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cmdtaskkill

CMD what does /im (taskkill)?


I just read the following command:

taskkill /f /im something.exe

I read that /f forces the task to close, but what does /im do?


Solution

  • It tells taskkill that the next parameter something.exe is an image name, a.k.a executable name

    C:\>taskkill /?
    
    TASKKILL [/S system [/U username [/P [password]]]]
             { [/FI filter] [/PID processid | /IM imagename] } [/T] [/F]
    
    Description:
        This tool is used to terminate tasks by process id (PID) or image name.
    
    Parameter List:
        /S    system           Specifies the remote system to connect to.
    
        /U    [domain\]user    Specifies the user context under which the
                               command should execute.
    
        /P    [password]       Specifies the password for the given user
                               context. Prompts for input if omitted.
    
        /FI   filter           Applies a filter to select a set of tasks.
                               Allows "*" to be used. ex. imagename eq acme*
    
        /PID  processid        Specifies the PID of the process to be terminated.
                               Use TaskList to get the PID.
    
        /IM   imagename        Specifies the image name of the process
                               to be terminated. Wildcard '*' can be used
                               to specify all tasks or image names.
    
        /T                     Terminates the specified process and any
                               child processes which were started by it.
    
        /F                     Specifies to forcefully terminate the process(es).
    
        /?                     Displays this help message.