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<table class="sectionheader"><tr>
<td><img src="../images/b64x64_enhanced_browsing.png" alt="" /></td>
<td><h1>URL Field</h1>
<p>The URL field supports various special protocols and placeholders.</p></td>
</tr></table>
<ul>
<li><a href="#stdcp">Standard Capabilities</a></li>
<li><a href="#cmdln">Executing Command Lines</a></li>
<li><a href="#subst">Placeholders</a></li>
<li><a href="#override">Changing the URL Handler (URL Override)</a></li>
</ul>
Usage Tips & Tricks:
<ul>
<li><a href="#rdpts">Starting RDP/TS Sessions (Remote Desktop / Terminal Server Connection)</a></li>
<li><a href="#builtin">Executing Built-In Shell Commands</a></li>
</ul>
<br />
<a name="stdcp"></a>
<h2 class="sectiontitle"><img src="../images/b16x16_ascii.png" alt="" />
Standard Capabilities</h2>
<p>The URL field can execute any valid URL for which a protocol handler is defined.
On most systems at least the <code>http://</code>, <code>https://</code>,
<code>ftp://</code> and <code>mailto:</code> protocols are defined.
KeePass supports all protocols that Windows supports.</p>
<p>For example, if you globally (i.e. using the Windows Explorer) register PuTTY for <code>ssh://</code> URLs,
KeePass will automatically use PuTTY for <code>ssh://</code> URLs, too.</p>
<br />
<a name="cmdln"></a>
<h2 class="sectiontitle"><img src="../images/b16x16_openterm.png" alt="" />
Executing Command Lines</h2>
<p>Instead of a URL, you can also execute command lines using the URL field.
To tell KeePass that the line you entered
is a command line, prefix it using <code>cmd://</code>. For example if you would like to execute
Notepad, your URL could look like this:</p>
<pre>cmd://C:\Windows\Notepad.exe C:\Test\MyTestFile.txt</pre>
<p>The virtual <code>cmd://</code> protocol also supports parameters for executable
files, in contrast to
the <code>file://</code> protocol. This was the main reason why <code>cmd://</code>
was introduced; with <code>file://</code> you
aren't able to pass any parameters to started applications. Use the <code>cmd://</code>
protocol instead.</p>
<p>The paths for the <code>cmd://</code> protocol don't need to be encoded. For example,
you do not have to replace space characters by <code>%20</code>, as it is normally
required for other URLs. KeePass just cuts away the <code>cmd://</code> virtual
protocol prefix and passes the remaining command line to the system.</p>
<p>If the file path contains spaces, you must enclose it in quotes (").</p>
<p><b>Environment Variables:</b><br />
System environment variables are supported.
The name of the variable must be enclosed in '<code>%</code>' characters.
For example <code>%TEMP%</code> is replaced by the user's temporary path.</p>
<p><b>UNC Paths:</b><br />
Windows-style UNC paths (starting with <code>\\</code>) are directly
supported, i.e. do not need to be prefixed with <code>cmd://</code>.</p>
<p><b>Double Quotes (<code>"</code>) and Backslashes (<code>\</code>):</b><br />
There are multiple rule sets for parsing command lines
<!-- https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/api/shellapi/ns-shellapi-shellexecuteinfow -->
(<a href="https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/api/shellapi/ns-shellapi-shellexecuteinfow"
target="_blank"><code>SHELLEXECUTEINFOW</code> structure</a>,
<!-- https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/api/shellapi/nf-shellapi-commandlinetoargvw -->
<a href="https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/api/shellapi/nf-shellapi-commandlinetoargvw"
target="_blank"><code>CommandLineToArgvW</code> function</a>,
<!-- https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/cpp/cpp/parsing-cpp-command-line-arguments -->
<!-- https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/cpp/cpp/main-function-command-line-args -->
<a href="https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/cpp/cpp/main-function-command-line-args"
target="_blank"><code>main</code> function and command line arguments</a>, etc.).
These rule sets are contradictory; command lines are interpreted differently.
For example, in the <code>SHELLEXECUTEINFOW</code> structure documentation,
backslashes have no special meaning, whereas the
<code>CommandLineToArgvW</code> function sometimes interprets a backslash
as an escape character.
