[Ultimate User Guide]: Using CMD to Move Folder and Subfolders

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Brief introduction of CMD

CMD refers to Windows Command Prompt and it is a command line program. As one of the powerful Windows built-in utilities, CMD has many functions. For example, recover lost files, assign drive letters, format disk, delete disk, convert disk from MBR to GPT, etc. In addition to this, many users also use CMD to move folder and subfolders. In general, CMD has the following advantages and disadvantages.

Advantage:
✎ Free to use
✎ Pre-installed on Windows, no download required
Disadvantage:
✎ Users need to manually enter the command line, which is difficult for beginners
✎ For different computers, the command cannot be 100% successful

If you want to learn more about the CMD move folder, please read on.

Why use CMD to move folder and subfolders?

When users want to move folders and subfolders, their first choice might be CMD. Because for most users, CMD as Windows built-in program is more secure, and will not be attacked by viruses. And CMD doesn't need to be downloaded, and once you're proficient, you can spend very little time typing the command line.

However, CMD is not suitable for all users as it has some limitations that prevent us from successfully moving folders and subfolders. Next, I will show you an easier way to move folder and subfolders.

 How to move folders and subfolders quickly and easily

To move folders and subfolders, the easiest way is trying "App Mover" of AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional. Here, you can follow the step-by-step guide. 

Step 1. On the main interface, open the APP Mover feature first.

Install the software, go to Free up and click APP Mover.

Step 2. Here, select “Move folders”.

We should select Move Folders if you need to move folder and subfolders.

Step 3. Add the folder that you want to move and select a destination for it. 

Select the target folder. Choose a new location for the folder, like D drive or F drive, and click "Move".

Step 4.  Wait a moment, the selected folder will be moved to the target path.

When operation completed, go to the new path to see if the folder and subfolders were moved successfully.

As you can see, not only AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional allows users to move folders or subfolders to the target path easily, but also don't worry about data loss. That is why I highly recommend it.

In addition to move folders, it can also move installed programs from one drive to another or migrate OS from HDD to SSD.

Step-by-step: CMD to move folder and subfolders on Windows

If you still need to use CMD to move folder, this page will also provide you with detailed steps. There are 3 commands that can move folder and subfolders, you can choose any of the commands as needed.

▶ Solution 1. Move folder by move command

Move is an internal command in CMD to move files and folders. This command is more powerful than regular move operations because it allows pattern matching by including wildcards in the source path.

Syntax: move [/Y | /-Y] [drive:][path]filename1[,...] destination
◥ /Y: Suppresses prompting to confirm you want to overwrite an existing destination file.
◥ /-Y: Causes prompting to confirm you want to overwrite an existing destination file.
◥ [drive:][path]filename1: Specifies the location and name of the file or files you want to move.
◥ destination: Specifies the new location of the file or directory.

Step 1. Press “Windows + R”, type in “CMD” and hit Enter to open CMD.

Step 2. Then, you can type in move c:\program files\*.* E:\. Please note that *.* is wildcards telling the computer every file with every extension.

▶ Solution 2. Move folder by Robocopy command

Robocopy enables you to move files or folders from a specified drive path using the command prompt. Here are the detail steps:

Syntax: robocopy C:\ D:\ /MOVE
◥ C:\ refers to the origin path of the target folder.
◥ D:\ refers to the new path to the target folder.

Step 1. Search “CMD” in the search bar, right-click the CMD and choose run as Administrator.

Step 2. In the CMD window, enter the above syntax. Then, you can change the parameters.

Warning: As shown in the figure, when moving folders using Robocopy syntax, an invalid argument may appear.

▶ Solution 3. Move folder by Xcopy command

Xcopy refers to extended copy, a command that can copy multiple files or entire directories from one location to another. You can use it to move folders and subfolders.

Syntax: xcopy [source] [destination] [options]
◥  [option]:
/E: Copy subdirectories, including any empty ones.
/H: Copy files with hidden and system file attributes.
/C: Continue copying even if an error occurs.
/I: If in doubt, always assume the destination is a folder.

Step 1. Press “Windows + R”, type in “CMD” and click “OK”.

Step 2. In the CMD window, enter Xcopy C:\test D:\test /E /H /C /I.

Warning: If the command is slightly wrong, the operation will fail. Seriously, it will result in data loss.

Now, do you know how to use the CMD to move folder and subfolders? As you can see, no matter which syntax you choose to use, you will need to type complex commands, and these commands are not guaranteed to be 100% successful. What’s more, a CMD lacking a GUI is more difficult to use than most software on the market. This is distressing for computer beginners!

Sum up

If you are looking for how to use CMD to move folder and subfolders, I believe you can find the answer you want here. Three CMD solutions and another alternative way will be introduced in this post. You can choose a favorite one.

Finally, If you want to try AOMEI Partition Assistant in Windows Server, please switch to AOMEI Partition Assistant Server which can help you manage the Server PC more timely and flexibly.