batch file (redirected from MS-DOS batch files)

batch file

(1) A file containing instructions that are executed one after the other by the operating system, starting at the top of the file and proceeding to the end. Created in text editors, batch files are widely used to automate a series of commands that would otherwise be entered manually one at a time. Many batch files are nothing more than a series of commands in sequence. However, over the years, batch file programming evolved to include programming constructs such as "if-then," allowing them to function like mini-programs.

.BAT, .CMD and .SH Extensions
In the Windows world, batch files use .BAT and .CMD extensions. In DOS and OS/2, the .BAT extension was used. Batch files in Unix (Mac OS X, Linux, etc.) are called "shell scripts" and have a .SH extension. See command line, BAT file and shell script.

(2) A file containing data that is processed or transmitted from beginning to end.

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(operating system)

batch file - (Or script) A text file containing operating system commands which are executed automatically by the command-line interpreter. In Unix, this is called a "shell script" since it is the Unix shell which includes the command-line interpreter. Batch files can be used as a simple way to combine existing commands into new commands. autoexec.bat is the best known example of an MS-DOS batch file.