Cmder Console Emulator

You can run external Unix-like environments as new tasks in Cmder:

1. Press <kbd>Win</kbd> + <kbd>Alt</kbd> + <kbd>T</kbd> and click the + button.
2. Name the task.
3. In the Commands box, enter: cmd /c "[path_to_external_env]\bin\bash --login -i" -new_console

To enable portable settings in external shells: Copy the vendor/cmder_exinit file to the external environment's /etc/profile.d/ folder (e.g., /etc/profile.d/cmder_exinit.sh for bash).

In the copied script, ensure CMDER_ROOT is set if launching from outside Cmder:

# CMDER_ROOT=${USERPROFILE}/cmder

cmd /c "C:\Cygwin\bin\bash --login -i" -new_console

Aliases allow you to create shortcuts for commands. The method for making them permanent depends on the shell.

Cmder (cmd.exe)

Use alias name=command. Supports parameters via $1-9 or $* (e.g., vi=vim.exe $*). To make permanent: Add to %CMDER_ROOT%\config\user_aliases.cmd or %CMDER_ROOT%\config\user_profile.cmd.

Bash / Mintty

Use native alias name=command. Aliases created via command line are session-only. To make permanent: Add to $CMDER_ROOT/config/user_profile.sh (portable) or $HOME/.bashrc (non-portable).

PowerShell

Use native Set-Alias. Complex aliases with parameters are not supported. To make permanent: Add to $ENV:CMDER_ROOT\config\user_profile.ps1.

You can add custom startup commands or environment variables by editing specific profile files or by dropping scripts into the profile.d directory.

1. Edit Profile Files

Note: Bash/Mintty sessions also source $HOME/.bashrc after the Cmder profile.

2. Use profile.d for modular scripts

Drop scripts into %CMDER_ROOT%\config\profile.d to have them automatically loaded:

• Cmder: *.cmd or *.bat
• PowerShell: *.ps1
• Bash/Mintty: *.sh

The Bin folder contains optional user packages that are not automatically added to your system PATH. To include a specific folder from the Bin directory in your environment PATH, you must manually inject it using the %lib_path% enhance_path command within your Cmder configuration files.

You can add this command to:

1. %cmder_root%\config\user_profile.cmd
2. Any .cmd file located in %cmder_root%\config\profile.d\

%lib_path% enhance_path "%cmder_root%\Bin\path_to_your_folder"

To use Cmder as a fully self-contained, portable package (ideal for USB sticks or cloud storage), follow these steps:

1. Download the latest release.
2. Extract the archive to a folder. Important: Do not extract to C:\Program Files or any location requiring Administrator privileges to modify configuration files.
3. (Optional) Place your own executable files into the %cmder_root%\bin folder. These will be automatically injected into your PATH.
4. Run Cmder.exe.

# Example directory structure for portable mode
# C:\cmder\bin\<your_tools>
# C:\cmder\Cmder.exe

To add a "Cmder Here" option to your Windows File Explorer right-click menu, you must register the shell menu shortcut using an Administrator prompt.

1. Open a terminal as an Administrator.
2. Navigate to the directory where Cmder is installed.
3. Execute the registration command: .\cmder.exe /REGISTER ALL

If you receive an "Access Denied" error, ensure you are running the terminal with elevated Administrator privileges.

# Run this from an Administrator terminal inside the Cmder folder
.\cmder.exe /REGISTER ALL

The profile.d folder allows you to execute custom scripts automatically whenever a new shell session starts. You can add files with specific extensions to this folder, and Cmder will execute them using the corresponding shell type.

Supported file extensions and their associated shells:

• *.sh: Executed by a POSIX-compatible shell (e.g., Bash).
• *.cmd: Executed by the Windows Command Prompt (cmd.exe).
• *.ps1: Executed by PowerShell.

# Example: Create a file named 'my_startup.cmd' in the profile.d folder
echo "Welcome to your Cmder session!"

Use this method to have a shared Cmder installation (e.g., on a network drive) while keeping user-specific configurations and binaries in the user's profile.

1. Download the latest release and extract it to a shared location.
2. (Optional) Add custom executables or app folders to %cmder_root%\bin (injected into PATH) or %cmder_root%\opt (NOT injected into PATH).
3. Run Cmder.exe with the /C argument pointing to a directory in the user profile. For example: cmder.exe /C %userprofile%\cmder_config

This creates the following structure in the user profile:

• %userprofile%\cmder_config\bin (Injected into PATH)
• %userprofile%\cmder_config\config\profile.d
• %userprofile%\cmder_config\opt (NOT injected into PATH)

# Launching with a custom user config directory
cmder.exe /C %userprofile%\cmder_config