MSDOS Description Type Linux Description Type

Command Command
ansi.sys Defines functions that change display File N/A Terminal emulators in Linux handle ANSI N/A
graphics, control cursor movement, escape sequences for text formatting and
and reassign keys. cursor positioning.

append Causes MS-DOS to look in other External PATH Set or modify the system's environment Internal
directories when editing a file or variable PATH to include additional
running a command. directories for command searches.
arp Displays, adds, and External arp, ip neigh View, add, or manipulate entries in the External
removes arp information from network Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) table to
devices. map IP addresses to MAC addresses.
assign Assign a drive letter to an alternate External mount, ln -s Mount file systems or create symbolic links External
letter. (shortcuts) to files or directories.
assoc View the file associations. Internal file Determine file type based on the file
signature. Internal

at Schedule a time to execute External at Schedule a command to execute once at a External

commands or programs. specific time.
atmadm Lists connections and addresses seen Internal N/A N/A
by Windows ATM call manager.
attrib Display and change file attributes. External chmod, chown Change file permissions (chmod) and External
ownership (chown).
batch Recovery console command that Recovery bash script Execute commands in a shell or run a shell Internal
executes several commands in a file. script.
bcdedit Modify the boot configuration data External grub-mkconfig Generate or modify the GRUB (bootloader) External
 store. configuration file.
bootcfg Recovery console command that Recovery grub-install, Install and update the GRUB bootloader. External
allows a user to view, modify, and grub-update
rebuild the boot.ini file.
break Enable and disable Ctrl+C feature. Internal Handled by
shell
cacls View and modify file ACL's. External getfacl, setfacl View and modify file Access Control Lists External
(ACLs).
call Calls a batch file from another batch Internal source Execute commands from a file within the Internal
file. current shell session.
cd Changes directories. Internal cd Change the current working directory. Internal

chcp Supplement the External locale Display or configure system locale settings Internal
international keyboard and character (language, number formats, etc.).
set information.
chdir Changes directories. Internal cd Changes directories. Internal
chkdsk Check the hard drive running FAT for External fsck Adjust parameters and settings for ext-based External
errors. file systems (ext2, ext3, ext4).
chkntfs Check the hard drive External ntfsfix Repair NTFS filesystems. External
running NTFS for errors.
choice Specify a listing of multiple options External Internal
within a batch file. select Allow user to choose from a list in a shell
script.
clip Redirect command line output to the External xclip Redirect command output to clipboard Internal
 Windows clipboard. (requires X server).
cls Clears the screen. Internal clear Clear the terminal screen. Internal
cmd Opens the command-line Internal bash/sh Open the command-line interpreter (Bash or Internal
interpreter called COMMAND.COM. other shell).
color Change Internal setterm -- Change terminal foreground and background External
the foreground and background color foreground colors.
of the MS-DOS window.
command Opens the command interpreter. Internal bash, sh, zsh Internal
Opens a command-line interpreter (shell).

comp Compares files. External diff Compare the contents of two files. External
compact Compresses and uncompress files. External gzip, Compress or uncompress files. External
bzip2, xz
control Open Control Panel icons from the External No direct Linux doesn’t use a Control Panel, but External
MS-DOS prompt. equivalent gnome-control-center, systemsettings (KDE),
etc., open system settings GUIs.

convert Convert FAT to NTFS. External mkfs.ext4, Create or convert a file system. External
mkfs.btrfs
copy Copy one or more files to an alternate Internal cp Copy files from one location to another. External
location.
ctty Change the computer's input/output Internal stty Change and configure terminal line settings. External
devices.
date View or change the systems date. Internal date Display or set the system date and time. internal
debug Debug utility to create assembly External gdb, strace Debug programs or trace system calls. External
language programs to modify
hardware settings.
defrag Re-arrange the hard drive to help with External e4defrag (ext4) Defragment a filesystem (though rarely External
loading programs. needed in Linux).
del Deletes one or more files. Internal rm Remove Files External
delete Recovery console command that Internal rm Remove files. External
deletes a file.
deltree Deletes one or more files or External rm -r Recursively delete a directory. External
directories.
dir List the contents of one or Internal ls List the contents of a directory. Internal
more directory.
disable Recovery console command that Recovery systemctl Disable a system service. External
disables Windows system services or disable
drivers.
diskcomp Compare a disk with another disk. External diff (disk Compare disk images. External
images)
diskcopy Copy the contents of one disk and External dd Create a bitwise copy of a disk. External
place them on another disk.
doskey Command to view and execute External history Display the command history. Internal
commands that were ran in the past.
dosshell A GUI to help with early MS-DOS External External
users. n/a No direct equivalent; Linux uses graphical
environments like GNOME, KDE, Xfce.
driverquery Display a list of installed device External lshw, lsmod List hardware or kernel modules. External
drivers.
drivparm Enables overwrite of original device Internal Load kernel modules to manage device Internal
drivers. drivers in Linux.
echo Displays messages and enables and Internal echo Print text to the terminal or control echo. Internal
disables echo.
edit View and edit files. External nano, vim, Open a terminal-based text editor. External
emacs
edlin View and edit files. External ed Line-oriented text editor for scripts. External
emm386 Load extended memory manager. External n/a Linux does not use an extended memory n/a
manager; it manages memory dynamically.
enable Recovery console command to enable Recovery systemctl Enables services or drivers. External
a disable service or driver. enable
endlocal Stops the localization of the Internal unset, exit Stops local environment changes or exits Internal
environment changes enabled by shell.
the setlocal command.
erase Erase files from the computer. Internal rm Remove files. External
exit Exit from the command interpreter. Internal exit Exit the shell session. Internal
expand Expand a Microsoft Windows file back External unzip, tar, gzip Extract compressed files. External
to its original format.
extract Extract files from the Microsoft External cabextract Extract files from .cab archives. External
Windows cabinets.
fasthelp Displays a listing of MS-DOS External man Displays the manual for commands and External
commands and information about programs.
them.
fc Compare files. External diff, cmp Compare files and display differences. External
fdisk Setup drive by create and External fdisk Used for partitioning hard drives. External
managing partitions on the hard drive.
find Search for text within a file. External grep Search for patterns in files. External
findstr Searches for a string of text within a External grep Search for text in files using regular External
file. expressions.
fixboot Writes a new boot sector. Recovery grub-install Installs GRUB bootloader to a disk. External
fixmbr Writes a new boot record to a disk Recovery dd if=/dev/zero Writes a new MBR (Master Boot Record) to a External
drive. of=/dev/sdX specified disk.
bs=512
count=1

