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How to open Windows Terminal from Command Prompt or Run

Thomas Maurer
Updated
1–2 minutes
19 comments on How to open Windows Terminal from Command Prompt or Run
Download the new Windows Terminal Preview

This is a really short blog post and more of a reminder than anything else. You might have seen the new Windows Terminal for Windows 10 was just released in the Windows Store as a preview. However, in the last couple of updates to the Windows Terminal app, it got to a state which already makes it my default terminal. The Windows Terminal allows you to run Windows PowerShell, PowerShell Core and even Bash using the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL). Especially the integration of the Azure Cloud Shell is a great plus for me. In this blog post, I am just going to show you how you can open the Windows Terminal from command prompt or Run (WIN + R).

To open Windows Terminal from the command line (cmd) or in Windows Run (WIN +R) type:

wt
Open Windows Terminal start wt
Open Windows Terminal start wt

 

If you want to know more about the Azure Cloud Shell integration, read the blog of Pierre Roman (Microsoft Cloud Advocate) on the ITOpsTalk blog.

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Thomas Maurer
Thomas is the EMEA Global Black Belt (GBB) for Sovereign Cloud at Microsoft, helping organizations across the region harness Microsoft’s sovereign, hybrid, multicloud, and edge solutions. He works directly with C-level leaders and technical teams to remove roadblocks, accelerate digital transformation, and shape long-term cloud strategies that meet business and regulatory needs. With over 15 years of experience in cloud and datacenter, including his previous role as Principal Program Manager and Chief Evangelist for Azure Hybrid, he combines deep technical expertise with a passion for customer success. He specializes in creating scalable architectures, solution accelerators, and thought leadership that drive adoption and innovation on Azure. Thomas is a passionate community advocate and frequently speaks at industry events such as Microsoft Ignite and Microsoft TechDays. He shares his expertise through his Cloud and Datacenter Blog at www.thomasmaurer.ch and on LinkedIn and X.com www.twitter.com/thomasmaurer.

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19 responses

  1. mozzie Avatar
    mozzie

    Thank you, exactly what I was looking for! I have pinned WT to my taskbar but i am so used to using windows run so this might help to use WT more frequently :)

    Reply
    1. Thomas Maurer Avatar
      Thomas Maurer

      Great that it helped :)

      Reply
  2. Kevin Boyle Avatar
    Kevin Boyle

    This post was just the thing I was looking for, thanks for taking the time to publish it!

    Reply
    1. Thomas Maurer Avatar
      Thomas Maurer

      you’re welcome, and thanks for the comment :)

      Reply
  3. asdf Avatar
    asdf

    in file explorer, typing wt in the address bar opens the windows terminal, however, it doesnt open to the current open directory like cmd does…

    Reply
    1. Thomas Maurer Avatar
      Thomas Maurer

      Great point :) Will need to check why that is :)

      Reply
  4. Henrik Andersen Avatar
    Henrik Andersen

    Thanks for sharing :) no more need for pining the app :)

    Reply
    1. Thomas Maurer Avatar
      Thomas Maurer

      you’re welcome :)

      Reply
  5. tobi Avatar
    tobi

    do i need to download the windows terminal first?? its writing windows cannot find ‘wt’.

    Reply
    1. Thomas Maurer Avatar
      Thomas Maurer

      Correct, you need to download it from the Windows Store or from GitHub.
      https://www.thomasmaurer.ch/2019/06/download-the-new-windows-terminal-preview/

      Reply
  6. Daniel Westerdale Avatar
    Daniel Westerdale

    Would it be possible run “wt” fron the exlorer context menu , as in “windows Terminal here” ? Ironically, I can do that with the default command prompt but this is not as nice as the Windows Terminal.

    Reply
    1. Thomas Maurer Avatar
      Thomas Maurer

      That is on the roadmap: https://devblogs.microsoft.com/commandline/windows-terminal-preview-1-1-release?WT.mc_id=thomasmaurer-blog-thmaure

      Reply
  7. Pavan Avatar
    Pavan

    I just created a .bat/.cmd file with a single command “cmd”. and had it saved, and double clicked on it. Voila, i had opened a cmd window with location at the folder location. Reduced a lot of work. Hope it helps.

    Reply
  8. Bryan E Avatar
    Bryan E

    Thank you. Amazed this isn’t mentioned anywhere (that I found) in the Windows Terminal documention.

    Reply
    1. Thomas Maurer Avatar
      Thomas Maurer

      Thanks Bryan :)

      Reply
  9. Precious Avatar
    Precious

    Thank you so much for this!

    Reply
    1. Thomas Maurer Avatar
      Thomas Maurer

      You’re welcome, thanks for the comment :)

      Reply
  10. Dean Avatar
    Dean

    Thanks. Do you know how to start the Preview edition of Windows Terminal via the command line?

    Reply
  11. Bilal Avatar
    Bilal

    How did you know that windows terminal can be opened with `wt`?

    When I type `Get-Process` in my psh-core.7.2.0, I get `WindowsTerminal` as ProcessName, when I try to:

    `Start-Process WindowsTerminal`, it throws an error that It can’t find the Process, while with `wt` worked instantly.

    Reply

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