View and Log Output with Tee

Ever wanted to view and log the output of a command at the same time? I'm sure it's available natively in Linux but not, AFAIK, in Windows. So we need a little tool.

Create a file called tee.cmd and save it somewhere in your PATH. The contents are as follows:

@ECHO OFF
POWERSHELL -c "Tee-Object -FilePath %1"

Now just pipe your command to "tee" and pass the name of the file you want to log to.

Example:

DIR | tee op.txt

You will get a directory listing and it will also be logged to op.txt.

Clean Your Path

Note: This is a Windows tip!

Each time you install new software, especially nerdy, developer stuff, it tends to add itself to your system PATH. For single .exe programs (e.g. curl or git) I find this wasteful so I've devised a cunning plan. Let's say you install curl.exe in C:\some\folder\curl

1. Remove the folder from your system path
2. Create a curl.cmd text file in C:\windows\system32
3. Edit this text file and add the following: C:\some\folder\curl\curl.exe %*

Now, open a DOS window and run curl google.com - it works! How?

• %* passes all parameters on to curl.exe
• C:\windows\system32 is always on your system path

I recommend doing this for all your favorite command line programs and even your favorite editor. My new favorite is Scripted!