-^

alright i tried to test the rename and it didnt work out to good.
I typed this for the batch

first went to edit testit.bat

then in blue i put REN *.**.BAK
then: dir c:\documents and settings\batchtest

The batchtest is where i put some .txt documents and wanted to convert them BAK. am I suppose to put something in place of those * ? Did I put a space in or somthing or what? Sorry, it didnt work out for me...

You need a space between the files you are changing and what you are changing them to: REN *.*<space>*.bak

tech-it-^ · 08-21-2006, 08:16 PM

ok, well I type in this exactly

C:\edit test.bat

REN *.* *.bak
dir c:\documents and settings\bob\testbatch

<exit and save>

c:\ test
c:\ REN *.* *.bak
a duplicate file name exists, or the file cannot be found
a duplicate file name exists, or the file cannot be found
a duplicate file name exists, or the file cannot be found

C:\ dir c:\documents and settings\bob\testbatch
the system cannot find the file specified

ok...now i have those txt files in testbatch folder in that directory. Whats up? I don't get it but it makes the files in my local C:\ as .bak extensions... and it isnt the cd\ directory either. I tried both. doesnt work. What am i typing wrong. The files in the "testbatch" folder are simple .txt files from notepad and I just want to rename them to bak. What am I doing wrong and what is making the rename go to the C:\ directory? Sorry to be so frusterating, but I am going crazy! Sorry, once again.

Volt-Schwibe · 08-22-2006, 07:15 AM

ok, i am not sure what happened along the way, but here is what i did...

i created a new folder, named testtest

i put 20 txt files in it.

i put this one single line

Code:

REN *.* *.BAK

into a new text document, and saved it as test.bat inside that same folder

i then crossed my fingers, and double clicked it.

instantly, all 20 txt files in that folder only changed from .txt to .bak.

even the batch file itself changed.

so, i have no idea what isn't right, perhaps you ran it from c: somehow, instead of inside that folder as was mentioned.

Volt-Schwibe · 08-22-2006, 07:22 AM

ok, a picture is worth 1000 words, and 2 pictures is worth 2000....

here is two pics, one is before i clicked it, and the other is after.

seriously, there's not a simple explaination for what happened to you, that is, if you ran the batch file from inside the test folder.

to quote myself from earlier,

Quote:

Originally Posted by Volt-Schwibe

the way you tell it which folder, in that case, is by putting the batch file inside the folder.

and to quote fox,

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fox

if I wanted to make a batch file that would rename every file in the folder it's executed in to have the extension .000, it would look something like this:

as far as the actual problem at hand, which files exactly were renamed? you are going to need to rename them back to what they were, or things might not go too well when you reboot.

also, don't feel bad about it, we've ALL done things exactly like this, it's called learning.

**jnob** · 08-22-2006, 11:31 AM

You must execute the batch file within the folder you wish to change the files. So the test.bat file would have to be in the test folder to change those files. If you want to execute the file from anywhere you have two options one would be to specify the directory like this:

ren "c:\documents and settings\bob\testbatch\*.*" *.bak

or to make the batch file navigate to the directory:

cd\
cd "documents and settings\bob\testbatch"
ren *.* *.bak

Now if you only want to change certain files like .txt and not the .bat file you would have to specify ren *.txt *.bak. * just means any amount of characters in any order.

tech-it-^ · 08-22-2006, 04:32 PM

man, ya know what? You guys rock. I got it now i think. Pretty nice, though I don't know when I will need to do this. Thanks again for being so patient with me. I really appreciate it.

**jnob** · 08-22-2006, 05:24 PM

No problem! Always glad to help. Hope you come back often.

tech-it-^ · 08-24-2006, 06:25 PM

Alright, so I'm at work and this person calls me. They say that they have downloaded this program for their work and when they download it - it is a zip. So they unzip it and all it is-is a batch file. Now they run it and the DOS prompt comes up. After it's done it says hit any key to continue. After hitting a key it exits. Now... they couldn't find the program. I felt dumb because I'm suppose to know where it is. Though it's not in there all programs or in the unziped folder. Now is there some kind of DOS command that needs to be implemented in order to set the batch file to the correct directory to install? If so, how and what commands would I execute to do this? Sorry about this, and thanks.

**Fox** · 08-24-2006, 06:34 PM

Does this person still have the batch file? If so, you could easily find out what it did by opening it up in notepad and looking through the commands that it had the computer execute.

