From being moved to being renamed

Today I finished creating a document titled "useful dos commands" in Notepad.

I used the Move command in CMD to move a copy over to my USB in the D: drive. (Windows was saving it in the Pictures folder. I'll fix that later.)

Unfortunately, when I tried to move the document from the Pictures to the Desktop folder, it disappeared.

-------------------------

Directory of C:\Users\*****\Pictures

14/10/2025 04:51 PM <DIR> .
05/10/2025 05:28 PM <DIR> ..
02/10/2025 07:26 PM <DIR> Camera Roll
14/10/2025 03:53 PM 14,005 DOS list.md
14/10/2025 02:04 PM 6,163 DOS list.txt
12/10/2025 01:26 PM <DIR> Screenshots
14/10/2025 04:01 PM 16,238 Useful DOS commands.md
5 File(s) 107,812 bytes
4 Dir(s) 894,585,438,208 bytes free

C:\Users\*****\Pictures>move "useful dos commands".* desktop
C:\Users\*****\Pictures\Useful DOS commands.md
1 file(s) moved.

C:\Users\*****\Pictures>cd..

C:\Users\*****>desktop
'desktop' is not recognized as an internal or external command,
operable program or batch file.

C:\Users\*****>cd desktop

C:\Users\*****\Desktop>dir
Volume in drive C has no label.
Volume Serial Number is 68AD-FD7A

Directory of C:\Users\*****\Desktop

12/10/2025 10:15 PM <DIR> .
05/10/2025 05:28 PM <DIR> ..
0 File(s) 0 bytes
2 Dir(s) 894,584,889,344 bytes free

---------------------------------------------------

I think that instead of moving the file from the Pictures folder to the Desktop folder I somehow renamed it "desktop."
-----------------------------------------------------------------
C:\Users\*****\Pictures>dir
Volume in drive C has no label.
Volume Serial Number is 68AD-FD7A

Directory of C:\Users\*****\Pictures

14/10/2025 05:13 PM <DIR> .
05/10/2025 05:28 PM <DIR> ..
04/10/2025 03:48 PM 71,322 3 white ducks.jpg
02/10/2025 07:26 PM <DIR> Camera Roll
14/10/2025 04:01 PM 16,238 desktop
14/10/2025 03:53 PM 14,005 DOS list.md
14/10/2025 02:04 PM 6,163 DOS list.txt
14/10/2025 04:51 PM 84 Looking for a proper gardener with.txt
14/10/2025 05:18 PM <DIR> Screenshots
5 File(s) 107,812 bytes
4 Dir(s) 894,589,739,008 bytes free

C:\Users\*****\Pictures>
------------------------------------------------------------------

I have no idea how that happened. And since I obviously don't know as much about the Move command as I thought, I've got some more reading and watching YouTube to figure this out.

Can anyone tell me how I could have renamed the document instead of moving it?
And, yes, I need to relearn the Move command in CMD.

Like I told you in the chat where you’re asking me these questions, to rename something you need to use “ren” or “rename” you have used neither.

If you’re going to mess around with stuff you don’t yet understand, create a VM

Restore your system image.

Tasmania Green said:

Directory of C:\Users\*****\Pictures

14/10/2025 05:13 PM <DIR> .
05/10/2025 05:28 PM <DIR> ..
04/10/2025 03:48 PM 71,322 3 white ducks.jpg
02/10/2025 07:26 PM <DIR> Camera Roll
14/10/2025 04:01 PM 16,238 desktop
14/10/2025 03:53 PM 14,005 DOS list.md
14/10/2025 02:04 PM 6,163 DOS list.txt
14/10/2025 04:51 PM 84 Looking for a proper gardener with.txt
14/10/2025 05:18 PM <DIR> Screenshots
5 File(s) 107,812 bytes
4 Dir(s) 894,589,739,008 bytes free

C:\Users\*****\Pictures>
------------------------------------------------------------------

Click to expand...

And as I mentioned “desktop” is possibly just a shortcut that leads to the desktop.
Go into the pictures folder, look for desktop. Right click, properties, it’s probably a shortcut.

Can I ask why you are doing this the hard way, via the command line, and not using Explorer as most would?

