Run programs with too many spaces

Question

I have a command that works fine with command prompt:

CMD /C ""C:\Program Files (x86)\VideoLAN\VLC\VLC" -vvv "http://www.foo.com:8085/video.mp4/playlist.m3u8?wmsAuthSign=c2VydmVyX3RpbWU9NC8yNy8yMDE3IDEyO==" :sout=#file{dst="F:\\Partition C Backup\\Downloads\\Video\\TESTING.mp4",no-overwrite} :sout-keep""

Here I need CMD /C to return the errorlevel.

That's how I tried to run this in VBScript using Run method:

WshShell.Run "CMD /C ""C:\Program Files (x86)\VideoLAN\VLC\VLC" -vvv "http://www.foo.com:8085/video.mp4/playlist.m3u8?wmsAuthSign=c2VydmVyX3RpbWU9NC8yNy8yMDE3IDEyO==" :sout=#file{dst="F:\\Partition C Backup\\Downloads\\Video\\TESTING.mp4",no-overwrite} :sout-keep""", 0, False

This command throws the following error:

Expected end of statement (Char: 74)

I saw many similar questions about running programs with spaces in its and its parameters' paths. I tried changing above command into hundreds of different commands with adding more double quotation marks into different positions as I saw in answers, but nothing worked and everytime I ran the script, one of the following errors occured:

Expected end of statement
The system cannot find the file/path specified (null)
Unterminated string constant
Expected ")"
Expected "("

Possible duplicate of Not able to launch bat file form VBScript if path contains a space — user692942
Your not escaping the double quotes. When used in VBScript all double quotes that appear inside a string need to be escaped, you do this by doubling them (""). See the this answer for breakdown of how it should be done. — user692942
The command should have been WshShell.Run "CMD /C """"C:\Program Files (x86)\VideoLAN\VLC\VLC"" -vvv ""http://www.foo.com:8085/video.mp4/playlist.m3u8?wmsAuthSign=c2VydmVyX3RpbWU9NC8yNy8yMDE3IDEyO=="" :sout=#file{dst=""F:\\Partition C Backup\\Downloads\\Video\\TESTING.mp4"",no-overwrite} :sout-keep""""", 0, False. — user692942

JosefZ JosefZ · Accepted Answer · 2017-04-27T08:40:50

Lankymart's answer is right:

You just need to escape the quotes in the string correctly, the rule is whenever you want to show a quote in a string double it.

However, you still have unbalanced double quotes in the original code (a surplus trailing ").

WshShell.Run "CMD /C """"C:\Program Files (x86)\VideoLAN\VLC\VLC"" -vvv ""http://www.foo.com:8085/video.mp4/playlist.m3u8?wmsAuthSign=c2VydmVyX3RpbWU9NC8yNy8yMDE3IDEyO=="" :sout=#file{dst=""F:\\Partition C Backup\\Downloads\\Video\\TESTING.mp4"",no-overwrite} :sout-keep"""

This will run as

CMD /C ""C:\Program Files (x86)\VideoLAN\VLC\VLC" -vvv "http://www.foo.com:8085/video.mp4/playlist.m3u8?wmsAuthSign=c2VydmVyX3RpbWU9NC8yNy8yMDE3IDEyO==" :sout=#file{dst="F:\\Partition C Backup\\Downloads\\Video\\TESTING.mp4",no-overwrite} :sout-keep"

Sample VBScript (a particular executable cliparserPause.exe is used to mimic VLC behaviour):

option explicit
On Error GoTo 0
Dim strResult: strResult = Wscript.ScriptName
Dim sCmdToRun, WshShell, intReturn

' CMD /C ""D:\bat\Prog Files (x86)\cliparserPause.exe" -vvv "http://www.foo.com:8085/video.mp4/playlist.m3u8?wmsAuthSign=c2VydmVyX3RpbWU9NC8yNy8yMDE3IDEyO==" :sout=#file{dst="F:\\Partition C Backup\\Downloads\\Video\\TESTING.mp4",no-overwrite} :sout-keep"
sCmdToRun = "CMD /C """"D:\bat\Prog Files (x86)\cliparserPause.exe"" -vvv ""http://www.foo.com:8085/video.mp4/playlist.m3u8?wmsAuthSign=c2VydmVyX3RpbWU9NC8yNy8yMDE3IDEyO=="" :sout=#file{dst=""F:\\Partition C Backup\\Downloads\\Video\\TESTING.mp4"",no-overwrite} :sout-keep"""
strResult = strResult & vbNewLine & sCmdToRun

Set WshShell = WScript.CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
intReturn = WshShell.Run( sCmdToRun, 1, true)
strResult = strResult & vbNewLine & Cstr( intReturn )

Wscript.Echo strResult
Wscript.Quit( intReturn )

Output:

==> CMD /C ""D:\bat\Prog Files (x86)\cliparserPause.exe" -vvv "http://www.foo.com:8085/video.mp4/playlist.m3u8?wmsAuthSign=c2VydmVyX3RpbWU9NC8yNy8yMDE3IDEyO==" :sout=#file{dst="F:\\Partition C
 Backup\\Downloads\\Video\\TESTING.mp4",no-overwrite} :sout-keep"
param 0 = D:\bat\Prog Files (x86)\cliparserPause.exe
param 1 = -vvv
param 2 = http://www.foo.com:8085/video.mp4/playlist.m3u8?wmsAuthSign=c2VydmVyX3RpbWU9NC8yNy8yMDE3IDEyO==
param 3 = :sout=#file{dst=F:\\Partition C Backup\\Downloads\\Video\\TESTING.mp4,no-overwrite}
param 4 = :sout-keep
press any key to continue...

==> echo %errorlevel%
-1004

==> cscript //NOLOGO D:\VB_scripts\SO\43649265.vbs
43649265.vbs
CMD /C ""D:\bat\Prog Files (x86)\cliparserPause.exe" -vvv "http://www.foo.com:8085/video.mp4/playlist.m3u8?wmsAuthSign=c2VydmVyX3RpbWU9NC8yNy8yMDE3IDEyO==" :sout=#file{dst="F:\\Partition C Bac
kup\\Downloads\\Video\\TESTING.mp4",no-overwrite} :sout-keep"
-1004

==> echo %errorlevel%
-1004

cliparserPause.exe source:

#include "stdafx.h"
#include <wchar.h>
#include <cstdio>
#include <stdlib.h>

int main(int argc, wchar_t* argv[])
{
    for (int i = 0; i < argc; ++i)
    {
        wprintf(L"param %d = %S\n", i, argv[i]);
    }
    wprintf(L"press any key to continue...");
    std::getchar();
    exit(-999 - argc);  /* exitcode to OS = ( -1000 -supplied_paramaters_count ) */
    return 0;
}

Run programs with too many spaces

2 Answers

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