**koala** · 08-24-2006, 06:39 PM

It's possible that the batch file deleted itself after running. Do you know what it was for and where he got it from?

tech-it-^ · 08-24-2006, 07:55 PM

This program is a program specificly for work. For Ford. The person told me that they figured it out with someones help. They had to run the batch file and send the files to a different directory on a network? They used DOS cmds to set it up. I really need to find out more. I don't really get it, I thought maybe you guys would. I thought that after running the batch all the commands would already be executed and the program would then be ready, right? I don't know, I'm still very new to this stuff. thanks for the responses.

**toxict3arz** · 08-25-2006, 12:07 AM

ive been on other forums and if u post something like that on other forums they will laugh

but not here ^^

thats one of the reasons ive stayed in this forum for a very long time

(yes! a very long time compared to other forums ive registered to)

08-20-2006, 09:21 PM	#1 (permalink)
tech-it-^ Registered User Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 320 OS: XP Pro, Vista Business, Suse Linux, Win98 SE	Noob (of all noobs) terminology I know this question is dumb. I know I will get many, and I mean many laughs out of this question but... anyway, I was wondering what exactly a batch file does, or how to creat a simple one? Please dont give me a definition online because I've been on google for an hour now. "A batch file is a series of commands that you might ordinarily issue at the system prompt in order to perform a computer operation. The most common uses are to start programs and to run utilities"... Well I get that definition but could i get a good noobish example. Or even a good example (details) on how to make one or run one. If you could give detailed examples that would be great. I've been to numerous sites so it really doesn't help unless its very very detailed. I'm starting from the ground up here (more like under the ground with this question) and I need some help. Thanks and sorry for the stupid question.

08-20-2006, 09:31 PM	#2 (permalink)
Fox TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: NJ Posts: 7,752 OS: XP Pro, CentOS My System	Basically it allows you to create a sort of 'recipe' of DOS commands that take place in sequence, and then be able to call up that recipe as if it were a program on your computer. They can be made in several ways, but the easiest way I've found is to create a text file, type out the commands (one per line), and then save the file with the extension .bat. For example, if I wanted to make a batch file that would rename every file in the folder it's executed in to have the extension .000, it would look something like this: Code: REN . .000 if I wanted to do the same thing and not have anything show up on the screen while it's doing what it's doing, and then have it delete itself, it would look like this: Code: @echo off REN .* .000 DEL .bat Be careful with batch files. They're not flagged by most Antivirus programs because they are used predominently as a tool, which is what they're meant for. But when you ask them to, they shoot to kill, and they don't warn you in advance unless you use a wildcard () for both the filename and extension. Suffice it to say, the files don't just go to the recycle bin- they go away, unless you have one of those fancy file recovery programs. __________________ Antec Neo Power 500W, ABIT IP35-E, Intel E2180@2.66Ghz, Corsair XMS2 2x1GB DDR2-800, PNY 8800GT, 320GB Seagate lazy college student alert *- If I've inadvertently ignored a thread, please Let me know about it Have I helped you solve your problem? Donate to Techsupportforums Klart Skepp!

08-21-2006, 06:29 AM	#4 (permalink)
Volt-Schwibe Asst. Manager, Automotive Forums; HJT Trainee Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Behind you, watching you as you type. Posts: 7,372 OS: Click "My System" to view details My System	i can sorta clear up what he was meaning. lets say, i have a huge folder full of txt files, and for some reason, i want them to all have .000 as the extension. (.000 is simply another extension, which could be associated later.) let's say i wanted them to be .BAK, so i know they are backups... i'd use the same batch file, but it would be Code: REN . .BAK the way you tell it which folder, in that case, is by putting the batch file inside the folder. think of it this way. when you sit down at a dos command prompt, you type some commands to make things happen. you can stick those same files into a notepad file, and save them as .bat, and they are now a simple program. i say program, but it's only barely a program. if you wish to know what commands a batch file can process, i suggest reading about "dos commands" since a batch file is simply a series of dos commands turned into it's own script. they have specific uses, but i have to admit, even in this day and age of windows xp, i use them at least once a week. __________________ <signature> TSF is funded by our Admin's pocket, care to help? Power Tip:* Subscribe to your thread (Thread Tools) to receive an instant email notification when you get a reply. New Members: Creating a single new thread in the correct section is the best way to assure your thread will receive a reply. </signature>

