How to Execute Programs with Parameters Containing Spaces Using `system()` in C ?

C system() call fails with parameters containing spaces

When using system() to execute a program that takes parameters containing spaces, a common error encountered is:

The filename, directory name, or volume label syntax is incorrect.

This occurs when both the executable path and parameter paths contain spaces.

For example, the following code:

<code class="cpp">#include <stdlib.h>
#include <conio.h>

int main() {
  system("\"C:\Users\Adam\Desktop\pdftotext\" -layout \"C:\Users\Adam\Desktop\week 4.pdf\"");
  _getch();
}</code>

generates the error message due to the presence of spaces in the "pdftotext" path and the PDF file path.

This problem arises because system() passes its arguments to cmd /k, which interprets the first quote character as the beginning of the executable name and the second quote character as the end of the executable name. As a result, the command line is parsed incorrectly, leading to the error.

To solve this issue, the command can be enclosed in double quotes:

<code class="cpp">system("\"\"C:\Users\Adam\Desktop\pdftotext\" -layout \"C:\Users\Adam\Desktop\week 4.pdf\"\"");</code>

Alternatively, cmd /S can be used to force the command line to be interpreted strictly without special parsing rules:

<code class="cpp">system("cmd /S /C \"\"C:\Users\Adam\Desktop\pdftotext\" -layout \"C:\Users\Adam\Desktop\week 4.pdf\"\"");</code>

By applying these solutions, the system() call can successfully execute the program with parameters that contain spaces.

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