How to escape command line arguments on Powershell?

Question

It appears that I can escape command line arguments using single or double quotes:

PS C:\> echo Hello World
Hello
World
PS C:\> echo 'Hello World'
Hello World
PS C:\> echo "Hello World"
Hello World

But there's still something I can't figure out, which is when you wish to run an executable from a directory that contains a space in it:

PS C:\> c:\program files\test.exe
The term 'c:\program' is not recognized as a cmdlet, function, operable program, or script file. Verify the term and try again.
At line:1 char:11
+ c:\program  <<<< files\test.exe
PS C:\> 'c:\program files\test.exe'
c:\program files\test.exe
PS C:\> "c:\program files\test.exe"
c:\program files\test.exe
PS C:\>

How do I get powershell to run the executable above?

Answer 1

Use this:

. "c:\program files\test.exe"

Actually an even better solution would be:

Invoke-Item "c:\program files\test.exe"

or using the alias:

ii "c:\program files\test.exe"

Using Invoke-Item means that the proper windows file handler would be used. So for an exe it would run it. For a .doc file for instance, it would open it in word.

Here is one of the handiest PoSH command lines around. Give it a try:

ii .

Answer 2

Try puttin an ampersand before the command. For example

& 'C:\Program Files\winscp\winscp.exe'

Answer 3

I've also since discovered this very good page Understanding PowerShell Parsing Modes