Technology Knowledge

Overview

The Command Prompt in Windows is the command-line interface program that is used to execute some low-level software or issue commands directly to your computer. The interface is very similar to the old Disk Operating System (DOS) that PCs used before the advent of the Windows operating system, and uses DOS syntax.                                                                                                                                                                                       Some commands that change the basic functionality or licensing level of Windows require additional access privileges to execute. To run these commands, you will need to use an Elevated Command Prompt, which is the regular Command Prompt with Administrator-level access rights. You will need to know the username and Windows password of an account with full Administrator access rights before you can use the Elevated Command Prompt.

Windows 7

1. Click in the Start orb in the taskbar.
2. In the Search box, type cmd.exe but do NOT press Enter.
3. In the search results window, under Programs, right-click on the program cmd.exe.
4. In the pop-up menu, select Run As Administrator.
5. If a User Access Control window appears, log in with a Windows user account that has full Administrator access rights.
6. An Elevated Command Prompt window should now open.

Windows 8 & 8.1

If you are using a computer with a keyboard and mouse:

1. On the Windows 8 Start screen, just start typing the word command which will automatically open Search.
2. In the top left of the screen, under Apps, you should see a Command Prompt icon.
3. Right-click the Command Prompt icon.
4. This should open a menu at the bottom of the screen.
5. From the menu at the bottom of the screen, click Run As Administrator.
6. If a User Account Control window opens, log in with a Windows account with full Administrator access rights.
7. An Administrator: Command Prompt window should now be open.

If you are using a computer with only a touchscreen:

1. On the Windows 8 Start screen, swipe up to bring up the Apps menu.
2. Find the Windows System heading in your list of apps. You may need to swipe to the right to find it.
3. Find the Command Prompt icon in that list.
4. Tap and hold the Command Prompt icon.
5. This should open a menu at the bottom of the screen. 
6. From the menu at the bottom of the screen, tap Run As Administrator.
7. If a User Account Control window opens, log in with a Windows account with full Administrator access rights.
8. An Administrator: Command Prompt window should now be open.