What are the slashes with letters for – as seen in set /p or for /f etc?
2 Answers
They are "command line switches", and you use them to give a command more information about what you want it to do.
For example, the dir command lists the files in the working directory, one file per line. If you say dir /w then it lists them in "wide" format, with several files per line. /w is a "command line switch".
To find out information about a particular switch, you need to read the documentation for the command it relates to. For dir, you can type dir /? - the /? switch tells the command to give you help about how it works, including the switches that it accepts.
The two commands you mention, set and for, also accept the /? switch.
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nearly every command has a "help switch", normally
/?. Try for exampleset /?orfor /?– StephanMay 3, 2013 at 10:32
The slashes are parameters
If you want to know what parameter for, add "/?" in your command
For example :
copy /? --> this will show you all about copy command
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Yeah, but what i wanted to know was what the letters after the slashes mean. May 3, 2013 at 19:42
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@Swillfreat: As the other answer states, the meaning of the letters is specific to each program/command. Use program_name /? or /h or -? or -h or --help etc.– KaranMay 4, 2013 at 1:14
Start /max CMD.EXE. There's also a/minoption toStart, so /m` would be quite ambiguous.