for Boolean used in batch files. Internal for (bash loop) Iterate over a list or files in a script. Internal
format Command to erase and prepare a disk External mkfs Format a file system on a disk. External
drive.
ftp Command to connect and operate on External ftp, sftp, scp Transfer files via FTP, SFTP, or SCP. External
an FTP server.
fType Displays or modifies file types used in Recovery n/a No direct equivalent; file associations are N/A
file extension associations. handled differently in Linux (e.g., xdg-mime
for MIME types).
goto Moves a batch file to a specific label Internal goto (in bash) Move to a label in a shell script. Internal
or location.
graftabl Show extended characters in graphics External n/a No direct equivalent; terminal emulators often N/A
mode. support extended characters.
help Display a listing of commands and External man, --help Display manual pages or command help. Internal
 brief explanation.
if Allows for batch files to perform Internal if Conditional statements in shell scripts. Internal
conditional processing.
ifshlp.sys 32-bit file manager. External n/a No direct equivalent; graphical file managers External
like Nautilus or Thunar are used.
ipconfig Network command to view network External ifconfig or ip a Displays network interface configuration. External
adapter settings and assigned values.
keyb Change layout of keyboard. External loadkeys Load keyboard layout in Linux. External
label Change the label of a disk drive. External e2label, tune2fs Change the label of ext2/ext3/ext4 file External
systems.
lh Load a device driver in to high Internal n/a No direct equivalent; drivers are generally N/A
memory. loaded automatically in Linux.
listsvc Recovery console command that Recovery systemctl list- Lists active services in Linux. External
displays the services and drivers. units --
type=service
loadfix Load a program above the first 64 k. External n/a No direct equivalent; Linux manages memory N/A
dynamically.

loadhigh Load a device driver in to high Internal n/a No direct equivalent; drivers are loaded N/A
memory. automatically.
lock Lock the hard drive. Internal n/a No direct equivalent; disk encryption tools like N/A
cryptsetup can lock volumes.
logoff Logoff the currently profile using the External logout Logs out of the current shell session. Internal
computer.
logon Recovery console command to list Recovery n/a No direct equivalent; user management is N/A
 installations and handled differently (e.g., usermod).
enable administrator login.
map Displays the device name of a drive. Recovery df Displays file system disk space usage, External
including device names.
md Command to create a new directory. Internal mkdir Create a new directory. Internal
mem Display memory on system. External free Displays memory usage and statistics. External
mkdir Command to create a new directory. Internal mkdir Create a new directory. Internal

mklink Creates a symbolic link. Internal ln -s Creates a symbolic link to a file or directory. External
mode Modify the port or display settings. External stty, setserial Configure terminal or serial line settings. External

