Cd

  • Article

 

Applies To: Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2012, Windows 8

Displays the name of or changes the current directory. If used with only a drive letter (for example, cd C:), cd displays the names of the current directory in the specified drive. If used without parameters, cd displays the current drive and directory.

Note

This command is the same as the chdir command.

For examples of how to use this command, see Examples.

Syntax

cd [/d] [<Drive>:][<Path>]
cd [..]
chdir [/d] [<Drive>:][<Path>]
chdir [..]

Parameters

Parameter

Description

/d

Changes the current drive as well as the current directory for a drive.

<Drive>:

Specifies the drive to display or change (if different from the current drive).

<Path>

Specifies the path to the directory that you want to display or change.

[..]

Specifies that you want to change to the parent folder.

/?

Displays help at the command prompt.

Remarks

If command extensions are enabled, the following conditions apply to the cd command:** **

  • The current directory string is converted to use the same case as the names on the disk. For example, cd C:\TEMP would set the current directory to C:\Temp if that is the case on the disk.

  • Spaces are not treated as delimiters, so Path can contain spaces without enclosing quotation marks. For example:

    cd username\programs\start menu

    is the same as:

    cd "username\programs\start menu"

    The quotation marks are required, however, if extensions are disabled.

To disable command extensions, type:

cmd /e:off

Examples

The root directory is the top of the directory hierarchy for a drive. To return to the root directory, type:

cd\

To change the default directory on a drive that is different from the one you are on, type:

cd [<Drive>:\[<Directory>]]

To verify the change to the directory, type:

cd [<Drive>:]

Additional references

Command-Line Syntax Key