How to create a desktop shortcut with the Windows Script Host (244677)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Visual FoxPro for Windows 3.0
  • Microsoft Visual FoxPro for Windows 3.0b
  • Microsoft Visual FoxPro for Windows 5.0
  • Microsoft Visual FoxPro for Windows 5.0a
  • Microsoft Visual FoxPro for Windows 6.0
  • Microsoft Visual FoxPro for Windows 7.0
  • Microsoft Visual FoxPro 8.0
  • Microsoft Visual FoxPro 9.0 Professional Edition
This article was previously published under Q244677

SUMMARY

The Microsoft Windows Script Host (WSH) is a tool that allows you to run Microsoft Visual Basic Scripting Edition and JScript natively within the base Operating System, either on Windows 95 or Windows NT 4.0. It also includes several COM automation methods that allow you to do several tasks easily through the Windows Script Host Object Model. The Microsoft Windows Script Host is integrated into Windows 98, Windows 2000, and later versions of the Windows operating system. It is available for Windows NT 4.0 by installing the Windows NT 4.0 Option Pack. To download this tool, visit the following Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN) Web site:

http://www.msdn.microsoft.com/scripting

MORE INFORMATION

This program demonstrates how to use the Windows Script Host to create a shortcut on the Windows Desktop. In order to run this example, you must have the Windows Script Host installed on your computer. To run one of these examples, copy the code below into a new program file and run it.

Example 1

WshShell = CreateObject("Wscript.shell")
strDesktop = WshShell.SpecialFolders("Desktop")
oMyShortcut = WshShell.CreateShortcut(strDesktop + "\Sample.lnk")
oMyShortcut.WindowStyle = 3  &&Maximized 7=Minimized  4=Normal 
oMyShortcut.IconLocation = "C:\myicon.ico"
OMyShortcut.TargetPath = "%windir%\notepad.exe"
oMyShortCut.Hotkey = "ALT+CTRL+F"
oMyShortCut.Save

Example 2

(Add a command line argument) 
WshShell = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
strDesktop = WshShell.SpecialFolders("Desktop")
oMyShortCut= WshShell.CreateShortcut(strDesktop+"\Foxtest.lnk")
oMyShortCut.WindowStyle = 7  &&Minimized 0=Maximized  4=Normal 
oMyShortcut.IconLocation = home()+"wizards\graphics\builder.ico"
oMyShortCut.TargetPath = "c:\Program Files\Microsoft Visual Studio\VFP98\vfp6.exe" 
oMyShortCut.Arguments = '-c'+'"'+Home()+'config.fpw'+'"'
oMyShortCut.WorkingDirectory = "c:\"
oMyShortCut.Save
Note Depending on the version of Visual FoxPro that you are using, you may need to change the name and the path of the Visual FoxPro executable in Example 2.

Example 3

(Add a URL Shortcut to the desktop) 
WshShell = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
strDesktop = WshShell.SpecialFolders("Desktop")
oUrlLink = WshShell.CreateShortcut(strDesktop+"\Microsoft Web Site.URL")
oUrlLink.TargetPath = "http://www.microsoft.com"
oUrlLink.Save
Note For the shortcut to be created, valid parameters must be passed for all methods. No error appears if one of the parameters is incorrect.

REFERENCES

For additional information, look for the following references on the Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN) Web site:

http://www.msdn.microsoft.com/scripting

White paper:
Windows Script Host: A universal Scripting Host for scripting languages

Technical Paper:
Windows Script Host programmer's reference
Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:2/16/2005
Keywords:kbhowto kbMiscTools kbScript KB244677 kbAudDeveloper
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