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Applies To: Windows Server 2008

Starts MS-DOS Editor, which creates and changes ASCII text files.

For examples of how to use this command, see Examples.

Syntax

edit [/b] [/h] [/r] [/s] [/<NNN>] [[<Drive>:][<Path>]<FileName> [<FileName2> [...]]

Parameters

Parameter Description

[<Drive>:][<Path>]<FileName> [<FileName2> [...]]

Specifies the location and name of one or more ASCII text files. If the file does not exist, MS-DOS Editor creates it. If the file exists, MS-DOS Editor opens it and displays its contents on the screen. FileName can contain wildcard characters (* and ?). Separate multiple file names with spaces.

/b

Forces monochrome mode, so that MS-DOS Editor displays in black and white.

/h

Displays the maximum number of lines possible for the current monitor.

/r

Loads file(s) in read-only mode.

/s

Forces the use of short filenames.

<NNN>

Loads binary file(s), wrapping lines to NNN characters wide.

/?

Displays help at the command prompt.

Remarks

  • For additional help, open MS-DOS Editor, and then press the F1 key.

  • Some monitors do not support the display of shortcut keys by default. If your monitor does not display shortcut keys, use /b.

Examples

To open MS-DOS Editor, type:

edit

To create and edit a file named newtextfile.txt in the current directory, type:

edit newtextfile.txt