How do I delete all files within subdirectories matching a given wildcard in Windows?

Question

I would like to delete all files on a Windows server matching this wildcard:

E:\Cache\*\*\*_ROOT\a*_SYMBOL\weekly*

In linux, I could just put an rm -rf in front of it and it would work. If I try something similar in Windows, it just gives me:

The filename, directory name, or volume label syntax is incorrect.

Any ideas about what I can do?

Answer 1

Use Power Shell, which comes built-in in Win7

for example, rm -rf would translate to:

Remove-Item E:\Cache\*\*\*_ROOT\a*_SYMBOL\weekly* -force

Answer 2

Share the folder. Connect to the share with linux. Use ls to generate a list of files. Open up your favorite text editor and edit the list. Add del to the front of each line. Replace all / with \ and change the path from /cache to E:\ . Add quotes around each path to protect against the ^ in the filename and change all % into %%. Copy the contents into a .bat file and execute.

Answer 3

Cygwin is very useful for things like this, if you don't have a linux machine to share to. After you install it, you'll be able to execute the linux command directly on your windows folders.