Execute file on server

[pucker22]

hey guys, I seem to spent a loong time trying to understand and figure how to do this with PHP, i have studied the commands through PHP.net website but I still dont get it.

Basically, what I want to do is, when a user for example, goes to the webpage ' start.php ', i want a command so that, a program, such as notepad, would open up on my Windows 2003 dedicated server.

Now, how excatly do I go about doing this, because I looked into the code, and I guess I would be using the command ' exec......

Though when I looked into the source it went something lik this : -

<?php
// outputs the username that owns the running php/httpd process
// (on a system with the "whoami" executable in the path)
echo exec('whoami');
?>

but thats just printing stuff on the website because its using ' echo '

Is it possible that you guys could show me an example of opening a program on my dedicated server, using php?

[The_Chancer]

Just miss out echo and have exec("/path/to/notepad.exe");

[pucker22]

Hey,

thanks for the help, however, when I run the script, it comes out with this error:-

Warning: exec(): Unable to fork [program/notepad.exe] in ......

I have the program 'notepad.exe' inside a folder 'program' located within the same folder as the script is in.

I'm not sure what unable to fork means.

Does the location have to start from my main c:/ location ?, for example, I would have to locate the file like this: c/file/to/webhost/program/notepad.exe rather than program/notepad.exe ?

Thnx 4 help either way though..

:d