Putting double quotes around a QString variable?

[Darkloud]

Hello folks! Having fun with Qt so far, but running into an issue in my code when a folder with spaces is selected. How would I go about adding double quotes to the code below?

QProcess *process = new QProcess(this);
    deploystring = binFolderName + "/windeployqt.exe " + exeName;    // Append windeployqt to binFolderName, append exeName
    ui->statusbar->showMessage("Running: " + deploystring);         // Set status bar message to reflect running command
    process->startDetached("cmd /c \"" + deploystring);            // Starts process

Specifically, I need double quotes around the variables binFolderName, and exeName.

Any help is appreciated!

[edit aha_1980: Fixed code tags]

[Bonnie]

@Darkloud Do you actually try @mpergand 's advice? I also think the problem is that extra \" after cmd /c.
And since you've struggled a lot with quotes, why don't you just use program + arguments as params?

process->startDetached("cmd", QStringList() << "/c" << "C:/Qt/5.14.2/mingw73_64/bin/windeployqt.exe" << "C:/Users/wjbro/Desktop/New folder/Release001.exe");   

Then you won't need to add extra quotes to paths.

[mpergand]

Look at Escape sequences

[Darkloud]

I tried " like this:

deploystring = "\"" + binFolderName + "/windeployqt.exe\" " + "\"" + exeName + "\"";

And that seems to produce exactly what I wanted, however when I run my process, (using cmd) I still get an error that the file cannot be found when the folder it is in contains a space..

"C:\Users\wjbro\Desktop\New" does not exist.

Should be C:\Users\wjbro\Desktop\New folder\Release001.exe

[mpergand]

@Darkloud said in Putting double quotes around a QString variable?:

I still get an error that the file cannot be found when the folder it is in contains a space..

Same thing, you need to enclosed it with \"

[Darkloud]

deploystring = "\"" + binFolderName + "/windeployqt.exe\" " + "\"" + exeName + "\"";

I thought I did?
if
binFolderName = C:\Qt\5.14.2\mingw73_64\bin
exeName = C:\Users\wjbro\Desktop\New folder\Release001.exe

Shouldn't my output be:
deploystring = "C:\Qt\5.14.2\mingw73_64\bin\windeployqt.exe" "C:\Users\wjbro\Desktop\New folder\Release001.exe"

This is the output of qDebug:

Folder with space: (does not work)

"\"C:/Qt/5.14.2/mingw73_64/bin/windeployqt.exe\" \"C:/Users/wjbro/Desktop/New folder/Release001.exe\""

Folder with no space: (works)

"\"C:/Qt/5.14.2/mingw73_64/bin/windeployqt.exe\" \"C:/Users/wjbro/Desktop/test/Release001.exe\""

[mpergand]

QString str="C:/Qt/5.14.2/mingw73_64/bin/windeployqt.exe \"C:/Users/wjbro/Desktop/New folder/Release001.exe\"";
qDebug().noquote() <<str;

C:/Qt/5.14.2/mingw73_64/bin/windeployqt.exe "C:/Users/wjbro/Desktop/New folder/Release001.exe"

Should work, i'm not a cmd line guru though ...

[Darkloud]

Could you enclose that with the Code modifier in the post editor? I can't see where you have the escape sequences

[Darkloud]

Tried this:

deploystring = "C:/Qt/5.14.2/mingw73_64/bin/windeployqt.exe \"C:/Users/wjbro/Desktop/New folder/Release001.exe\"";        
    process->startDetached("cmd /c \"" + deploystring);           
}

And I still get the same error... :(

But yet again, if i do it in my 'test' folder, (with no spaces) it works fine with your above example.

I have also tested within cmd itself, and enclosing everything in double quotes works fine... I have no idea what is going wrong.

