(10 Quick Access) How to Open Command Prompt in Windows 10

Speaking of Command Prompt in Microsoft Windows, we can hardly explain what it is and how to use it in a day! So here in the article, we try to deliver an elaborate guide for you to firstly get acquainted with Windows Command Prompt and then how to open the gate to Command Prompt in Windows 10.

What Is Windows Command Prompt?

As you can see in the picture, this is a Command Prompt window when you initially launched it. Command Prompt is also interpreted as Windows Command Processor, command shell, or cmd prompt, and it might be another term you can see everywhere - cmd.exe.

Technically speaking, Command Prompt is the input field in a text-based interface screen in most Windows operating systems (Windows 11, 10, 8.1, 8, 7, Vista and XP). It consists of a brief text string followed by a blinking cursor, which is where the user types commands. There are a plethora of different commands for users to automate tasks via scripts and batch files. Most of the commands are able to troubleshoot certain kinds of Windows issues, or simply to perform advanced administrative functions like managing a hard drive and partition, controlling Network, modifying files, etc.

Can you name some basic cmd commands under Windows? I'll list some here: dir, attrib, chkntfs, chkdsk, diskpart, format, copy/xcopy, ipconfig etc...

***Do you know that Qiling Partition Master can replace the role of a Windows Command Prompt when executing certain commands there? When you try to manage a disk partition by resizing, formatting, deleting, wiping data, copying one drive to the other, or converting FAT32 to NTFS, or changing a disk from basic to dynamic...It'll get you done automatically without requiring a steep learning curve for command line scripts at all!

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10 Quick Ways to Open Command Prompt (Shortcuts Included)

How do you get a Command Prompt in Windows 10? Actually, the cmd.exe is the default command-line interpreter in Windows 10. All you need to do is find the proper way to get there. Windows 10 has opened you nearly 10 ways to access Command Prompt. Let's take a quick look.

1. Open Command Prompt with Windows + X Shortcuts

Press Windows + X shortcut keys to open the Power Users menu, double-click on Command Prompt or Command Prompt (Admin) so you can open the Command Prompt.

2. Open Command Prompt from Start

Click the Start menu, scroll down to the Windows System shortcuts folder. Expand the folder and find the Command Prompt option. Click on it to open the Command Prompt.

3. Open Command Prompt Through Search

In Windows 10 Search box, type cmd [option 1] or command prompt [option 2]. The Command Prompt will appear in the Best match area. Double-click on it to open the Command Prompt, or right-click on it to choose Run as administrator.

4. Open Command Prompt with Windows + R Shortcuts

Press Windows + R keys to bring up the Run box, and type cmd in the box and click OK or hit Enter.

5. Open Command Prompt in Windows 10 File Explorer Address Bar

Press Windows + E keys to bring up the Windows File Explorer. Type cmd in the address bar and hit Enter.

6. Open Comand Prompt from Windows Explorer File Menu

Click the File menu in Explorer this time, choose Open command prompt. Proceed with either Open command prompt or Open command prompt as administrator.

7. Open Command Prompt from the Windows System32 Folder

Press Windows + E keys to bring up the File Explorer window. Click System C: drive (the drive partition where Windows is installed) and then navigate to the Windows folder > System 32 and then scroll down to locate the cmd.exe. Double-click or right-click on cmd.exe to run as administrator and open the Command Prompt.

8. Ask Cortana to Open Command Prompt (Requires a microphone)

Say "hi, cortana" to enable Cortana to answer your question. When receiving a response, say "Open Command Prompt".

9. Open Command Prompt from the Task Manager

Press Ctrl + Alt + Del (Delete) to open the Task Manager. Click the File tab and select Create a new task. This will evoke a Run box, type cmd and hit Enter.

10. Open Command Prompt at Boot

In Windows 10, click Start > Settings > Update & Security > Recovery > Restart now.
While restarting, click Troubleshoot on the Choose an option screen.
Click Advanced options and then Command Prompt.

How to Use a Command Prompt Alternative

We've presented you 10 ways to reach Windows Command Prompt and they are all simple to follow, though some ways are not so direct. After opening Command Prompt, you can start to do your own business by entering the proper command lines there.

If you're computer professionals or experienced users with solid computer background, you can do a lot of things to make full use of your Windows system, computer, hard drive, removable flash drives, or network drives. Meanwhile, to resolve many malfunctioning issues happened to those devices and operating system. What if you're not this group of people and barely know any commands? Can you still manage your hard drive like in the Command Prompt?

Qiling Partition Manager comes in handy for you. For many tasks that Windows Command Prompt can deal with, so does this partition magic software. By downloading and installing this program on your Windows PC, you can explorer the features on your own. It's worth having this user-friendly yet comprehensive disk & partition management software as a companion.

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What can you do with Qiling Partition Master:

Resize/move partition
Format a drive to FAT32, EXT2/3/4, NTFS...
Convert FAT32 to NTFS without losing data
Conver basic to dynamic or vice versa
Clone/copy a drive to another
Migrate OS to HDD/SSD without reinstalling Windows
Merge multiple hard drive partitions into one
And browse more in the video guide