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START

Contents

Purpose:

Start a program in another session or window

Format:

START ["title"] [/= /AFFINITY=n /ABOVENORMAL /BELOWNORMAL /BREAKAWAY /COLOR=BF /DESKTOP=name /ELEVATED /Env=file /FEEDBACK=off|on /HIGH /LOW /JOB=jobname /NOPINNING /NORMAL /PARENTAFFINITY /REALTIME /VDESKTOP=id /B /C /K /Dpath /I /Idle=n /INV /MAX /MIN /NODE n /POS=x,y,width,height /L /LA /LD /LF /LH /MONITOR=n /RUNAS user password /SIZE=rows,cols /TAB /TABNA /UNELEVATED /WAIT /WIN /PGM ] "progname" [command]

title

Title to appear on title bar

path	Startup directory

progname

Program name (not the session name)

command

Command to be executed by progname

/ABOVENORMAL	Priority	/LF	Local functions
/AFFINITY	Multiple CPUs	/LH	Local history list
/B	No new console	/LOW	Priority
/BELOWNORMAL	Priority	/MAX	Maximized window
/BREAKAWAY	Break away from job	/MIN	Minimized window
/C	Close when done	/MONITOR	Monitor to use
/COLOR	Default console colors	/NODE	NUMA node
/D	Startup directory	/NOPINNING	Don't pin to taskbar
/DESKTOP	Start desktop	/NORMAL	Priority
/ELEVATED	Start as admin	/PARENTAFFINITY	Inherit parent's affinity
/Env	Custom environment	/PGM	Program name
/FEEDBACK	Cursor feedback mode	/POS	Position of window
/HIGH	Priority	/REALTIME	Priority
/I	Inherit environment	/RUNAS	Run as other user
/Idle	Wait for input idle	/SIZE	Screen buffer size
/INV	Invisible window	/TAB	Start in Take Command tab window
/JOB	Start process in job	/TABNA	Start in inactive Take Command tab
/K	Keep when done	/UNELEVATED	Start app unelevated
/L	Local lists	/VDESKTOP	Start on the specified virtual desktop
/LA	Local aliases	/WAIT	For session to finish
/LD	Local directory history	/WIN	Windowed session

See also: DETACH.

Usage:

START is used to begin a new session, and optionally run a program in that session. If you use START with no parameters, it will begin a new TCC session. If you add a command, START will begin a new session or window and execute that command.

START will return to the TCC prompt immediately (or continue a batch file), without waiting for the program to complete, unless you use /WAIT.

If title is included, it will appear on the task list and Alt-Tab displays instead of the program name. Title must be enclosed in double quotes, and cannot exceed 127 characters. Title will be ignored if you also specify /ELEVATED.

START always assumes that the first quoted string on the command line is the title. If there is a second quoted string it is assumed to be the command. As a result, if the name of the program you are starting contains white space (and must therefore be quoted), and you don't specify a title, START will interpret the first quoted string as the title, not the command. To address this, use the /PGM switch to indicate explicitly that the quoted string is the program name, or include a title before the program name. For example, to start the program C:\Program Files\Proc.Exe you could use either of the first two commands below, but the third command would not work:

Valid

start /PGM "C:\Program Files\Proc.Exe"

start "test" "C:\Program Files\Proc.Exe"

Invalid

start "C:\Program Files\Proc.Exe"

Numeric input may be entered in either decimal format (a sequence of 0-9 digits) or in hexadecimal format ("0x" followed by a sequence of 0-F hex digits).

START offers a large number of switches to control the session you start. In most cases you need only a few switches to accomplish what you want. The list below summarizes the most commonly used START options, and how you can use them to control the way a session is started.

Window controls: /MAX, /MIN, and /POS allow you to start a character-mode windowed session in a maximized window, a minimized window, or a window with a specified position and size, respectively. /INV starts an invisible window. /B starts the program in the current console window. The default is /WIN, which permits Windows to choose the position and size of the non-maximized window. If you start a graphics mode program, only /MAX and /POS are effective, and the position and size information associated with /POS is ignored. Windows will use the size, but not the position of the same program when last used in RESTORE mode. If you want to control the window size and placement of a graphics mode program, use the ACTIVATE command after the window has been opened.

Session priority: The options /ABOVENORMAL, /BELOWNORMAL, /HIGH, /LOW, /NORMAL and /REALTIME allow you to select the new session's priority.

Program controls.

If progname is in the "App Paths" registry (either HKCU or HKLM), its associated "Path" value (if it exists) is inserted into the beginning of the PATH in the environment inherited by the program.

If progname is the name of a directory instead of an executable program, TCC will start your default Windows shell (usually Windows Explorer) in the specified directory.

Progname inherits the environment as it exists when START is executed, unless /I is used to select the default environment.

If progname specifies TCC.EXE, the options /L, /LA, /LD, /LF and/LH provide control over the use of local or global lists. See details below.

The initial directory for progname is the current default directory, unless otherwise specified using the /D option.

When command is finished, /C closes the session (the default for Windows sessions), while /K keeps it and displays the prompt (the default for character mode sessions).

The Process ID of the detached session or program is returned in the _STARTPID internal variable.

Options:

/=	Display the START command dialog to help you set the filename and command line options. The /= option can be anywhere on the line; additional options will set the appropriate fields in the command dialog.

/ABOVENORMAL

Set the priority above normal.