[mpergand]

I don't understand cmd /c \""
The string is wrong, there is a quote in the middle :
cmd /c "C:/Qt/5.14.2/mingw73_64/bin/windeployqt.exe "C:/Users/wjbro/Desktop/New folder/Release001.exe"

[Elus]

@Darkloud said in Putting double quotes around a QString variable?:

Tried this:

deploystring = "C:/Qt/5.14.2/mingw73_64/bin/windeployqt.exe \"C:/Users/wjbro/Desktop/New folder/Release001.exe\"";        
    process->startDetached("cmd /c \"" + deploystring);           
}

And I still get the same error... :(

But yet again, if i do it in my 'test' folder, (with no spaces) it works fine with your above example.

I have also tested within cmd itself, and enclosing everything in double quotes works fine... I have no idea what is going wrong.

Can you try:

deploystring = "C:/Qt/5.14.2/mingw73_64/bin/windeployqt.exe \"C:/Users/wjbro/Desktop/New\ folder/Release001.exe\""; 

[Darkloud]

@Elus

Says unknown escape symbol, and it underlines the \ after New

[mpergand]

Yes I tried \+space, but QCreator doesn't seem to like it :)
So I don't know if it 's a valid escape in C.

But if I look with a terminal; spaces are escaped like that.

[Elus]

@Elus said in Putting double quotes around a QString variable?:

deploystring = "C:/Qt/5.14.2/mingw73_64/bin/windeployqt.exe "C:/Users/wjbro/Desktop/New folder/Release001.exe"";
process->startDetached("cmd /c "" + deploystring);

I think carets are sometimes used in Windows to escape spaces, no?

deploystring = "C:/Qt/5.14.2/mingw73_64/bin/windeployqt.exe \"C:/Users/wjbro/Desktop/New^ folder/Release001.exe\"";        
process->startDetached("cmd /c \"" + deploystring);   

[mpergand]

For me the right concatenation sentence is:
process->startDetached("cmd /c " + deploystring);

[Darkloud]

None of these work... :( Heading to bed. Will try again tomorrow

[Bonnie]

@Darkloud Do you actually try @mpergand 's advice? I also think the problem is that extra \" after cmd /c.
And since you've struggled a lot with quotes, why don't you just use program + arguments as params?

process->startDetached("cmd", QStringList() << "/c" << "C:/Qt/5.14.2/mingw73_64/bin/windeployqt.exe" << "C:/Users/wjbro/Desktop/New folder/Release001.exe");   

Then you won't need to add extra quotes to paths.

[JonB]

@Bonnie
I think @Darkloud should indeed run the process via the QStringList() overload you suggest.

However, personally I would call QString QDir::toNativeSeparators(const QString &pathName) (https://doc.qt.io/qt-5/qdir.html#toNativeSeparators) on each of those file path arguments. Unless windeployqt.exe states that it wants file paths to be passed with forward slashes, relying on Windows programs to treat / as the same as \ is dubious, IMHO. Although not this example, I have said before look at the difference between, say, dir /w versus dir \w, which do not do the same thing!

[Darkloud]

@Bonnie said in Putting double quotes around a QString variable?:

@Darkloud Do you actually try @mpergand 's advice? I also think the problem is that extra \" after cmd /c.
And since you've struggled a lot with quotes, why don't you just use program + arguments as params?

process->startDetached("cmd", QStringList() << "/c" << "C:/Qt/5.14.2/mingw73_64/bin/windeployqt.exe" << "C:/Users/wjbro/Desktop/New folder/Release001.exe");   

Then you won't need to add extra quotes to paths.

