10 Useful Windows Command Everyone Should Know
Ipconfig - Find Your IP Address Quickly
Th e Ipconfig command is the fast way to find your IP address and other network information your computer is using like the default gateway address — for instance, so as to know the IP address of your router's web interface. To use the command, just enter ipconfig at the command prompt. You'll see a list all the network connections on your computer. Check the WiFi adapter if you are using wi-Fi or Ethernet adapter if you are connected to a Local Area Network.
Ipconfig /flushdns — Flush your dns resolver cache
Windows does not update DNS settings immediately after changing your DNS server. It remembers the DNS settings it's received using a cache, saving time when you use the same addresses in the future. To make windows usE the new DNS servers instead of the old, cached entries, run the "ipcofig /flushdns" command after making changes in your DNS server.
Ping, tracert — Troubleshoot network connection issues:
This command assists in addressing network connection issues. First, the ping command - try "ping google.com" and windows will send packets to google.com. The response from Google.com allows to you to know if there is packet loss and the time it took to get back responses from the destination. The tracert command tracks the route a packet takes from source to destination.
Netstat:
Netstat command provides you with a list of presently open ports and prospective IP addresses. It also gives the state the port is in — listening, closed or established. This is useful in case you are troubleshooting the devices that are connected to your PC or if you suspect your computer has a Trojan horse and want to find out the bad connection.
System file checker:
System file checker is an automatic scan and repair tool that works on windows system files. You need administrator rights to run this on the command prompt. Enter the command allIsfc/scannow'. If it finds corrupt or missing files, it replaces them with cached copies that are retained by windows.
net user administrator /active:yes
This allows you to enable local administrator account. You should run this command from an administrative command prompt. It will ask you to set a password.
Route print To see the routing table run this command, you can also use allInetstat —r' for the same purpose.
Powercfg:
Powercfg is a very potent tool for tracking and managing the way your computer uses power. To manage hibernation, you can use allIpowercfg/hibernate on' and allIpowercfg/hibernate off' and allIpowercfg/a' to see the power saving states that's available on your computer.
Tasklist:
Tasklist command is used to view the list of all currently running programs. Although, largely replaced by task manager, the command can sometimes pick out tasks that cannot be viewed with that utility.
Taskkill:
Tasks that are listed by the tasklist command have an executable and process id(a number with four digits) that relates to them. You may force a stop on a program using "taskkill —im" and then the executable name, or "taskkill —pid" then followed by process id. This is useful in killing programs that are hidden or unresponsive.