What del command switch allows you to suppress prompt on a wildcard delete

What del command switch allows you to suppress prompt on a wildcard delete

The CMD del command is used to delete files from the command line in the Windows operating system.

del file-name

We can delete multiple files at once:

del file1.txt file2.txt

Notes

  • The del command removes files permanently without sending them to the Recycle Bin.
  • If you use the /p option, the del command prompts for confirmation before deleting each file.
  • There is another command, the erase command, and it is identical to the del command, and the syntax is similar.
  • To force delete read-only files, use the /F option.
  • We can use the wildcard (*) character to remove all files in a directory.
  • To delete folders, use the rmdir command.

DEL Command Examples

Remove the file file1.txt in the current directory:

del file1.txt

Remove the file file1.txt in the c:\data directory:

del C:\data\file1.txt

The following command uses the /F option to force delete file1.txt if it is a read-only file:

del /f file1.txt

Remove all files in the c:\data directory:

del /q *

Remove all text files (files with .txt extension) in the current directory:

del *.txt

Delete all files with the pattern file.* (e.g., file1.txt, file2.txt, file1.doc, etc.) in the c:\data directory:

del file*

When using the wildcard character, the del command prompts for confirmation by default. You can use the \Q option to suppress the confirmation message.

In the following example, The windows del command deletes all files from c:\data and all subdirectories. The /S option is used to remove the specified file(s) from all subdirectories.

del /s /q C:\data\*

However, the del command does not remove subdirectories, only files inside subdirectories.

What del command switch allows you to suppress prompt on a wildcard delete
delete all files in a directory

The del command does not delete hidden files by default. To include hidden files, use the /a:h switch:

del /a:h file1.txt

The following command deletes all hidden files in the current directory:

del /a:h *

The /a switch is used to delete files based on their attributes (H represents hidden files). To see a list of all options, type del /?.

I can't for the life of me remember how to bypass the annoying prompt are you sure? Y/N when deleting files.

I seem to recall it was something like:

del C:\Test && ECHO Y

What del command switch allows you to suppress prompt on a wildcard delete

Jij

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asked Aug 23, 2011 at 11:32

Michael SkeltonMichael Skelton

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Use del /F /Q to force deletion of read-only files (/F) and directories and not ask to confirm (/Q) when deleting via wildcard.

answered Aug 23, 2011 at 11:34

Kerrek SBKerrek SB

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Add /Q for quiet mode and it should remove the prompt.

Uwe Keim

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answered Aug 23, 2011 at 11:35

Nicholas SmithNicholas Smith

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I just want to add that this nearly identical post provides the very useful alternative of using an echo pipe if no force or quiet switch is available. For instance, I think it's the only way to bypass the Y/N prompt in this example.

Echo y|NETDOM COMPUTERNAME WorkComp /Add:Work-Comp

In a general sense you should first look at your command switches for /f, /q, or some variant thereof (for example, Netdom RenameComputer uses /Force, not /f). If there is no switch available, then use an echo pipe.

Uwe Keim

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answered Aug 11, 2015 at 19:47

What del command switch allows you to suppress prompt on a wildcard delete

1

If you are using powershell, for example from vscode terminal, you can use -Recurse -Force instead:

del C:\Test -Recurse -Force

Note: I know that the question have cmd tag, but someone might come here for powershell or vscode.

answered Jan 25 at 6:32

You have the following options on Windows command line:

net use [DeviceName [/home[{Password | *}] [/delete:{yes | no}]]

Try like:

net use H: /delete /y

What del command switch allows you to suppress prompt on a wildcard delete

Pang

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answered Sep 14, 2017 at 3:56

What del command switch allows you to suppress prompt on a wildcard delete

slonslon

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What is del * * In CMD?

Deletes one or more files. This command performs the same actions as the erase command.

What is del F in CMD?

Force delete using Windows With the command prompt open, enter del /f filename , where filename is the name of the file or files (you can specify multiple files using commas) you want to delete. Microsoft's documentation describes more details on advanced deletion methods using this command.

What is the delete command in DOS?

Purpose: Deletes (erases) files from disk. You can use wildcard characters (? and *) to delete groups of files. If you don`t specify a pathname, the program assumes the files to be deleted are on the drive and directory you are currently using.

Does del command permanently delete?

The del command doesn't wipe the data portion of the file, it merely removes the entry from the filesystem. This means that with specialized software, recovery may be possible, if nothing else has written over that area of the disk (as far as the system is aware, that area is now "free" space).