08-21-2006, 12:32 PM	#5 (permalink)
Fox TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: NJ Posts: 7,752 OS: XP Pro, CentOS My System	I actually used the sweeping extension rename to salvage a ton of pictures when my bro started freaking after downloading a variation of the loveletter virus. I just stuck it in the folder with all the pictures, ran it, and they were renamed and protected. __________________ Antec Neo Power 500W, ABIT IP35-E, Intel E2180@2.66Ghz, Corsair XMS2 2x1GB DDR2-800, PNY 8800GT, 320GB Seagate * lazy college student alert *- If I've inadvertently ignored a thread, please Let me know about it Have I helped you solve your problem? Donate to Techsupportforums Klart Skepp!

08-21-2006, 03:04 PM	#6 (permalink)
jnob TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: CA Valley Posts: 692 OS: XP Pro, SP2 My System	Another good way to gain some experience with dos commands is to open up a DOS prompt and type help. It will give you a list of DOS commands and a brief description of their function. From there if you want to find out more about the command you can just type it's name followed by /?. For example, if you wanted to know more about the attrib command you would just type attrib /? at the command prompt. You can make batch files on the spot by typing edit batchname.bat, enter the commands here and save when exiting. So if you decided you want to set all the files in a folder to read-only so they can't be edited you can type: c:\>edit makeRO.bat then add the lines: @ECHO OFF <if you don't want to see the files being converted> attrib +R . Then go to the file drop down menu (ALT+F) click exit (ALT+X) and click yes when it asks you if you want to save, now you have a batch file named makeRO that will make all the files in a folder read only. __________________ Everest Memtest86

08-21-2006, 04:00 AM	#3 (permalink)
tech-it-^ Registered User Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 320 OS: XP Pro, Vista Business, Suse Linux, Win98 SE	alright, well that makes it a little more clear for me. Thank you very much for responding. Though when you say "rename every file in the folder it's executed in to have the extension .000", how do you specify what folder? What is .000? Sorry, I know you put it in simple terms for me but it is still kind of foggy. Though for the most part it really helped me out. Thank you! Would you happen to be able to explain it a little more? Sorry, but I really appreciate it.

08-21-2006, 03:55 PM	#7 (permalink)
tech-it-^ Registered User Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 320 OS: XP Pro, Vista Business, Suse Linux, Win98 SE	thanks guys, I really appreciate it. It helps me out a lot. Sorry again for the dumb question.

08-21-2006, 04:11 PM	#8 (permalink)
tech-it-^ Registered User Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 320 OS: XP Pro, Vista Business, Suse Linux, Win98 SE	alright i tried to test the rename and it didnt work out to good. I typed this for the batch first went to edit testit.bat then in blue i put REN ..BAK then: dir c:\documents and settings\batchtest The batchtest is where i put some .txt documents and wanted to convert them BAK. am I suppose to put something in place of those ? Did I put a space in or somthing or what? Sorry, it didnt work out for me...

08-21-2006, 08:16 PM	#10 (permalink)
tech-it-^ Registered User Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 320 OS: XP Pro, Vista Business, Suse Linux, Win98 SE	ok, well I type in this exactly C:\edit test.bat REN . .bak dir c:\documents and settings\bob\testbatch <exit and save> c:\ test c:\ REN .* .bak a duplicate file name exists, or the file cannot be found a duplicate file name exists, or the file cannot be found a duplicate file name exists, or the file cannot be found C:\ dir c:\documents and settings\bob\testbatch the system cannot find the file specified ok...now i have those txt files in testbatch folder in that directory. Whats up? I don't get it but it makes the files in my local C:\ as .bak extensions... and it isnt the cd\ directory either. I tried both. doesnt work. What am i typing wrong. The files in the "testbatch" folder are simple .txt files from notepad and I just want to rename them to bak. What am I doing wrong and what is making the rename go to the C:\ directory? Sorry to be so frusterating, but I am going crazy! Sorry, once again. Last edited by tech-it-^; 08-21-2006 at 08:20 PM.*

08-22-2006, 07:15 AM	#11 (permalink)
Volt-Schwibe Asst. Manager, Automotive Forums; HJT Trainee Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Behind you, watching you as you type. Posts: 7,372 OS: Click "My System" to view details My System	ok, i am not sure what happened along the way, but here is what i did... i created a new folder, named testtest i put 20 txt files in it. i put this one single line Code: REN . .BAK into a new text document, and saved it as test.bat inside that same folder* i then crossed my fingers, and double clicked it. instantly, all 20 txt files in that folder only changed from .txt to .bak. even the batch file itself changed. so, i have no idea what isn't right, perhaps you ran it from c: somehow, instead of inside that folder as was mentioned. __________________ <signature> TSF is funded by our Admin's pocket, care to help? Power Tip: Subscribe to your thread (Thread Tools) to receive an instant email notification when you get a reply. New Members: Creating a single new thread in the correct section is the best way to assure your thread will receive a reply. </signature> Last edited by Volt-Schwibe; 08-22-2006 at 07:17 AM.

