SHELL

• Source: https://www.freebasic.net/wiki/wikka.php?wakka=KeyPgShell
• Last revised: 2016-02-10

---

Sends a command to the system command interpreter

Syntax

` declare function Shell ( byref command as const string ) as long

`

Usage

` result = Shell( command )

`

Parameters

command

A string specifying the command to send to the command interpreter.

Return Value

If the command could not be executed, -1 is returned. Otherwise, the command is executed and its exit code is returned.

Description

Program execution will be suspended until the command interpreter exits.

Examples

start GeSHi

'e.g. for windows:
Shell "dir c:*.*"

'e.g. for linux:
Shell "ls"

end GeSHi

Platform Differences

• Linux requires the command case matches the real name of the command. Windows and DOS are case insensitive. The program being shelled may be case sensitive for its command line parameters.
• Path separators in Linux are forward slashes / . Windows uses backward slashes \ but it allows for forward slashes. DOS uses backward \ slashes.
• If an empty command string is passed, DOS will open an interactive command prompt. On Windows, an error may be returned.

Differences from QB

• QB allowed SHELL on its own without a "command" argument which caused a default command shell to be started. Execution in the main program would suspend until exit from the command shell. The behaviour in FB is platform-dependent.

See also

• Exec
• Run

Back to DocToc