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Microsoft provides a way of creating a new, blank text file using the right-click menu in File Explorer. Open File Explorer and navigate to the folder where you want to create the text file. Right-click in the folder and go to New > Text Document. The text file is given a default name, New Text Document.
From within Windows, right-click in the area you want to create the file. For example, right-click the desktop to create a new text file on the desktop. In the drop-down menu that appears, select New and choose Text Document.
Introduction# One useful feature of batch files is being able to create files with them.
copy NUL EmptyFile.txt
DOS has a few special files (devices, actually) that exist in every directory, NUL being the equivalent of UNIX's /dev/null: it's a magic file that's always empty and throws away anything you write to it. Here's a list of some others; CON is occasionally useful as well.
To avoid having any output at all, you can use
copy /y NUL EmptyFile.txt >NUL
/y prevents copy from asking a question you can't see when output goes to NUL.
echo. 2>EmptyFile.txt
type NUL > EmptyFile.txt
After reading the previous two posts, this blend of the two is what I came up with. It seems a little cleaner. There is no need to worry about redirecting the "1 file(s) copied." message to NUL, like the previous post does, and it looks nice next to the ECHO OutputLineFromLoop >> Emptyfile.txt that will usually follow in a batch file.
Techniques I gathered from other answers:
Makes a 0 byte file a very clear, backward-compatible way:
type nul >EmptyFile.txt
idea via: anonymous, Danny Backett, possibly others, myself inspired by JdeBP's work
A 0 byte file another way, it's backward-compatible-looking:
REM. >EmptyFile.txt
idea via: Johannes
A 0 byte file 3rd way backward-compatible-looking, too:
echo. 2>EmptyFile.txt
idea via: TheSmurf
A 0 byte file the systematic way probably available since Windows 2000:
fsutil file createnew EmptyFile.txt 0
idea via: Emm
A 0 bytes file overwriting readonly files
ATTRIB -R filename.ext>NUL
(CD.>filename.ext)2>NUL
idea via: copyitright
A single newline (2 bytes: 0x0D 0x0A in hex notation, alternatively written as \r\n):
echo.>AlmostEmptyFile.txt
Note: no space between echo, . and >.
idea via: How can you echo a newline in batch files?
edit It seems that any invalid command redirected to a file would create an empty file. heh, a feature! compatibility: uknown
TheInvisibleFeature <nul >EmptyFile.txt
A 0 bytes file: invalid command/ with a random name (compatibility: uknown):
%RANDOM%-%TIME:~6,5% <nul >EmptyFile.txt
via: great source for random by Hung Huynh
edit 2 Andriy M points out the probably most amusing/provoking way to achieve this via invalid command
A 0 bytes file: invalid command/ the funky way (compatibility: unknown)
*>EmptyFile.txt
idea via: Andriy M
A 0 bytes file 4th-coming way:
break > file.txt
idea via: foxidrive thanks to comment of Double Gras!
REM. > empty.file
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