{"id":425,"date":"2008-08-05T09:48:37","date_gmt":"2008-08-05T04:18:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/198.58.113.91\/blog\/?p=425"},"modified":"2019-04-22T17:22:51","modified_gmt":"2019-04-22T17:22:51","slug":"run-bat-files-invisibly-without-displaying-command-prompt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/run-bat-files-invisibly-without-displaying-command-prompt\/","title":{"rendered":"How to run .BAT files invisibly, without displaying the Command Prompt window"},"content":{"rendered":"

Batch files (.BAT) and Windows NT Command Script (.CMD) files run in console window when double-clicked. This means that the Command Prompt window will be visible until the .BAT or .CMD file execution is complete.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

To make .BAT or .CMD file execution less intrusive, you can configure it to run minimized. Or if the .BAT or .CMD file does not require user input during run time, you can launch it in invisible mode using a Script.<\/p>\n

The built-in Task Scheduler in Windows is capable of launching programs in hidden mode. If you don’t want to proceed via the Task Scheduler route, check out the options discussed in this article.<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n
    \n
  1. Run a Batch or CMD file in minimized window mode<\/a><\/li>\n
  2. Run a Batch or CMD file hidden (invisible mode) via Windows Script<\/a><\/li>\n
  3. Run a Batch or CMD file hidden (invisible mode) using NirCmd utility<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n

    <\/a>Running .BAT or .CMD files in minimized mode<\/h2>\n

    To run a batch file in a minimized window state, follow these steps:<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Create a shortcut to the .BAT or .CMD file. To do so, right click on the file, click Send To<\/b>, Desktop (create shortcut)<\/b><\/li>\n
    2. Right click on the shortcut and choose Properties<\/b><\/li>\n
    3. In the Run:<\/b> drop down, choose Minimized<\/b><\/li>\n
    4. Click OK<\/li>\n
    5. Double-click the shortcut to run the batch file in a minimized window state.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      <\/a>Running .BAT or .CMD files hidden (invisible mode) Using Script<\/h2>\n

      Windows Script Host’s Run<\/b> Method allows you run a program or script in invisible mode. Here is a sample Windows script code that launches a batch file named syncfiles.bat<\/code> invisibly.<\/p>\n

      Reference: Run Method<\/a>. Setting intWindowStyle<\/b> parameter to 0 hides the window.<\/em><\/p>\n

      Let’s say we have a file named syncfiles.bat<\/code> in C:\\Batch Files<\/code> directory. Let’s launch it in hidden mode using Windows Scripting.<\/p>\n

        \n
      1. Copy the following lines to Notepad.\n
        Set WshShell = CreateObject(\"WScript.Shell\") \r\nWshShell.Run chr(34) & \"C:\\Batch Files\\syncfiles.bat\" & Chr(34), 0\r\nSet WshShell = Nothing<\/pre>\n
        Note:<\/strong> Replace the batch file name\/path accordingly in the script according to your requirement.<\/em><\/li>\n
      2. Save the file with .VBS extension, say launch_bat.vbs<\/code><\/li>\n
      3. Edit the .BAT file name and path accordingly, and save the file.<\/li>\n
      4. Double-click to run the launch_bat.vbs file, which in-turn launches the batch file syncfiles.bat<\/code> invisibly.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
        RELATED:<\/strong> How to Automatically Elevate a Batch file to Run it as Administrator?<\/a><\/em> -and- VBScripts and UAC elevation (Run as administrator)<\/a><\/p>\n
        <\/a>Running .BAT or .CMD files hidden (invisible mode) Using NirCmd<\/h2>\n
        NirCmd is a multipurpose command-line automation utility from the third-party vendor Nirsoft. We’ve covered NirCmd<\/a> many times in the past on our site.<\/p>\n
        We can use NirCmd to run a program, script or batch file in hidden mode.<\/p>\n
        Download NirCmd<\/a> and extract the file to your Windows directory.<\/p>\n
        From the Run dialog or Command Prompt, use the following syntax to launch a batch file or program in hidden mode:<\/p>\n
        nircmd exec hide [path to batch file]<\/pre>\n
        Example:<\/strong><\/p>\n
        nircmd exec hide \"c:\\batch files\\syncfiles.bat\"<\/pre>\n
        <\/p>\n
        If you need to run the batch file elevated (as administrator), use the following command instead:<\/p>\n
        nircmd elevatecmd exec hide c:\\batch files\\syncfiles.bat<\/pre>\n
        (NirCmd Command Reference – exec<\/a>)<\/em><\/p>\n
        That’s it! If you know any other method to run a batch or CMD file in hidden mode, let us know.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
        Batch files (.BAT) and Windows NT Command Script (.CMD) files run in console window when double-clicked. This means that the Command Prompt window will be visible until the .BAT or .CMD file execution is complete. To make .BAT or .CMD file execution less intrusive, you can configure it to run minimized. Or if the .BAT … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,7],"tags":[335,480],"class_list":["post-425","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-utilities","category-windows","tag-nircmd","tag-scripts"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":8452,"url":"https:\/\/www.winhelponline.com\/blog\/bat-files-do-not-run-when-double-clicked-fix-association\/","url_meta":{"origin":425,"position":0},"title":"[Fix] Windows Batch Files (.bat) do not run when double-clicked","author":"Ramesh","date":"April 2, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"When you double-click a Windows batch file (.bat) or a .cmd file, one of the following symptoms may happen: The error \"Windows cannot find 'filename.bat'. 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