Trying to open MRT.exe from system32

[GeGeek]

Trying to open the application MRT.exe from within the System32 directory.

If I use for example to open Notepad, works fine.

Process.Start("C:\Windows\System32\Notepad.exe")

This however, keeps saying file not found, yet sits clearly in Windows 10 System32 directory

Process.Start("C:\Windows\System32\MRT.exe")

I know I shouldn't be using the C:\..... But I didn't know how to call the Windows + System32 directory any other way.

If the file requires admin rights, how can I run that file.

The MRT.exe is on 90% of everyone's computer.

Thank you.

[jmcilhinney]

Can you type that same path into a console window and execute the intended application? If so then what may well be happening is not that it can't find the file you're trying to execute but that that application can't find a file that it wants to use.

When you run an application from the console, the working directory for the process is the folder that contains that EXE. Some applications assume that that will be the case and just try to access a file in their working directory. When you call Process.Start as you are, the working directory for the new process is the same as for your app, so the file that the other application is looking for will not be found there. To remedy that, start by creating a ProcessStartInfo and set the file name and working directory, then pass that to Process.Start.

You should be able to get the system32 folder path or a root folder path using the Environment.GetFolderPath method.

[GeGeek]

Can you give me an example please?

[OptionBase1]

Hard-coded paths are a bad idea. Setting that aside, this is going way back in the cobweb area of my memory. If the VB.NET program you are creating is a 32-bit program, and the Operating system is 64-bit, then Windows might be automatically routing your attempt to access C:\Windows\System32\MRT.exe over to C:\Windows\SysWOW64\MRT.exe, which likely doesn't exist.

If so, try:

Process.Start("C:\Windows\Sysnative\MRT.exe")

[ident]

Any application trying to launch inside system32 has no business doing so.

[jmcilhinney]

Can you give me an example please?

I gave you the relevant keywords. Now I expect you to use those keywords to find what information you can for yourself and then put it to use. If you still can't get it to work, then you should post back again with what you've tried and explain what happened when you tried it. There are already examples of just about everything on the web already. There's no need for me to provide yet another when you have the means to find those.

[GeGeek]

So I've come back, I did try the following above and used

Process.Start("C:\Windows\Sysnative\MRT.exe")

This doesn't work as I get an error:



Yet I am able to run the following command:

Process.Start("C:\Windows\Sysnative\MRT.exe")

[.paul.]

Dim p As New Process
p.StartInfo.FileName = IO.Path.Combine(Environment.GetFolderPath(Environment.SpecialFolder.System), "MMC.exe")
p.StartInfo.Arguments = "perfmon.msc"
p.Start()

[GeGeek]

Dim p As New Process
p.StartInfo.FileName = IO.Path.Combine(Environment.GetFolderPath(Environment.SpecialFolder.System), "MMC.exe")
p.StartInfo.Arguments = "perfmon.msc"
p.Start()

Thanks Paul, that worked for the Perfmon, how can I use that for the Firewall and MRT?