Anyway, in poost #3 you show a desktop folder under pictures, and you may find your file in there.

If only someone invented a drag and drop gui

mngerhold said:

Can I ask why you are doing this the hard way, via the command line, and not using Explorer as most would?

Click to expand...

Mike wants to learn and he finds this stuff interesting. As I did back in DOS days.

antspants said:

Like I told you in the chat where you’re asking me these questions, to rename something you need to use “ren” or “rename” you have used neither.

If you’re going to mess around with stuff you don’t yet understand, create a VM

Restore your system image.

Click to expand...

lol. Yes, and one of these days I will learn. I promise!

Tasmania Green said:

lol. Yes, and one of these days I will learn. I promise!

Click to expand...

Making mistakes is a good foundation for learning, Mike.

Check that folder out, inspect “documents” or just double click on it and see where it takes you.

antspants said:

Making mistakes is a good foundation for learning

Click to expand...

I've built the Rock of Gibraltar...may become transcendent...

A Guy

My mistake: the 'desktop' now showing under pictures is a file with no extension (clue: it is the same size as the original text file), which i now see you already spotted.

Your 'mistake' was the <target> you specified was simply 'desktop', which when interpreted as a folder and file name becomes just the name 'target' with no extension. It seems the move command expects a full path name (folder and file name).

So, have you found it yet?
I agree with Martin that you probably renamed it by accident.

The move syntax is
Move SourcePath\Filename.Ext TargetPath\
e.g.
Move C:\Users\*****\Pictures C:\Users\*****\Desktop
but if you write the destination incorrectly
Move SourcePath\Filename.Ext Desktop
e.g.
Move C:\Users\*****\Pictures Desktop
then you will rename the file to
Desktop
and move it to the current folder [the stuff at the start of each line in your cmd window], which your screenshots say is
C:\Users\*****\Pictures

This can be incorrectly written particularly easily if any part of the path has spaces, ampersands or other special characters in it.
If your UserName was Tasmania Green
then you'd have to use " at the start and end of each expression
Move "C:\Users\*****\Pictures" "C:\Users\*****\Desktop"
otherwise the command Windows receives would only be up to that sapce in your username
Move C:\Users\Tasmania
and it would then object to the expected target path being given as the nonsensical 3-part expression
Green\Pictures C:\Users\Tasmania Green\Desktop

The command
move /?
displays the full syntax for your current version of the command.
You can also see the syntax, with some explanations, in MSLearn and in
Move - SS64
[whose explanations are generally much better than those of MSLearn.
But online sources might, without bothering to tell you, show you the syntax as it was for, say, Windows server.

Some commands have evolved significantly. The command netsh, for example, was made into a much more capable command in Windows 10 yet not even now do online guides show the changed version - you are better off using PowerShell for such items now.


All the best,
Denis

antspants said:

Making mistakes is a good foundation for learning, Mike.

Check that folder out, inspect “documents” or just double lick on it and see where it takes you.

Click to expand...

Yes, as I mentioned I will check after I finish watching tv.

Try3 said:

So, have you found it yet?
I agree with Martin that you probably renamed it by accident.

The move syntax is
Move SourcePath\Filename.Ext TargetPath\
e.g.
Move C:\Users\*****\Pictures C:\Users\*****\Desktop
but if you write the destination incorrectly
Move SourcePath\Filename.Ext Desktop
Move C:\Users\*****\Pictures Desktop
then you will rename the file to
Desktop
and move it to the current folder [the stuff at the start of each line in your cmd window], which your screenshots say is
C:\Users\*****\Pictures

The command
move /?
displays the full syntax for your current version of the command.
You can also see the syntax, with some explanations, in MSLearn and in
More - screen display - Windows CMD - SS64.com
[whose explanations are generally much better than those of MSLearn.
But online sources might, without bothering to tell you, show you the syntax as it was for, say, Windows server.

Some commands have evolved significantly. The command netsh, for example, was made into a much more capable command in Windows 10 yet not even now do online guides show the changed version - you are better off using PowerShell for such items now.


All the best,
Denis

Click to expand...

Yep. I figured it out a while ago. Next time I'll wait before posting a question.

