How to Use Terminal.exe in Windows 11/10: Step by Step Guide 2026

If you landed here wondering what terminal.exe is, how to open it, and what you can actually do with it, you are in the right place. This guide covers everything from launching the terminal for the first time to running real commands that save you time every day.

What Is terminal.exe?

Terminal.exe is the executable file for Windows Terminal, Microsoft’s modern command-line application for Windows 10 and Windows 11. When you run terminal.exe, it opens a tabbed shell environment where you can use PowerShell, Command Prompt (cmd.exe), and Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) all in one window.

It replaced the old, clunky black box that most people tried to avoid. Windows Terminal is faster, more readable, and far more capable.

Think of terminal.exe as the launcher. The terminal it opens is the workspace where you type commands and Windows responds.

Where Is terminal.exe Located?

Windows Terminal is installed by default on Windows 11. On Windows 10, you may need to install it from the Microsoft Store.

The default file path for terminal.exe is:

C:\Users\YourUsername\AppData\Local\Microsoft\WindowsApps\wt.exe

You will also see it referenced as wt.exe, which is the shorter alias for Windows Terminal. Both wt.exe and terminal.exe point to the same application.

To confirm it is installed, open Run (Win + R), type wt, and press Enter. If Windows Terminal opens, you are good to go.

How to Open terminal.exe in Windows

There are several ways to launch it. Use whichever fits your workflow.

Method 1: Run dialog Press Win + R, type wt or terminal, press Enter.

Method 2: Start menu search Press the Windows key, type “Terminal”, click Windows Terminal.

Method 3: Right-click the desktop On Windows 11, right-click any empty space on your desktop and select “Open in Terminal.”

Method 4: Task Manager Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc, click File, then Run new task, type wt.

Method 5: Direct file path Open File Explorer, navigate to C:\Users\YourUsername\AppData\Local\Microsoft\WindowsApps\ and double-click wt.exe.

Method 6: Pin it to taskbar Open it once, right-click the taskbar icon, select “Pin to taskbar.” One click from now on.

Understanding the Windows Terminal Interface

When terminal.exe opens, you see a tabbed window with a shell prompt. Here is what each part means.

Element	What It Does
Tab bar	Holds multiple open shell sessions
Plus (+) button	Opens a new tab with default shell
Dropdown arrow	Lets you choose which shell to open
Shell prompt	Where you type your commands
Title bar	Shows active shell name and profile

The default shell is usually PowerShell. You can change this in settings.

How to Open a New Tab or Profile

Click the small dropdown arrow next to the + button. You will see a list of installed profiles. Common options include:

• Windows PowerShell
• Command Prompt
• Azure Cloud Shell (if configured)
• Ubuntu or other WSL distros (if WSL is installed)

Click any profile to open it in a new tab. You can have multiple shells running at the same time in separate tabs.

Basic Commands to Get Started

You do not need to memorize hundreds of commands. Start with these and you will handle 90% of daily tasks.

Navigation Commands

dir (Command Prompt) or ls (PowerShell/WSL) Lists files and folders in your current location.

cd FolderName Changes your current directory to the named folder.

cd .. Goes up one folder level.

cd C:\Users\YourName\Documents Jumps directly to a specific path.

pwd Prints your current working directory (PowerShell/WSL).

File and Folder Operations

mkdir NewFolder Creates a new folder.

*copy file.txt C:\Backup* Copies a file to another location (Command Prompt).

*move file.txt C:\NewLocation* Moves a file.

del file.txt Deletes a file (use carefully, no recycle bin).

rmdir /s FolderName Removes a folder and everything inside it.

System Information Commands

systeminfo Shows detailed info about your Windows installation.

ipconfig Displays your IP address and network info.

hostname Shows your computer’s name.

tasklist Lists all running processes.

taskkill /IM notepad.exe /F Force-closes a running application by name.

