Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command In Windows HTMD Blog

Let’s learn how to Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows. The Run command dialog box helps you reach any folder location using commands. These commands are very useful in our day-to-day use.

As in our previous posts, we discussed some other run commands that are used to reduce the time to reach the required destination. Here also, you can easily access any folder by executing some commands.

There are certain commands to reach a folder location on windows. These commands reduce the time the user gets the desired folder location. Such as folders like all the installed application folders, accessing the debug folder, etc.

Those commands help you be more productive in your daily use if you remember them. This post describes the different run commands allowing you to access the folder locations instantly.

Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows - Fig.1 — Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows – Fig.1

Folder Locations Run Command for Windows

The Folder Locations Run commands for windows are very useful to quickly access any required folder without using the lengthy procedure to reach there. There are some commands which you can use regularly for better accessibility.

Those commands are more helpful for users to access any folders directly. Some commands are used to access different folders using the commands shown in the table below for reference.

Sl. No.	Commands	Descriptions
1	Documents	The command opens the Document folder
2	Downloads	The command opens the Downloads folder
3	Favorites	The command opens the Favorites folder
4	Pictures	The command opens the Picture folder
5	Videos	The command opens the Videos folder
6	Recent	The command opens the Recent file folder
7	OneDrive	The command opens the One Drive folder
8	Shell:AppsFolder	The command opens all applications folder
9	WAB	The command opens the window address book folder
10	%AppData%	The command opens the Application Data folder
11	Debug	The command access the Debug folder
12	Explorer.exe	The command opens the Current User Directory
13	%systemdrive%	The command opens the windows root drive
14	Drive name or Folder path	The command opens the specific drive location or a folder location as entered by the user

Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows – Table 1

To execute the above commands in the run dialog box, you need to open the Run dialog box quickly by pressing the Windows key + R. For more details, click here. The commands are discussed below in detail.

NOTE! The Run Commands are not case-sensitive, so that users can use capital or small letters.

1. Documents

The documents command opens the Documents folder, whose location is under C: drive and user profile. Entering the documents command enables the user to reach inside the folder directly and directly access the files or folders inside it.

Open the Run command dialog box.
Type documents and click OK.

Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows - Fig.2 — Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows – Fig.2

2. Downloads

The downloads command opens the downloads folder whose location is under C: drive and user profile. Entering the downloads command enables the user to reach inside the folder directly. You can find the files datewise downloaded and easily track/access your desired file, folder, documents, picture, videos, etc.

Open the Run command dialog box.
Type downloads and click OK.

Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows - Fig.3 — Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows – Fig.3

3. Favorites

The favorites command opens the favorites folder under C: drive. Entering the favorites command enables the user to reach inside the folder directly. You can find favorite files, folders, documents, videos, websites, etc., inside the folder selected as favorites.

Open the Run command dialog box.
Type favorites and click OK.

Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows - Fig.4 — Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows – Fig.4

4. Pictures

The Pictures command opens the Pictures folder under C: drive. This is the default folder for the instant saving of images. Entering the pictures command enables the user to reach inside the folder directly.

You can find all the images, including the screenshot of the desktop. This is a default storage for all pictures clicked or screenshots etc.

Open the Run command dialog box.
Type pictures and click OK.

Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows - Fig.5 — Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows – Fig.5

5. Videos

The Videos command for the run dialog box saves the videos in their default location. The default location is the videos folder if the user is not selecting any specific folder to store videos. Put the command in the run dialog box to directly access the videos folder to use or save videos.

Open the Run command dialog box.
Type videos and click OK.

Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows - Fig.6 — Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows – Fig.6

6. Recent

The recent command opens the recent folder under the C drive. All the documents, files, folders, etc., are stored. You can find the recent applications, including all the activities made in recent features. You can easily clear up the recent folder by selecting all and pressing delete.

Open the Run command dialog box.
Type recent and click OK.

Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows - Fig.7 — Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows – Fig.7

7. Onedrive

The Onedrive command opens the one drive folder under the C drive on a windows PC. All the documents, files, folders, etc., are stored, and the backup for selected items keeps backed up in the onedrive folder. Using the above run command, you can manage all the documents in one drive.

Open the Run command dialog box.
Type OneDrive and click OK.

Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows - Fig.8 — Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows – Fig.8

8. Shell:AppsFolder

The Shell:AppsFolder command opens all the applications installed on your Windows PC. This command navigates you to the list of applications available, where you can manage them for further requirements.

Open the Run command dialog box.
Type Shell:AppsFolder and click OK.

Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows - Fig.9 — Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows – Fig.9

9. WAB

The WAB command denotes to Windows Address Book and is used to open contacts on your Windows PC. Those are used as the address saving module by saving as contacts.

Open the Run command dialog box.
Type wab and click OK.

Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows - Fig.10 — Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows – Fig.10

10. %AppData%

The %AppData% command opens the App Data Roaming under the current user name. The specific applications contained some information stored inside their existing folders.

Open the Run command dialog box.
Type %AppData% and click OK.

Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows - FIg.11 — Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows – Fig.11

11. Debug

The Debug command is used to access the debug folder on Windows. The debug folder is common. They are created by software developers to check their code and can be very helpful when troubleshooting a problem.

Open the Run command dialog box.
Type debug and click OK.

Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows - Fig.12 — Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows – Fig.12

12. Explorer.exe

Exploret.exe is the command which is used to open the file explorer window. In Windows 11, it opens the Home window for the user. You can find the quick-access folders, favorite folders, and recent folders in the Home window.

Open the Run command dialog box.
Type explorer.exe and click OK.

Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows - Fig.13 — Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows – Fig.13

13. %systemdrive%

The %systemdrive% command opens the folder where the windows operating system is installed. You can find the following folder when executing the run command.

DRIVER
Drivers
PerfLogs
Program Files
Program Files (x86)
Users
Windows

The system drive command navigates to the OS-installed drive directly, where the user can add and modify if anything is required. The process to open the system drive folder is shown below.

Open the Run command dialog box.
Type %systemdrive% and click OK.

Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows - Fig.14 — Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows – Fig.14

14. Drive Name or Folder Path

The Drive name or Folder path command is used to move to a particular drive or folder location. You can type the drive name with a colon (e.g., C: or D: etc.) or Folder Path (e.g., C:\users\public\public downloads). I have used a specific drive command to open the drive shown below.

Open the Run command dialog box.
Type d: and click OK.

Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows - Fig.15 — Find Folder Locations Using RUN Command in Windows – Fig.15

When you use too many commands in the Run dialog box, it is stored in the memory as history and looks like a mess. Click here to learn the process of deleting the history of the Run command dialog box.

The helpful information on finding Folder Locations Easily Using Run Command in Windows. Please follow us on HTMD Community and visit our website HTMD Forum if you like our content.

Author

Alok is a Master of Computer Applications (MCA) graduate. He loves writing on Windows 11 and related technologies. He likes to share his knowledge, quick tips, and tricks with Windows 11 or Windows 10 with the community.