/AFFINITY=n

On multiple processor machines, set the processor affinity for this process. /AFFINITY takes a hex argument for the processor mask -- i.e., to set the affinity for cpu's 1 and 3, set /AFFINITY=5. If you also specify a NUMA node (see /NODE), the process is restricted to running on those processors in common between the specified affinity mask and the NUMA node. If no processors are in common, the process is restricted to running on the specified NUMA node.

/B	The program is started without creating a new window or console, i.e. in the TCC window. Normally, the application is started in its own window. For compatibility with CMD, /B also disables Ctrl-C processing for the program.

/BELOWNORMAL

Set the priority below normal.

/BREAKAWAY

The child process is not associated with the TCC job (see JOBS). This requires that TCC is running in a job with the breakaway option enabled..

/C	Start the program in a new TCC window and close the TCC window when the application ends.

/COLOR=BF

Set the default color for the new console window. B is the background color (hex 0-F) and F is the foreground color (hex 0-F).

/D	Specifies the startup directory. Include the directory name immediately after the /D, with no intervening spaces or punctuation.

/DESKTOP

Specify the window station and desktop where the app should be started. If you don't enter a backslash (\), the argument is assumed to be the desktop on WINSTA0 where you want the app to start.

/ELEVATED

Start the program elevated, with full admin privileges. /ELEVATED cannot be used in combination with /RUNAS. If you specify /ELEVATED, any title on the command line will be ignored (this is a Windows limitation).

/Env="filename"

Creates a new environment for the process using the contents of filename. The format of filename is:

var1=value1

var2=value2

...

Because some Windows API calls will fail if there is no "SystemRoot" variable in the environment, TCC will add the existing SystemRoot value to the new environment if wasn't specified in filename.

/FEEDBACK=on|off

ON - The cursor is in feedback mode for two seconds after the process is started, and the "Working in Background" cursor is displayed. If during those two seconds the process makes the first GUI call, the system gives five more seconds to the process. If during those five seconds the process shows a window, the system gives five more seconds to the process to finish drawing the window. The system turns the feedback cursor off after the first call to GetMessage, regardless of whether the process is drawing.

OFF - The feedback cursor is forced off while the process is starting (the normal select cursor is displayed).

/HIGH

Start the window at high priority.

/I	Inherit the default (startup) environment, rather than the current environment.

/Idle=n

Waits until the started process to finish processing its initial input and is waiting for user input, or until the timeout period has elapsed. n specifies the timeout period in milliseconds.

/INV	Start the session or window as invisible. No icon will appear and the session will only be accessible through the Task Manager or Window List.

/JOB=jobname

Start the new process in the specified job (see JOBS). Cannot be used with /RUNAS.

/K	Start the program in a new TCC window and keep the TCC window open when the program ends. (Use the EXIT command to close the TCC window.)

/L	Start TCC with local alias, function, history and directory history lists. This option is equivalent to specifying all of /LA, /LD, /LF, and /LH (below).

/LA	Start TCC with a local alias list. See ALIAS for information on local and global alias lists.

/LD	Start TCCwith a local directory history list. See Local and Global History Lists for information on local and global directory history lists.

/LF	Start TCC with a local function list. See FUNCTION for information on local and global function lists.

/LH	Start TCC with a local history list. See Local and Global History Lists for information on local and global history lists.

/LOW	Start the window at low priority.

/MAX	Start the session or window maximized.

/MIN	Start the session or window minimized.

/MONITOR=n

Start the program on the specified monitor (1 to n). This will only work with apps that do not try to position their window at startup, and you cannot combine this switch with /POS.

/NODE n

Start the program using the specified NUMA node (n is a decimal integer). See also /AFFINITY.

/NOPINNING

Any windows created by the new process cannot be pinned on the taskbar.

/NORMAL

Start the window at normal priority.

/PARENTAFFINITY

The process inherits its parent's affinity.

/PGM

The quoted string following this option is the program name. Any additional text beyond the quoted string is passed to the program as its parameters, so to use other START switches you must place them before /PGM which must be the last option for START. You can use /PGM to allow START to differentiate between a quoted long filename and a quoted title for the session.

/POS=left,top,width,height

Start the window at the specified screen position. The top left corner of the screen is 0,0.

/REALTIME

Start the window at realtime priority.

/RUNAS

Run a command in the context of the specified user. The syntax is:

/RUNAS user@domain password .

If "domain" is not specified, the local database is checked for the username. If you specify * for the password, START will prompt you to enter the password. (Useful when you don't want to put the password in a batch file.) /RUNAS cannot be used in combination with /ELEVATED.

If the user name begins with ".\" (without the quotes) , TCC will substitute the computer name for the ".".

/SIZE=rows,columns

Specifies the screen buffer size. Rows is the number of text rows and columns is the number of text columns. (This is not the size of the session's window.)

/TAB	Start the command in a new TCC tab window, and activate the new window. The command will usually be a Windows console mode application, but Take Command can also run many simple GUI applications in a tab window (provided the application does not have multiple parent windows).

/TABNA

Start the command in a new TCC tab window, but don't activate the new window.

/UNELEVATED

Start the program in an unelevated session. (Only necessary if TCC is running in an elevated session and you want to start a process unelevated.)

/VDESKTOP=id

Start the app on another virtual desktop. id can be either a desktop number (1-n), the GUID for that desktop, or the desktop name. See VDESKTOP for more details. Note that Windows doesn't have an API to actually start on another desktop, so TCC starts it on the local desktop and them immediately moves it -- you'll see a flash when the window starts and then disappears.

/WAIT

Wait for the new session or window to finish before continuing.

/WIN	Start the new console session as a window (this is the default.) See also /B.