for Windows10,Windows8,Windows7,VISTA,
XP,NT,Server 2000,Server 2003,Server 2008

Left String

Extract characters from the beginning of a string.

Description: Similar to the Left function in VB a batch script can return a specified number of characters from the left side of a string by specifying a substring for an expansion given a position of 0 and a length using :~ while expanding a variable content. The example shows how to return the first 4 characters of a string.

Script:

1. 2. 3. 4. set str=politic echo.%str% set str=%str:~0,4% echo.%str%

Script Output:

Script Output

politic
poli