08-22-2006, 11:31 AM	#13 (permalink)
jnob TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: CA Valley Posts: 692 OS: XP Pro, SP2 My System	You must execute the batch file within the folder you wish to change the files. So the test.bat file would have to be in the test folder to change those files. If you want to execute the file from anywhere you have two options one would be to specify the directory like this: *ren "c:\documents and settings\bob\testbatch\." .bak** or to make the batch file navigate to the directory: cd\ cd "documents and settings\bob\testbatch" ren . .bak Now if you only want to change certain files like .txt and not the .bat file you would have to specify ren .txt .bak. just means any amount of characters in any order. __________________ Everest Memtest86

08-22-2006, 04:32 PM	#14 (permalink)
tech-it-^ Registered User Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 320 OS: XP Pro, Vista Business, Suse Linux, Win98 SE	man, ya know what? You guys rock. I got it now i think. Pretty nice, though I don't know when I will need to do this. Thanks again for being so patient with me. I really appreciate it.

08-22-2006, 05:24 PM	#15 (permalink)
jnob TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: CA Valley Posts: 692 OS: XP Pro, SP2 My System	No problem! Always glad to help. Hope you come back often. __________________ Everest Memtest86

08-24-2006, 06:25 PM	#16 (permalink)
tech-it-^ Registered User Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 320 OS: XP Pro, Vista Business, Suse Linux, Win98 SE	Alright, so I'm at work and this person calls me. They say that they have downloaded this program for their work and when they download it - it is a zip. So they unzip it and all it is-is a batch file. Now they run it and the DOS prompt comes up. After it's done it says hit any key to continue. After hitting a key it exits. Now... they couldn't find the program. I felt dumb because I'm suppose to know where it is. Though it's not in there all programs or in the unziped folder. Now is there some kind of DOS command that needs to be implemented in order to set the batch file to the correct directory to install? If so, how and what commands would I execute to do this? Sorry about this, and thanks.

08-24-2006, 06:34 PM	#17 (permalink)
Fox TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: NJ Posts: 7,752 OS: XP Pro, CentOS My System	Does this person still have the batch file? If so, you could easily find out what it did by opening it up in notepad and looking through the commands that it had the computer execute. __________________ Antec Neo Power 500W, ABIT IP35-E, Intel E2180@2.66Ghz, Corsair XMS2 2x1GB DDR2-800, PNY 8800GT, 320GB Seagate * lazy college student alert *- If I've inadvertently ignored a thread, please Let me know about it Have I helped you solve your problem? Donate to Techsupportforums Klart Skepp!

08-24-2006, 06:39 PM	#18 (permalink)
koala Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: UK Posts: 12,403 OS: XP/7/Ubuntu My System	It's possible that the batch file deleted itself after running. Do you know what it was for and where he got it from? __________________ New members: Subscribe to your thread (Thread Tools) to receive an instant email notification when you get a reply. TSF Folding@Home Team 85015 - details here

08-24-2006, 07:55 PM	#19 (permalink)
tech-it-^ Registered User Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 320 OS: XP Pro, Vista Business, Suse Linux, Win98 SE	This program is a program specificly for work. For Ford. The person told me that they figured it out with someones help. They had to run the batch file and send the files to a different directory on a network? They used DOS cmds to set it up. I really need to find out more. I don't really get it, I thought maybe you guys would. I thought that after running the batch all the commands would already be executed and the program would then be ready, right? I don't know, I'm still very new to this stuff. thanks for the responses.

08-25-2006, 12:07 AM	#20 (permalink)
toxict3arz TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 1,283 OS: windows XP Pro	ive been on other forums and if u post something like that on other forums they will laugh but not here ^^ thats one of the reasons ive stayed in this forum for a very long time (yes! a very long time compared to other forums ive registered to)