Network Commands

ping google.com Tests whether you have internet connectivity.

tracert google.com Shows the route your traffic takes to reach a server.

netstat -an Lists active network connections and listening ports.

How to Use Windows Terminal Like a Power User

Once you are comfortable with basic navigation, these features make terminal.exe genuinely powerful.

Split Panes

You can split your terminal window into multiple panes. This lets you run two shells side by side without switching tabs.

Press Alt + Shift + D to split horizontally. Press Alt + Shift + Plus to split vertically.

Click a pane to make it active. This is useful when you want to watch logs in one pane while running commands in another.

Keyboard Shortcuts Worth Learning

Shortcut	Action
Ctrl + Shift + T	New tab (default profile)
Ctrl + Shift + W	Close current tab
Ctrl + Tab	Switch to next tab
Ctrl + Shift + 1/2/3	Open specific profile by number
Alt + Shift + D	Duplicate pane (split)
Ctrl + Shift + F	Find text in terminal
Ctrl + C	Cancel running command
Up arrow	Cycle through command history

Command History

Press the up arrow key to bring back previous commands. This saves enormous time when you are running the same commands repeatedly.

In PowerShell, type Get-History to see a list of recent commands with their IDs.

Running terminal.exe as Administrator

Some commands need elevated permissions. To open Windows Terminal as admin:

Right-click the Windows Terminal icon in your Start menu or taskbar, then select “Run as administrator.”

You will see “Administrator:” in the title bar confirming it is elevated. Use this when installing software, modifying system files, or running scripts that need higher privileges.

Opening terminal.exe in a Specific Folder

Right-click any folder in File Explorer and select “Open in Terminal.” Windows Terminal opens directly in that folder’s path. This is much faster than navigating manually with cd commands.

How to Customize Windows Terminal Settings

Press Ctrl + Comma to open the settings panel. You can also click the dropdown arrow and choose Settings.

Key things you can customize:

Default profile: Choose whether PowerShell, Command Prompt, or WSL opens by default.

Color schemes: Windows Terminal ships with several built-in themes. You can switch between them under the Appearance section of each profile.

Font: Choose a monospace font you like. Cascadia Code is the default and includes programming ligatures. You can install and use any font from Google Fonts or similar sources.

Transparency and blur: On Windows 11, you can enable acrylic transparency for a frosted glass background effect.

Starting directory: Set each profile to open in a specific folder automatically instead of the default user folder.

Key bindings: Remap any shortcut to something that fits your hands better.

Running Scripts from terminal.exe

Windows Terminal is where you run scripts. Here is how to run the most common types.

PowerShell Scripts (.ps1)

By default, PowerShell blocks script execution for security. To allow it for the current session:

Set-ExecutionPolicy -ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Scope CurrentUser

Then run your script:

.\myscript.ps1

Batch Files (.bat or .cmd)

Navigate to the folder containing your batch file, then type:

myscript.bat

Or provide the full path:

C:\Scripts\myscript.bat

Python Scripts

If Python is installed, navigate to your script’s folder and type:

python myscript.py

Running Multiple Commands in One Line

Use && to chain commands. The second command only runs if the first succeeds.

cd C:\Projects\MyApp && python app.py

Use ; (semicolon) in PowerShell to run commands sequentially regardless of success.

Using Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) in terminal.exe

If you have WSL installed, you can open a Linux shell tab directly in Windows Terminal. This is one of the most powerful features of terminal.exe.

From a WSL tab, you can run full Linux commands like:

ls, grep, awk, sed, curl, wget, apt, bash scripts, and more.

You can access Windows files from WSL using the path /mnt/c/ which maps to your C: drive.

Example: cd /mnt/c/Users/YourName/Documents opens your Windows Documents folder inside Linux.

To install WSL if you do not have it, open terminal.exe as administrator and run:

wsl –install

Restart your computer after that completes.

For deeper WSL setup guidance, Microsoft’s official WSL documentation at learn.microsoft.com/windows/wsl is the best reference.