more Display one page at a time. External more, less View file contents one screen at a time. Internal
move Move one or more files from one Internal mv Move or rename files. Internal
directory to another directory.
msav Early Microsoft virus scanner. External n/a No direct equivalent; use antivirus software External
like ClamAV.
msd Diagnostics utility. External write, wall Send a message to another user or Internal
broadcast.
mscdex Utility used to load and access External mount External
the CD-ROM. /dev/cdrom Mounts the CD-ROM for access.
/mnt/cdrom
Mounts the CD-ROM for access.
nbtstat Displays protocol statistics and current External nmblookup Query NetBIOS names and network statistics. External
TCP/IP connections using NBT.
net Update, fix, or view the network or External ip, ifconfig, Configure network interfaces and view status. External
network settings. nmcli
netsh Configure dynamic and static network External nmcli, ifconfig, Manage network interfaces and connections. External
information from MS-DOS. iwconfig
netstat Display the TCP/IP network protocol External netstat, ss Display active network connections and stats. External
statistics and information.
nlsfunc Load country specific information. External localectl Sets the system locale and keyboard layout. External
nslookup Look up an IP address of a domain or External dig, nslookup Perform DNS lookups. External
host on a network.
path View and modify the Internal echo $PATH, Display or modify the PATH environment Internal
computer's path location. export PATH variable.
pathping View and locate locations of network External mtr Combines ping and traceroute to show External
latency. network paths and latency.
pause Command used in batch files to stop Internal read -p Pause a shell script until user input. Internal
the processing of a command.
ping Test and send information to another External ping Send ICMP ECHO_REQUEST to test Internal
network computer or network device. connectivity.
popd Changes to the directory or network Internal popd Return to a directory saved by pushd. Internal
path stored by the pushd command.
power Conserve power with computer External pm-utils Power management utilities for laptops. External
portables.
print Prints data to a printer port. External lpr, lp Print files using the system's print service. External
prompt View and change the MS- Internal PS1 Customize the shell prompt. Internal
DOS prompt.
pushd Stores a directory or network path in Internal pushd Save and move to another directory. Internal
 memory so it can be returned to at
any time.
qbasic Open the QBasic. External n/a No direct equivalent; use modern alternatives External
like Gambas.
rd Removes an empty directory. Internal rmdir Remove an empty directory. Internal
ren Renames a file or directory. Internal mv Moves (renames) files or directories. External
rename Renames a file or directory. Internal mv Rename or move files and directories. Internal
rmdir Removes an empty directory. Internal rmdir Remove empty directories. Internal
robocopy A robust file copy command for the External rsync Synchronize files and directories. External
Windows command line.
route View and configure Windows External route, ip route Display or set the network route table. External
network route tables.
runas Enables a user to run a program as a External
different user.
sc Communicate with the Service Control External systemctl Manage system services. External
Manager and services.
scandisk Run the ScanDisk utility. External fsck Checks and repairs file system errors. External
scanreg Scan registry and recover registry External n/a No direct equivalent; Linux does not use a N/A
from errors. registry.
set Change one variable or string to Internal set, export Display or set shell environment variables. Internal
another.
setlocal Enables local environments to be Internal local Declare local variables in a shell script. Internal
changed without affecting anything
else.
setver Change MS-DOS version to trick older External n/a No direct equivalent; Linux handles N/A
 MS-DOS programs. compatibility differently.
share Installs support for file sharing and External n/a No direct equivalent; file sharing is managed
locking capabilities. by the file system and Samba for network
shares.
shift Changes the position of Internal n/a No direct equivalent; parameter handling is N/A
replaceable parameters in a batch done in shell scripts.
program.
shutdown Shutdown the computer from the MS- External shutdown, Shutdown or restart the system. internal
DOS prompt. poweroff
smartdrv Create a disk cache in conventional External n/a No direct equivalent; Linux uses its own N/A
memory or extended memory. caching mechanisms.
sort Sorts the input and displays the output External sort Sort lines of text files. Internal
to the screen.
start Start a separate window in Windows Internal nohup, & Run a program or script in the background. Internal
from the MS-DOS prompt.
subst Substitute a directory on your External mount --bind Bind a directory to a mount point. External
computer for another drive letter.
switches Remove add functions from MS-DOS. Internal n/a No direct equivalent; command line options N/A
are handled differently in Linux.
sys Transfer system files to disk drive. External dd Used to copy and convert files, can transfer External
system files.
telnet Telnet to another computer or device External telnet Telnet client to connect to remote systems. External
from the prompt.
time View or modify the system time. Internal date Display or set the system date and time. Internal
title Change the title of their MS-DOS Internal PS1 Customize the terminal prompt display. Internal
 window.
tracert Visually view a network packets route External traceroute Traces the route packets take to a network External
across a network. host.
tree View a visual tree of the hard drive. External tree Display directory structure in tree format. External
type Display the contents of a file. Internal cat Concatenate and display file content. Internal
undelete Undelete a file that was deleted. External testdisk Recover deleted files from partitions. External
unformat Unformat a hard drive. External n/a No direct equivalent; data recovery tools may N/A
recover data after formatting.
unlock Unlock a disk drive. Internal n/a No direct equivalent; disk unlocking is N/A
typically handled by the file system.
ver Display the version information. Internal uname -r, Display OS version. Internal
lsb_release -a
verify Enables or disables the feature to Internal sync Force changes to be written to disk. Internal
determine if files were written
properly.
vol Displays the volume information about Internal lsblk, blkid Display block devices and volumes. Internal
the designated drive.
xcopy Copy multiple files, directories, or External cp -r Copy files and directories recursively. External
drives from one location to another.