Set a path variable with spaces in the path in a Windows .cmd file or batch file

Question

I'm new to script writing and can't get this one to work. I could if I moved the files to a path without a space in it, but I'd like it to work with the space if it could.

I want to extract a bunch of Office updates to a folder with a .cmd file. To make the batch file usable on any computer, I set a path variable which I only have to change in one place to run it on another machine. The problem is that the path has a space in it. If I put quotes around the path in the definition, cmd.exe puts them around the path before it appends the filename and switches and the batch fails with "Command line syntax error." Without quotes, it fails with, "is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program, or batch file."

For testing, I'm using the help switch until or if I can get it working. I can do it using an 8.3 file/folder name (e.g. My Documents as MyDocu~1), but can it be done a different way?

Answer 1

Try something like this:

SET MY_PATH=C:Folder with a space

"%MY_PATH%MyProgram.exe" /switch1 /switch2