Can I use the "start" command with spaces in the path?

The ‘start’ command is a useful tool for IT administrators as it is used to open a program, folder, or document in Windows. It can be used to open files or applications quickly, without having to navigate through folders to find the desired item. However, one limitation of the ‘start’ command is that it does not allow spaces in the path.

When a path includes spaces, the ‘start’ command will not recognize it. For example, the command ‘start C:\\Program Files\\My Program’ will not work, as it contains a space between ‘Program’ and ‘Files’. As a result, the program will not open. This applies to any path that includes spaces, regardless of the program or document being opened.

The workaround for this issue is to use quotation marks (“) around the path that contains spaces. Doing this will tell the ‘start’ command to read the entire path as one line, even if it contains spaces. For example, the command ‘start “C:\\Program Files\\My Program”’ will open the desired program, as the quotation marks tell the ‘start’ command to read the entire path as one line.

Another workaround is to use the ‘start’ command with the ‘/min’ switch. This switch tells the ‘start’ command to open the program in a minimized window. This can be useful in cases where the program needs to be opened, but the user does not need to interact with it immediately. For example, the command ‘start /min “C:\\Program Files\\My Program”’ will open the desired program in a minimized window.

It is also possible to use the ‘start’ command with a path that contains environment variables. Environment variables are used to store information about the user’s computer, such as the system’s home directory. For example, the command ‘start %HOMEDRIVE%%HOMEPATH%’ will open the user’s home directory.

Overall, the ‘start’ command is a useful tool for IT administrators, but it has a limitation when it comes to paths that contain spaces. To work around this, quotation marks can be used to tell the ‘start’ command to read the entire path as one line. The ‘start’ command can also be used with the ‘/min’ switch to open a program in a minimized window, or with environment variables to open the user’s home directory.