Tasmania Green said:

I need to relearn

Click to expand...

Here's a list of guides to batch scripts & powershell
my ditty Batch file and PowerShell guides [post #16] - TenForums


All the best,
Denis

Try3 said:

So, have you found it yet?

Click to expand...

Tasmania Green said:

I figured it out a while ago

Click to expand...

By the way, you do not have to quote an entire post.
You can select just those few words that you want to quote, pause for 0.68375 of a second and you'll be given the chance to quote the selection on its own - simply click on the word Quote that appears.



All the best,
Denis

You can move a file from Pictures to Desktop without specifying the full path. I created a file similar to yours.


Now, to move a file to the Desktop folder, I need to go up to the parent directory of the one I'm in (..), then specify the Desktop folder inside that.


Now I can check the Pictures folder to make sure it's gone, move to the desktop, and see that it is now there.

pseymour said:

You can move a file from Pictures to Desktop without specifying the full path. I created a file similar to yours.

Code:

C:\Users\LadyGodiva\Pictures
> dir
 Volume in drive C is Windows

 Directory of C:\Users\LadyGodiva\Pictures

10/14/2025  06:57 AM    <DIR>          .
10/14/2025  06:55 AM    <DIR>          ..
10/14/2025  06:57 AM            16,238 Useful DOS Commands.md

Now, to move a file to the Desktop folder, I need to go up to the parent directory of the one I'm in (..), then specify the Desktop folder inside that.

Code:

C:\Users\LadyGodiva\Pictures
> move "Useful DOS Commands.md" "..\Desktop"
        1 file(s) moved.

Now I can check the Pictures folder to make sure it's gone, move the desktop, and see that it is now there.

Code:

C:\Users\LadyGodiva\Pictures
> dir
 Volume in drive C is Windows

 Directory of C:\Users\LadyGodiva\Pictures

10/14/2025  06:58 AM    <DIR>          .
10/14/2025  06:55 AM    <DIR>          ..



C:\Users\LadyGodiva\Pictures
> cd ..\Desktop


C:\Users\LadyGodiva\Desktop
> dir
 Volume in drive C is Windows

 Directory of C:\Users\LadyGodiva\Desktop

10/14/2025  06:58 AM    <DIR>          .
10/14/2025  06:55 AM    <DIR>          ..
10/14/2025  06:57 AM            16,238 Useful DOS Commands.md

Click to expand...

I don’t understand how he moved a folder? There is no <DIR> before desktop in this listing, just “desktop”
If he moved Desktop folder into the Pictures folder, surely it would be listed as a <DIR>?

Tasmania Green said:

14/10/2025 05:13 PM <DIR> .
05/10/2025 05:28 PM <DIR> ..
04/10/2025 03:48 PM 71,322 3 white ducks.jpg
02/10/2025 07:26 PM <DIR> Camera Roll
14/10/2025 04:01 PM 16,238 desktop
14/10/2025 03:53 PM 14,005 DOS list.md
14/10/2025 02:04 PM 6,163 DOS list.txt
14/10/2025 04:51 PM 84 Looking for a proper gardener with.txt
14/10/2025 05:18 PM <DIR> Screenshots

Click to expand...

He didn't move a folder, he renamed a file. Move can also be used to rename.

pseymour said:

He didn't move a folder, he renamed a file. Move can also be used to rename.

Code:

C:\Users\LadyGodiva
> move /?
Moves files and renames files and directories.

To move one or more files:
MOVE [/Y | /-Y] [drive:][path]filename1[,...] destination

To rename a directory:
MOVE [/Y | /-Y] [drive:][path]dirname1 dirname2

Click to expand...

Gotcha. Im all up to speed now. Think I’ll go steal a car or something. I’m better at that lol

antspants said:

Gotcha. Im all up to speed now. Think I’ll go steal a car or something. I’m better at that lol

Click to expand...

I've always had a weird interest in the Holden Ute. Go git me one.

pseymour said:

I've always had a weird interest in the Holden Ute. Go git me one.

Click to expand...

Great Utes. Easy to repair on your own, even easier to steal.
I’ve owned a couple.