What are %plesk_dir%, %plesk_bin% and %plesk_vhosts% ?

Question

What are %plesk_dir%, %plesk_bin% and %plesk_vhosts% variables that are specified in Plesk commands?

Answer

These are the names of system environment variables that Plesk sets up on Windows to simplify access to its directories for administrators and scripts.

Variables exported by Plesk include the following:

• %plesk_dir% -- path to Plesk installation directory (e.g., C:\Program Files (x86)\Plesk )
• %plesk_cli% -- path to directory with Plesk command-line utilities (e.g., C:\Program Files (x86)\Plesk\bin )
• %plesk_bin% -- path to directory with Plesk backend utilities (e.g., C:\Program Files (x86)\Plesk\admin\bin )
• %plesk_vhosts% -- path to directory with virtual hosts (e.g., C:\Inetpub\vhosts )

These shorthand paths are used in Plesk Knowledgebase articles and can also be used for quick access to Plesk directories in command prompt, Windows Explorer, or the Run dialog. For example:

C:\> cd "%plesk_dir%"
C:\Program Files (x86)\Plesk

Always include paths in double quotes. If the variable value is file system path containing a space in its name, commands that use such a variable without quotes will fail, e.g:

C:\> %plesk_cli%\pleskbackup --help
'C:\Program' is not recognized as an internal or external command,
operable program or batch file.