Another example: <code>A"""B C"""D</code> is
interpreted as <em>one</em> argument (namely <code>A"B C"D</code>)
by the Microsoft C/C++ startup code (<code>main</code> function), whereas the
<code>CommandLineToArgvW</code> function returns <em>two</em> arguments
(namely <code>A"B</code> and <code>C"D</code>).
KeePass cannot know how the executed application will interpret its
command line, and there is no command line encoding that is
interpreted as intended by all applications.
Therefore, we recommend:</p>
<ul>
<li>Use double quotes (") only to indicate the start and the end of
the file path or of an argument. Do not use a quote in data that
requires encoding. For example, if your command line contains a
<code>{PASSWORD}</code> <a href="placeholders.html">placeholder</a>,
the password should not contain a quote.</li>
<li>Use a backslash only when the next character is not a quote,
i.e. avoid <code>\"</code>.
Especially, avoid data ending with a backslash if a quote follows on
the command line. For example, if the command line contains an
argument like <code>-pw:"{PASSWORD}"</code>, the password should
not end with a backslash, because otherwise the placeholder replacement
results in the problematic <code>\"</code> sequence.</li>
</ul>
<p><b>Unix-like Systems:</b><br />
On Unix-like systems, KeePass assumes that double quotes (<code>"</code>)
and backslashes (<code>\</code>) must be encoded.
Furthermore, KeePass assumes that single quotes (<code>'</code>)
only occur in contexts where they must not be encoded (e.g. within
double quotes). So, if any of your arguments may contain a single quote,
you have to ensure that it occurs within such a context.
On Windows, this is irrelevant, as single quotes do not have a special meaning here.</p>
<br />
<a name="subst"></a>
<h2 class="sectiontitle"><img src="../images/b16x16_ascii.png" alt="" />
Placeholders</h2>
<p>In the URL field, you can use several placeholders that will get automatically replaced
when the URL is executed. For example:</p>
<pre>https://www.example.com/default.php?user={USERNAME}&pass={PASSWORD}</pre>
<p>For this entry, KeePass will replace {USERNAME} by the data of the username field and {PASSWORD}
by the data in the password field when you execute the link.</p>
<p>For a complete list of supported placeholders, see the page
<a href="placeholders.html">Placeholders</a>.</p>
<p>Also note that the special placeholders are supported, too. For example,
the <code>{APPDIR}</code> placeholder is replaced by the application
directory path of the currently running KeePass instance. It's the absolute path of the
directory containing the KeePass executable, without a trailing backslash.
If you would like to start a new KeePass instance, you could set the URL to:</p>
<pre>cmd://"{APPDIR}\KeePass.exe"</pre>
<p>To use different browsers for entries, you can use URLs like the following:<br />
<code>cmd://{INTERNETEXPLORER} "https://www.example.com/"</code><br />
<code>cmd://{FIREFOX} "https://www.example.com/"</code><br />
<code>cmd://{OPERA} "https://www.example.com/"</code><br />
<code>cmd://{GOOGLECHROME} "https://www.example.com/"</code><br />
<code>cmd://{SAFARI} "https://www.example.com/"</code><br />
The browser placeholder will be replaced by the browser's executable path (if the
browser is installed).</p>
<br />
<a name="override"></a>
<h2 class="sectiontitle"><img src="../images/b16x16_ascii.png" alt="" />
Changing the URL Handler (URL Override)</h2>
<br />
<p>The URL field behavior can be overridden individually for each entry
using the field 'Override URL' (tab 'Properties' in the entry dialog).
This allows you to execute a specific URL, while still using the URL
field to (only) store data.
When double-clicking the URL field of the entry in the main window, the
specified command line (in the URL override field) will be run.</p>
<p><b>Using a different browser:</b><br />
If your default browser is Firefox and you want to open a specific site with
Internet Explorer, specify the following in the URL override field:</p>
<p><code>cmd://{INTERNETEXPLORER} "{URL}"</code></p>
<p>KeePass will open Internet Explorer and pass the data from the URL field
as the parameter. This uses a <a href="#subst">placeholder</a> to find Internet
Explorer.</p>
<p><b>Globally changing the URL behavior:</b><br />
If you want to change the <i>default</i> URL action for a URL scheme
(e.g. <code>http://</code>, <code>https://</code> or <code>ftp://</code>),
you can define a URL scheme override
in 'Tools' → 'Options' → tab 'Integration' → 'URL Overrides'.
