AutoIt File Format

Overview

AutoIt is a freeware BASIC-like scripting language designed for automating the Windows GUI and general scripting. Originally created by Jonathan Bennett in 1999, AutoIt provides powerful automation capabilities for Windows applications, system administration tasks, and GUI application development with a simple, easy-to-learn syntax.

Technical Details

• MIME Type: text/plain
• File Extension: .au3
• Category: Code
• First Appeared: 1999
• Current Version: AutoIt v3.3.16+
• Platform: Windows (primary)
• Compiled Output: Standalone executables (.exe)

Structure and Syntax

AutoIt uses a BASIC-like syntax with functions, variables, and control structures that make it accessible to both beginners and experienced programmers.

Basic Script Structure

; This is a comment in AutoIt
; Basic AutoIt script structure

#include <MsgBoxConstants.au3>
#include <FileConstants.au3>

; Variables
Local $sMessage = "Hello, World!"
Local $iNumber = 42

; Display message
MsgBox($MB_SYSTEMMODAL, "AutoIt Demo", $sMessage)

; Simple automation
Send("Hello from AutoIt")
Sleep(1000)
Send("{ENTER}")

Variables and Data Types

; Variable declarations and types
Local $sString = "This is a string"          ; String
Local $iInteger = 123                        ; Integer
Local $fFloat = 3.14159                      ; Float/Double
Local $bBoolean = True                       ; Boolean
Local $vVariant                              ; Variant (any type)

; Arrays
Local $aArray[5] = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]          ; 1D Array
Local $aMatrix[3][3]                         ; 2D Array

; Constants
Const $MY_CONSTANT = "Unchangeable value"

; Global vs Local scope
Global $g_GlobalVar = "Available everywhere"
Local $l_LocalVar = "Available in current scope only"

; Array manipulation
$aArray[0] = 10
For $i = 0 To UBound($aArray) - 1
    ConsoleWrite("Array[" & $i & "] = " & $aArray[$i] & @CRLF)
Next

Control Structures

; If-Then-Else statements
Local $iAge = 25

If $iAge >= 18 Then
    MsgBox($MB_SYSTEMMODAL, "Status", "You are an adult")
ElseIf $iAge >= 13 Then
    MsgBox($MB_SYSTEMMODAL, "Status", "You are a teenager")
Else
    MsgBox($MB_SYSTEMMODAL, "Status", "You are a child")
EndIf

; Switch statement
Local $sDay = "Monday"

Switch $sDay
    Case "Monday", "Tuesday", "Wednesday", "Thursday", "Friday"
        MsgBox($MB_SYSTEMMODAL, "Day Type", "It's a weekday")
    Case "Saturday", "Sunday"
        MsgBox($MB_SYSTEMMODAL, "Day Type", "It's weekend!")
    Case Else
        MsgBox($MB_SYSTEMMODAL, "Day Type", "Invalid day")
EndSwitch

; Loops
; For loop
For $i = 1 To 10
    ConsoleWrite("Count: " & $i & @CRLF)
Next

; While loop
Local $iCounter = 0
While $iCounter < 5
    ConsoleWrite("While loop: " & $iCounter & @CRLF)
    $iCounter += 1
WEnd

; Do-Until loop
Local $iValue = 0
Do
    $iValue += 1
    ConsoleWrite("Do-Until: " & $iValue & @CRLF)
Until $iValue >= 3

Window and GUI Automation

Window Management

#include <WindowsConstants.au3>

; Activate window by title
WinActivate("Notepad")
WinWaitActive("Notepad", "", 10)

; Get window information
Local $hWnd = WinGetHandle("Calculator")
If $hWnd <> 0 Then
    Local $aPos = WinGetPos($hWnd)
    ConsoleWrite("Window position: " & $aPos[0] & ", " & $aPos[1] & @CRLF)
    ConsoleWrite("Window size: " & $aPos[2] & "x" & $aPos[3] & @CRLF)
EndIf

; Window manipulation
WinMove("Calculator", "", 100, 100, 400, 300)
WinSetState("Calculator", "", @SW_MAXIMIZE)

