The DEL command

Basic syntax

DEL filespec

filespec:    files to be deleted

Full syntax

To delete all files from a directory, you could use:

DEL *.*

DEL will then ask you to confirm that you want to delete all files.

In batch files, this would stop the execution of the batch file and require user interaction, which usually isn't what batch files are intended for.

One way to solve this would be:

ECHO Y | DEL *.*

which will work fine for English DOS versions; for other languages the "Y" needs to be replaced.
So what if you don't know what language will be used for your batch file?
Try this:

FOR %%A IN (*.*) DO DEL %%A

This solution is completely independent of both operating system and  language!

Related Stuff

• MS-DOS' DELTREE command deletes entire directory trees.
• The DEL command in Windows NT 4 and later.
• In Windows NT 4 and later, use RD /S [/Q] instead of DELTREE.
• Recycle.vbs sends the contents of a folder to the Recycle Bin instead of truly deleting them.
• In VBScript you can use my DelTree subroutine.
• DelAge and DelOld (one version by Hans-Georg Michna and one by Kees Hiemstra) delete files older than a specified number of days.
• MOVEEX by Frank Westlake schedules files that are in use, like system DLLs, to be removed at the next reboot.
• How to empty Windows' Recycle Bin.
• How to remove Windows' temporary files and clear Internet Explorer's cache.
• OS/2's DEL command.
• Download DELDIR.CMD or DELTREE.EXE, two DELTREE replacements for OS/2.