Practical Examples You Can Use Today

Here are real use cases where terminal.exe saves time.

Check what is using a port netstat -ano | findstr :8080

This shows what process ID is listening on port 8080. Useful when a server refuses to start because the port is already taken.

Rename many files at once In PowerShell: Get-ChildItem *.txt | Rename-Item -NewName { $_.Name -replace “old”,”new” }

This renames every .txt file containing “old” in the name, replacing it with “new.”

Create a folder and file at once mkdir Reports && cd Reports && echo. > summary.txt

Download a file using PowerShell Invoke-WebRequest -Uri “https://example.com/file.zip” -OutFile “file.zip”

See disk usage Get-PSDrive C

Shows total size, used space, and free space on your C drive.

Find a file anywhere on your PC Get-ChildItem -Path C:\ -Recurse -Filter “config.ini” -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

Troubleshooting Common terminal.exe Problems

Terminal opens and immediately closes This usually means the default profile points to a shell that is not installed. Go to Settings, change the default profile to Command Prompt, which is always present.

“Access is denied” error You need to run terminal.exe as administrator. Right-click the icon and choose “Run as administrator.”

Commands not recognized If a command like python or git is not recognized, the program is either not installed or its folder is not in your system PATH. You can check your PATH by running:

echo $env:PATH (PowerShell) or echo %PATH% (Command Prompt)

Cannot run PowerShell scripts Run this command once to allow local scripts: Set-ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Scope CurrentUser

terminal.exe not installed on Windows 10 Open the Microsoft Store, search for “Windows Terminal,” and install it. It is free. Alternatively, you can install it through winget, Microsoft’s package manager, with:

winget install Microsoft.WindowsTerminal

Pasted text runs immediately This is a safety feature. You can disable “paste warnings” in Settings under Interaction if you find it annoying.

Summary

Terminal.exe launches Windows Terminal, a modern, tabbed command-line environment for Windows. You use it to navigate your file system, run scripts, manage processes, work with networks, and access Linux through WSL. It opens through the Start menu, the Run dialog (wt), right-click context menus, or by pinning it to your taskbar. The settings panel lets you customize everything from fonts to color themes. Basic commands like cd, dir, mkdir, and ping cover most daily needs. As you get comfortable, split panes, keyboard shortcuts, and scripting capabilities make it a genuine productivity tool. You do not need to learn everything at once. Pick two or three commands, use them daily, and build from there.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is terminal.exe the same as cmd.exe?

No. terminal.exe (or wt.exe) is Windows Terminal, which is the application that hosts shells. cmd.exe is the Command Prompt shell itself. Windows Terminal can run cmd.exe as one of its profiles, but it can also run PowerShell, WSL, and others. Think of Windows Terminal as the window, and cmd.exe as one program you can run inside that window.

How do I set PowerShell as the default shell in terminal.exe?

Open Windows Terminal, press Ctrl + Comma to open Settings. Under “Startup,” find the “Default profile” dropdown. Select “Windows PowerShell” or “PowerShell” (the newer version), then click Save.

Can I use terminal.exe to install software?

Yes. With winget (Windows Package Manager), you can install most popular software directly from terminal.exe. For example: winget install VLC installs VLC media player. Run winget search appname to find any available package. You may need to run terminal.exe as administrator for some installations.

Why does my terminal show a different prompt style than examples I see online?

Different shells display different prompt formats. PowerShell shows PS C:\Users\Name>, Command Prompt shows C:\Users\Name>, and WSL shows username@computername:~$. The commands you use also differ slightly between shells. If a command does not work, check which shell you are using by looking at your prompt format or the tab label.

How do I close a command that is stuck or running too long?

Press Ctrl + C. This sends an interrupt signal that stops most running commands immediately. If the process still does not stop, press Ctrl + C again or close the tab entirely using Ctrl + Shift + W.