; Close window
WinClose("Calculator")
WinWaitClose("Calculator", "", 5)

Keyboard and Mouse Automation

; Keyboard input simulation
Send("Hello, this is automated text!")
Sleep(1000)
Send("{ENTER}")                              ; Press Enter
Send("^a")                                   ; Ctrl+A (Select All)
Send("^c")                                   ; Ctrl+C (Copy)
Send("{TAB}")                                ; Press Tab
Send("^v")                                   ; Ctrl+V (Paste)

; Special key combinations
Send("{LWIN down}r{LWIN up}")               ; Windows+R
Sleep(500)
Send("notepad{ENTER}")                       ; Open Notepad

; Mouse automation
MouseMove(100, 200, 10)                      ; Move to coordinates (100, 200)
MouseClick("left", 100, 200, 1, 0)          ; Left click
MouseClick("right", 300, 300)               ; Right click
MouseClickDrag("left", 100, 100, 200, 200)  ; Drag from (100,100) to (200,200)

; Mouse wheel
MouseWheel("up", 3)                          ; Scroll up 3 notches
MouseWheel("down", 2)                        ; Scroll down 2 notches

GUI Development

Simple GUI Application

#include <GUIConstantsEx.au3>
#include <StaticConstants.au3>
#include <WindowsConstants.au3>

; Create GUI
Local $hGUI = GUICreate("AutoIt GUI Demo", 400, 300)

; Add controls
Local $idLabel = GUICtrlCreateLabel("Enter your name:", 10, 10, 100, 20)
Local $idInput = GUICtrlCreateInput("", 10, 35, 200, 20)
Local $idButton = GUICtrlCreateButton("Say Hello", 10, 65, 100, 30)
Local $idOutput = GUICtrlCreateLabel("", 10, 110, 380, 100, $SS_SUNKEN)

; Show GUI
GUISetState(@SW_SHOW, $hGUI)

; Event loop
While 1
    Local $nMsg = GUIGetMsg()
    
    Switch $nMsg
        Case $GUI_EVENT_CLOSE
            ExitLoop
            
        Case $idButton
            Local $sName = GUICtrlRead($idInput)
            If $sName <> "" Then
                GUICtrlSetData($idOutput, "Hello, " & $sName & "!" & @CRLF & "Welcome to AutoIt!")
            Else
                GUICtrlSetData($idOutput, "Please enter your name first.")
            EndIf
    EndSwitch
WEnd

GUIDelete($hGUI)

Advanced GUI with Multiple Controls

#include <GUIConstantsEx.au3>
#include <EditConstants.au3>
#include <WindowsConstants.au3>

; Create main window
Local $hMainGUI = GUICreate("System Information Tool", 500, 400)

; Menu
Local $idFileMenu = GUICtrlCreateMenu("File")
Local $idFileExit = GUICtrlCreateMenuItem("Exit", $idFileMenu)
Local $idHelpMenu = GUICtrlCreateMenu("Help")
Local $idHelpAbout = GUICtrlCreateMenuItem("About", $idHelpMenu)

; Controls
GUICtrlCreateGroup("System Information", 10, 10, 480, 300)
Local $idSystemInfo = GUICtrlCreateEdit("", 20, 30, 460, 270, $ES_READONLY + $WS_VSCROLL)

Local $idRefreshBtn = GUICtrlCreateButton("Refresh", 10, 320, 100, 30)
Local $idSaveBtn = GUICtrlCreateButton("Save to File", 120, 320, 100, 30)
Local $idCloseBtn = GUICtrlCreateButton("Close", 390, 320, 100, 30)

; Load initial data
Gosub("RefreshSystemInfo")

GUISetState(@SW_SHOW, $hMainGUI)

; Event loop
While 1
    Local $nMsg = GUIGetMsg()
    
    Switch $nMsg
        Case $GUI_EVENT_CLOSE, $idFileExit, $idCloseBtn
            ExitLoop
            
        Case $idRefreshBtn
            Gosub("RefreshSystemInfo")
            
