Batch Commands A batch file or batch program is an unformatted text file that contains one or more MS-DOS commands and is assigned a .BAT extension. When you type the name of the batch program at the command prompt, the commands are carried out as a group. Any MS-DOS command you use at the command prompt can also be put in a batch program. In addition, the following MS-DOS commands are specially designed for batch programs: You can use the COMMAND /Y command to step through a batch program line by line, and can selectively bypass or carry out individual commands. This is useful for tracking down problems in batch files. For more information, see .