This for example allows to specify a browser as default for websites
(in the dialog you can find several overrides for browsers like Internet Explorer,
Mozilla Firefox, Opera and Google Chrome).</p>
<p>URL scheme overrides can also be used to define new protocols. For example,
if you want to define a protocol <code>kdbx://</code> that opens another KeePass database,
specify the following as override for the <code>kdbx</code> scheme (on Windows):<br />
<code>cmd://"{APPDIR}\KeePass.exe" "{BASE:RMVSCM}" -pw-enc:"{PASSWORD_ENC}"</code><br />
On Unix-like systems (Mono):<br />
<code>cmd://mono "{APPDIR}/KeePass.exe" "{BASE:RMVSCM}" -pw-enc:"{PASSWORD_ENC}"</code><br />
If an entry now has a URL looking like <code>kdbx://<i>PathToYourDatabase.kdbx</i></code>
and the master password for this database in the password field,
double-clicking the URL of the entry in the main window opens the other database.
The <code>-pw-enc</code> <a href="cmdline.html">command line</a> parameter and
the <a href="placeholders.html#passwordenc"><code>{PASSWORD_ENC}</code></a> placeholder
allow passing the master password of the other database in encrypted form,
i.e. process monitors and similar utilities aren't be able to read the master password.</p>
<br /><br />
<a name="rdpts"></a>
<h2 class="sectiontitle"><img src="../images/b16x16_openterm.png" alt="" />
Starting RDP/TS Sessions</h2>
<p>You can use the URL field of entries and the virtual <code>cmd://</code>
protocol to start remote desktop connections.</p>
<p>For this, enter the following in the URL field of an entry:</p>
<pre>cmd://mstsc.exe</pre>
<p>When you now double-click the URL field of the entry in the main window, a
Windows remote desktop connection is initiated.</p>
<p>MSTSC is the Windows terminal server connection program (remote desktop connection).
You can pass a path to an existing RDP file to the program to open it. For example,
the following URL opens the specified RDP file:</p>
<pre>cmd://mstsc.exe "C:\My Files\Connection.rdp"</pre>
<p>MSTSC also supports several command line options:</p>
<ul>
<li><b>/v:<Server[:Port]></b><br />Defines the terminal server to connect to.</li>
<li><b>/console</b><br />Connects to the terminal session of the server.</li>
<li><b>/f</b><br />Starts the client in full screen mode.</li>
<li><b>/w:<Width></b><br />Defines the width of the remote desktop screen.</li>
<li><b>/h:<Height></b><br />Defines the height of the remote desktop screen.</li>
<li><b>/edit</b><br />Opens the specified RDP file for editing.</li>
<li><b>/migrate</b><br />Migrates old connection files to new RDP files.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<a name="builtin"></a>
<h2 class="sectiontitle"><img src="../images/b16x16_openterm.png" alt="" />
Executing Built-In Shell Commands</h2>
<p>The URL field can be used to start applications/documents and URLs.
If you want to execute a built-in shell command, like <code>COPY</code> for
example, this however doesn't work directly, because there is no <code>COPY.EXE</code>
(in Windows 9x times there actually was one, but on all modern Windows operating
systems these commands are built-in to the command line window).</p>
<p>In order to execute built-in shell commands, you need to pass them to the
command line interpreter <code>cmd.exe</code>.</p>
<p>For the <code>COPY</code> command you would specify <code>cmd.exe</code>
as executable file and <code>/C COPY from to</code> as arguments (where
'<code>from</code>' and '<code>to</code>' are paths). The <code>/C</code>
parameter tells <code>cmd.exe</code> to execute the command line that
follows.</p>
<p>In the URL field, your URL would look like the following:<br />
<code>cmd://cmd.exe /C COPY from to</code><br />
In other locations, like command lines in the trigger system,
you can leave out the <code>cmd://</code> URL prefix.</p>
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