Microsoft KB Archive/314397

= Visio2000: Visio Startup (Command-Line) Switches and Their Purpose =

PSS ID Number: 314397

Article Last Modified on 6/4/2003

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The information in this article applies to:


 * Microsoft Visio 2000 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft Visio 2000 Professional Edition
 * Microsoft Visio 2000 Technical Edition
 * Microsoft Visio 2000 Enterprise Edition
 * Microsoft Visio Standard 5.0x
 * Microsoft Visio Professional 5.0x
 * Microsoft Visio Technical 5.0x
 * Microsoft Visio Enterprise 5.0x

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This article was previously published under Q314397



For a Microsoft Visio 2002 version of this article, see 314392.



SUMMARY
This article describes the command-line switches that you can use to start Microsoft Visio 2000 or Microsoft Visio 5.0x and their purpose.



MORE INFORMATION
To use a command-line switch to start Visio, use one of the following methods.

Method 1: Use the Run Command
 Click Start, and then click Run. Click Browse. Select the Visio32.exe file, and then click Open. By default, the Visio32.exe file is located in the following folders:

C:\Program Files\Visio

-or-

C:\Visio

NOTE: Enclose the path to Visio32.exe in quotation marks. Click in the Open box, and place the insertion point to the right of the closing quotation mark at the end of the path statement. Type a space, followed by the switch that you want to use.

For example, if you want to start Visio and prevent the splash screen from appearing, type the following in the Open box:

&quot;C:\Program Files\Visio\Visio32.exe&quot; /nologo

Method 2: Use a Shortcut
Create a shortcut to start Microsoft Visio from the Windows desktop. To do this, follow these steps:  Right-click the Windows desktop, point to New on the shortcut menu, and then click Shortcut.</li> In the Create Shortcut dialog box, click Browse.</li> In the Look in list, click to select the following folder:

C:\Program Files\Visio

NOTE: The location of this folder may be different on your system.</li> Click the Visio32.exe file, and then click Open.</li> Click in the Command line box, and then place the insertion point at the end of the listed path. The path that is listed in the Command line box will resemble the following:

&quot;C:\Program Files\Visio\Visio32.exe&quot;

</li> After the closing quotation mark, type a space and then type the switch that you want. The path that is listed in the Command line box will now resemble the following:

&quot;C:\Program Files\Visio\Visio32.exe&quot; /nologo

</li> In the Create Shortcut dialog box, click Next.</li> In the Select a name for the shortcut box, type the name of your new shortcut, and then click Finish.</li></ol>

Method Notes
If you put the switch inside the closing quotation mark and then click OK, you receive the following error message:

Windows cannot find 'C:\Program Files\Visio\Visio32.exe /nologo'. Make sure you typed the name correctly, and then try again. To search for the file, click the Start button, and then click Search.

If you specify a path or file name that contains spaces after a switch, enclose the path in quotation marks. For example, if you want to start Visio and automatically create a document that is based on the Basic Diagram template, use a command line that is similar to the following:

&quot;C:\Program Files\Visio\Visio32.exe&quot; &quot;C:\Program Files\Visio\Solutions\Block Diagram\Basic Diagram.vst&quot;

This guideline is true for the /p and /pt switches also.

List of Visio Startup Switches
<pre class="fixed_text">  Command line                Description ---

/nonew                     Choose Drawing Type dialog box is not shown on startup. /nologo                    Splash screen is not shown on startup. /p filename                Print dialog box is shown so you can quickly print a file. filename                   Opens a Visio file. The file has to be in                              the Drawings file path on the File Paths tab in the Options dialog box (on the Tools                              menu, click Options). Or, you must specify an absolute path. /1, /2, /3, .../9          Opens one of the last-opened files. The numbers represent the file on the Most Recently Used (MRU) list. /noreg                     Prevents Visio from registering itself. /u                         Unregisters Visio. /r                         Registers Visio. /s                         Silently registers Visio. /pt filename,[printername, Directs file to print on a particular drivername,portname]       printer. Available in Visio 5.0C and later versions. ::ODMA                     Visio opens a file by using ODMA.

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