Windows Command Line – Change Directory

The windows command line or text interface is a kind of user interface that can be controlled by passing commands in the form of prompts instead of using a mouse. Command-line is different from GUI OS, i.e., Graphical User Interface Operating System. It only needs a keyboard to control and navigate by passing the commands instead of a mouse.

For example, to open the windows folder in the windows command line, we use “C:\Windows”.

However, using the command line requires one to remember lots of commands. Still, it is beneficial which should not be ignored. Command-line allows a user to perform all the tasks that they can perform on a GUI OS. And sometimes, there are many tasks that we can accomplish even quicker than GUI OS, and they are straightforward to automate as well.

For example, if a person is asked to rename 50 files in a folder at a time. So, setting an environment variable with GUI can be very time-consuming but with the help of the windows command line, this can be done in seconds by passing a single command using a batch file or other scripts.

How to Change Directory in Windows using Command Line

The windows command line has many things to do with that. If you wonder how to change the Directory using the windows command line, it has a command – cd, which changes the Directory.

What is CD Command?

The cd command is change Directory. It is a professionally used command for changing the directories in the windows command line. This command can easily change the current working directory and open a different Directory or folder.

How to change the Directory using CD Command in Windows Command Line?

For changing the Directory in windows, the user first has to get into the command prompt.

For that, you can press Windows + R or directly open Run and then type cmd to open the command prompt.
After opening the command prompt, the user can type CD command lines to change different folders or directories.
If a user wants to open a particular directory, the syntax is cd + full directory path. For instance – cd D:\Images.
And if a user wants to open a specific folder, then for that, the syntax is cd + full folder path. For instance – cd D:\Images\January.
If a user wants to move from the Directory currently underuse, it can be done by simply typing . and to check the Directory or folder under help, the user can type dir command to get the desired result.
If a user wants to go to the root level of any directory, it can be done using the command cd\. And if the user wants to change the current drive, then first, he has to go to the root level by using cd\ and then by pressing the drive letter along with a colon. For example – F:.
If a user wants to change the Directory and drive simultaneously, he can use CD and /D switch simultaneously. For example – cd/D F:\War Craft 2021.

So, these steps can be used to change a directory or folder in windows using the Command-Line.

Other useful articles: