Helpful Hints for Creating a Command Line

HINT 1

First attempt your task with the Graphical User Interface and then create an equivalent command line.

Reasons for this are:

HINT 2

During the initial creation of the command line, use the Verbose (/V) switch to see what the status of your comparison is and get any error messages. /V shows you a message telling you how the command line went. If you are not getting any message at all while using the /V switch, then see hint 3 below, as you are probably not even executing the program.

If you prefer a log file to a pop-up message, use /L{LogFilePath} instead of /V.

 

HINT 3

If you see the following error:

"DiffDoc is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file."


it is because the operating system cannot locate DiffDoc.EXE.

Do one of the following to resolve this error:

A) (Preferred method) Specify the full path to the executable. For example:

"c:\Program Files (x86)\Softinterface, Inc\DiffDoc\DiffDoc.exe" /S"c:\In\A.DOC" /M"C:\Out\B.DOC" /V

Alternatively, if using a batch file, you might try something like this:

Set DiffDoc="C:\Program Files (x86)\Softinterface, Inc\DiffDoc\DiffDoc.EXE"

%DiffDoc% /S"c:\In\A.DOC" /M"C:\Out\B.DOC" /V

 

Note: If you are using a 32 bit operating system swap "Program Files (x86)" with "Program Files" in the above examples.

B) Set the path operating system variable to the location of DiffDoc.EXE

 

NOTE: Copying DiffDoc.EXE from the installation folder to some other folder is not likely to work well.  Instead, try one of the methods above.

 

HINT 4

Use fully qualified paths for any files you specify. Fully qualified paths include the driver letter, and full folder information and the name of the file, if applicable. Use quotation marks (") around the file path and name. For example:

%DiffDoc% /M "d:\Long Path\Aristotle.TXT" /S "d:\a\Socrates.TXT"

 

HINT 5

Windows Vista, Windows 7 and newer: These operating systems use a feature called User Account Control (UAC) to safeguard your computer. If you have UAC enabled and you are specifying an output folder that is protected, the files will be created in the %localappdata%\VirtualStore\ folder. To find the output files, type in %localappdata%\VirtualStore\ in Windows Explorer.

 

See Also:

Helpful Hints for Creating a Command Line

Command Line Examples - General File Comparison

Command Line Examples - Folder Comparison

Command Line Examples - Excel Files Comparison