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Batch File Examples

RUNNING DIFFERENT PROGRAMS

The following is a simple example of how you can implement the choice options into your batch files. Each line that is in red can be left out of the batch file. They have been included to help explain some of what the batch file means. Windows 2000 and Windows XP users will need to substitute the choice command with the set command see our set command page for additional help and information with this command.

@ECHO OFF
REM - LABEL INDICATING THE BEGINNING OF THE DOCUMENT.
:BEGIN
CLS
REM - THE BELOW LINE GIVES THE USER 3 CHOICES (DEFINED AFTER /C:)
CHOICE /N /C:123 PICK A NUMBER (1, 2, or 3)%1
REM - THE NEXT THREE LINES ARE DIRECTING USER DEPENDING UPON INPUT
IF ERRORLEVEL ==3 GOTO THREE
IF ERRORLEVEL ==2 GOTO TWO
IF ERRORLEVEL ==1 GOTO ONE
GOTO END
:THREE
ECHO YOU HAVE PRESSED THREE
GOTO END
:TWO
ECHO YOU HAVE PRESSED TWO
GOTO END
:ONE
ECHO YOU HAVE PRESSED ONE
:END

HOW TO MAKE A TIME LOG

In the following example you will have the capability of creating a time log of when the batch file is loaded or for example in the autoexec.bat when someone logs into a computer.

ECHO. |TIME > TIME
COPY LOG +TIME

An alternate slightly more complicated method that to our knowledge cannot be used in Windows NT, Windows 2000 or Windows ME would be the following:

echo @prompt set date=$d$_set time=$t$h$h$h > {a}.bat
%comspec% /e:2048 /c {a}.bat > {b}.bat
for %%v in ({b}.bat del) do call %%v {?}.bat
echo %date% %time% >> log

Another alternative is:

echo. |time |find "current" >> log

For the above batch file to work properly you must create a file called log by typing "edit log" (without the quotes) and then save an exit the file which will create the file at 0 bytes. If this file is not created or not created properly you will receive the error message "Content of destination lost before copy".