Yes I did... However it was still not working for me, as stated... However your solution worked! During my research last night, I found using QStringList() was a cleaner and safer way of passing arguments to the command line, however I suppose I was implementing it inorrectly. Not sure what I did incorrectly, but after taking the line you suggested and substituting the hard coded directories with my variables "exeName and binFolderName like so:

```

process->startDetached("cmd", QStringList() << "/c" << binFolderName << exeName);

Everything is working as it should!

Thank you all for the help!

[Darkloud]

@Darkloud said in Putting double quotes around a QString variable?:

process->startDetached("cmd", QStringList() << "/c" << binFolderName << exeName);

Actually, it isn't working... I thought it was, but I am still getting the same error :/

If I run:

```

process->startDetached("cmd", QStringList() << "/c" << "C:/Qt/5.14.2/mingw73_64/bin/windeployqt.exe" << "C:/Users/wjbro/Desktop/New folder/Release001.exe");

it works correctly. If I run:

    ```
process->startDetached("cmd", QStringList() << "/c" << binFolderName << exeName);

it gives me the same
" C:\Users\wjbro\Desktop\New" does not exist.
error

Here is my whole .cpp file if it helps:

#include "deployqt.h"
#include "ui_deployqt.h"
#include <QDebug>



DeployQt::DeployQt(QWidget *parent) :
    QMainWindow(parent),
    ui(new Ui::DeployQt)
{
    ui->setupUi(this);
}

DeployQt::~DeployQt()
{
    delete ui;
}

void DeployQt::on_CancelButton_clicked()
{
    this->close();
}


void DeployQt::on_QtBinDirBrowse_clicked()
{
    binFolderName = QFileDialog::getExistingDirectory(this,       // Open folder select dialog, default to 5.14.2\mingw73_64\bin, store in binFolderName
        tr("Open Bin Directory"), "C:\\Qt\\5.14.2\\mingw73_64\\bin",QFileDialog::DontResolveSymlinks);

   if(!binFolderName.isEmpty()){        // If binFolderName is not empty, set it to QtBindirOut LineOutput
           ui->QtBinDirOut->setText(binFolderName);
           binFolderName = binFolderName + "/windeployqt.exe "; // append /windeployqt.exe to binFolderName
}
}


void DeployQt::on_QtInputExeBrowse_clicked()
{
    exeName = QFileDialog::getOpenFileName(this,      // Open exe to be deployed select dialog, sets to exeName
         tr("Select Exe to Deploy"), "C:\\");

    if(!exeName.isEmpty()){                // If exeName is not empty, set it to QtInputExeOut LineOutput
            ui->QtInputExeOut->setText(exeName);
 }
}


void DeployQt::on_DeployButton_clicked()
{
    QProcess *process = new QProcess(this);
    ui->statusbar->showMessage("Running: " + binFolderName + exeName);         // Set status bar message to reflect running command
    process->startDetached("cmd", QStringList() << "/c" << binFolderName << exeName);

    if ( !process->waitForFinished(-1))    // Wait for process to finish
    {
        return;                            // Return from if statement, to continue
    }



    if(process->exitCode() != 0){
        QString errorMessage;
        if(binFolderName == ""){
            errorMessage.append("No Bin Folder Selected!\n");
        }

        if(exeName == ""){
            errorMessage.append("No Exe File Selected! ");
        }

        msgBox.setText(errorMessage);
        msgBox.setWindowTitle("Error - Deploy Qt Exe (Windows)");
        msgBox.exec();
    }

    else{
        ui->statusbar->showMessage("Complete!");
    }


}

Really not sure what happened.. Could have sworn I tested it and it worked fine.

EDIT: facepalm In order to get the QString to display correctly in the status bar with a space between binFolderName and exeFile, i put a space after the /windeploy append.. That was my issue! Working fine!

[JonB]

@Darkloud said in Putting double quotes around a QString variable?:

process->startDetached("cmd", QStringList() << "/c" << binFolderName << exeName);

So qDebug() << binFolderName and qDebug() << exeName, and copy & paste so that we can clearly read them. If they were identical to your original "C:/Qt/5.14.2/mingw73_64/bin/windeployqt.exe" & "C:/Users/wjbro/Desktop/New folder/Release001.exe", then it would behave the same, there's nothing magical about literal strings vs variables.