Viewing system information in the Windows Command Prompt (cmd) can provide you with valuable details about your computer's hardware, operating system, and configuration. Several commands are available for this purpose. Below, I’ll explain some of the most commonly used commands for viewing system information, along with examples and expected outputs.

1. Using the systeminfo Command

The systeminfo command displays detailed configuration information about the computer and its operating system.

Basic Syntax:

systeminfo

Example: To view the system information, simply enter:

systeminfo

Output:

C:\Users\YourUsername>systeminfo

Host Name:                 YOUR-PC
OS Name:                   Microsoft Windows 10 Pro
OS Version:                10.0.19041 N/A Build 19041
OS Manufacturer:           Microsoft Corporation
OS Configuration:          Member Workstation
OS Build Type:             Multiprocessor Free
Registered Owner:          YourName
Registered Organization:   
Product ID:                12345-67890-12345-ABCDEF
Original Install Date:     10/29/2020, 10:00:00 AM
System Boot Time:          10/29/2024, 8:45:00 AM
System Manufacturer:        Dell Inc.
System Model:              XPS 13 9370
System Type:               x64-based PC
Processor(s):              1 Processor(s) Installed.
                           [01]: Intel64 Family 6 Model 142 Stepping 9 GenuineIntel ~2400 Mhz
BIOS Version:              Dell Inc. 1.4.0, 6/15/2021
Windows Directory:         C:\WINDOWS
System Directory:          C:\WINDOWS\system32
Boot Device:               \Device\HarddiskVolume1
System Locale:             en-us;English (United States)
Input Locale:              en-us;English (United States)
Time Zone:                 (UTC-06:00) Central Time (US & Canada)
Total Physical Memory:     16,384 MB
Available Physical Memory: 8,674 MB
Virtual Memory: Max Size:  18,432 MB
Virtual Memory: Available: 10,254 MB
Virtual Memory: In Use:    8,178 MB
Page File Location(s):     C:\pagefile.sys
Domain:                    WORKGROUP
Logon Server:              \\YOUR-PC
Hotfix(s):                 5 Hotfix(s) Installed.
                           [01]: KB4560364
                           [02]: KB4561600
                           [03]: KB4562830
                           [04]: KB4570334
                           [05]: KB4580325
Network Card(s):           1 NIC(s) Installed.
                           [01]: Intel(R) Dual Band Wireless-AC 8265
                               Connection Name: Wi-Fi
                               Status:          Media connected

2. Using the hostname Command

The hostname command displays the name of the computer on the network.

Basic Syntax:

hostname

Example: To view the hostname, simply enter:

hostname

Output:

C:\Users\YourUsername>hostname
YOUR-PC

3. Using the ver Command

The ver command shows the current version of the operating system.

Basic Syntax:

ver

Example: To view the OS version, enter:

ver

Output:

C:\Users\YourUsername>ver

Microsoft Windows [Version 10.0.19041.928]

4. Using the wmic Command

The Windows Management Instrumentation Command-line (WMIC) provides a wealth of information about system components.

Example: Viewing Basic System Information

To get basic information about the system, you can use:

wmic computersystem get model,name,manufacturer,systemtype

Output:

C:\Users\YourUsername>wmic computersystem get model,name,manufacturer,systemtype

Manufacturer  Name         Model
Dell Inc.     YOUR-PC     XPS 13 9370

5. Using the tasklist Command

The tasklist command displays a list of currently running processes, including their Process ID (PID) and memory usage.

Basic Syntax:

tasklist

Example: To view the list of running processes, enter:

tasklist

Output:

C:\Users\YourUsername>tasklist

Image Name                     PID Session Name        Session#    Mem Usage
========================= ======== ================ =========== ============
System Idle Process              0 Services                   0         28 K
System                           4 Services                   0        376 K
smss.exe                      484 Services                   0        224 K
csrss.exe                     576 Console                    1      1,024 K
wininit.exe                   660 Services                   0        544 K

Summary

The Windows Command Prompt offers various commands to view system information, such as systeminfo, hostname, ver, wmic, and tasklist. Each command provides different levels of detail about the operating system, hardware, and running processes, making it a powerful tool for system administration and troubleshooting. Mastering these commands can help you efficiently gather and analyze system information.