Batch file multiline command with double quotes

Question

When using the ^ symbol to enter a multiline command with arguments when using double quotes to use strings with spaces the ^ symbol is also passed on, can anyone explain way this is?

working.cmd

@echo off 
call openfiles.cmd ^
C:\dir\filename.txt ^
C:\another_dir\another_file.txt

notworking.cmd

@echo off 
call openfiles.cmd ^
"C:\dir with spaces\file with spaces.txt" ^
"C:\another dir with spaces\another file with spaces.txt"

openfiles.cmd looks like

@echo off
for %%x in (%*) do (

    IF EXIST %%x (
        call "c:\Program Files\Notepad++\notepad++.exe" %%x
    ) ELSE (
        call echo Not found %%x
    )

)

pause

the error I get look like

C:\>call openfiles.cmd "C:\dir with spaces\file with spaces.txt" ^
ELSE was unexpected at this time.

Answer 1

The problem is, that the quote at the beginning of the second line will be escaped by the multi line caret.
Therefore the last quote in the line starts the quoting instead of stopping it and so the caret in the second line is handled as normal character.

call openfiles.cmd ^"C:\dir with spaces\file with spaces.txt" ^
**This is a seperate line** "C:\another dir with spaces\another file with spaces.txt"

The caret rule:

A caret escapes the next character, so that the character loses all special effects.
If the next character is a linefeed drop this and take the next character (even when this is also a linefeed).

With this simple rule you can explain things like

echo #1 Cat^&Dog
echo #2 Cat^
&Dog
echo #3 Redirect to > Cat^
 Dog

setlocal EnableDelayedExpansion
set linefeed=^


echo #4 line1!linefeed!line2

#3 creates a file named "Cat Dog" as the space was escaped and doesn't work as delimiter anymore.

But it's still possible to break this rule!
You only need to put any redirection just in front of the caret, it still drops the linefeed (multiline still works), but the next character isn't escaped anymore.

echo #5 Line1< nul ^
& echo Line2

So you could also use this to build your multiline command

call openfiles.cmd < nul ^
"C:\dir with spaces\file with spaces.txt" < nul ^
"C:\another dir with spaces\another file with spaces.txt"

Or using a macro

set "\n=< nul ^"
call openfiles.cmd %\n%
"C:\dir with spaces\file with spaces.txt" %\n%
"C:\another dir with spaces\another file with spaces.txt"

Answer 2

After trying some diffrent things I managed to get it working with just a extra space infront of the double quotes. Changes notworking.cmd to the following worked

@echo off 
call openfiles.cmd ^
 "C:\dir with spaces\file with spaces.txt" ^
 "C:\another dir with spaces\another file with spaces.txt"

note the spaces in front of the double quotes