        Case $idSaveBtn
            Local $sInfo = GUICtrlRead($idSystemInfo)
            Local $sFile = FileSaveDialog("Save System Info", @DesktopDir, "Text files (*.txt)")
            If $sFile <> "" Then
                FileWrite($sFile, $sInfo)
                MsgBox($MB_SYSTEMMODAL, "Success", "Information saved to: " & $sFile)
            EndIf
            
        Case $idHelpAbout
            MsgBox($MB_SYSTEMMODAL, "About", "System Information Tool" & @CRLF & "Built with AutoIt")
    EndSwitch
WEnd

GUIDelete($hMainGUI)

; Function to refresh system information
Func RefreshSystemInfo()
    Local $sInfo = ""
    $sInfo &= "Computer Name: " & @ComputerName & @CRLF
    $sInfo &= "User Name: " & @UserName & @CRLF
    $sInfo &= "OS Version: " & @OSVersion & @CRLF
    $sInfo &= "OS Build: " & @OSBuild & @CRLF
    $sInfo &= "CPU Architecture: " & @CPUArch & @CRLF
    $sInfo &= "Desktop Width: " & @DesktopWidth & @CRLF
    $sInfo &= "Desktop Height: " & @DesktopHeight & @CRLF
    $sInfo &= "System Directory: " & @SystemDir & @CRLF
    $sInfo &= "Windows Directory: " & @WindowsDir & @CRLF
    $sInfo &= "Program Files: " & @ProgramFilesDir & @CRLF
    $sInfo &= "Temp Directory: " & @TempDir & @CRLF
    $sInfo &= "Current Working Directory: " & @WorkingDir & @CRLF
    
    GUICtrlSetData($idSystemInfo, $sInfo)
EndFunc

File and System Operations

File Management

#include <FileConstants.au3>
#include <MsgBoxConstants.au3>

; File operations
Local $sSourceFile = @ScriptDir & "\test.txt"
Local $sDestFile = @ScriptDir & "\backup\test_backup.txt"

; Create directory if it doesn't exist
If Not FileExists(@ScriptDir & "\backup") Then
    DirCreate(@ScriptDir & "\backup")
EndIf

; Write to file
Local $hFile = FileOpen($sSourceFile, $FO_OVERWRITE)
If $hFile = -1 Then
    MsgBox($MB_SYSTEMMODAL, "Error", "Unable to create file")
    Exit
EndIf

FileWrite($hFile, "This is a test file created by AutoIt" & @CRLF)
FileWrite($hFile, "Current time: " & @YEAR & "-" & @MON & "-" & @MDAY & " " & @HOUR & ":" & @MIN & ":" & @SEC & @CRLF)
FileClose($hFile)

; Copy file
FileCopy($sSourceFile, $sDestFile, $FC_OVERWRITE)

; Read file
Local $sContent = FileRead($sDestFile)
MsgBox($MB_SYSTEMMODAL, "File Content", $sContent)

; File attributes
Local $iSize = FileGetSize($sDestFile)
Local $sTime = FileGetTime($sDestFile, $FT_MODIFIED, $FT_STRING)
ConsoleWrite("File size: " & $iSize & " bytes" & @CRLF)
ConsoleWrite("Modified: " & $sTime & @CRLF)

Registry Operations

#include <MsgBoxConstants.au3>

; Registry operations
Local $sKeyPath = "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\AutoItTest"
Local $sValueName = "TestValue"
Local $sTestData = "This is test data from AutoIt"

; Write to registry
RegWrite($sKeyPath, $sValueName, "REG_SZ", $sTestData)

; Read from registry
Local $sReadData = RegRead($sKeyPath, $sValueName)
If @error Then
    MsgBox($MB_SYSTEMMODAL, "Error", "Failed to read registry value")
Else
    MsgBox($MB_SYSTEMMODAL, "Registry Data", "Value: " & $sReadData)
EndIf

; Enumerate registry keys
Local $i = 1
While 1
    Local $sSubKey = RegEnumKey($sKeyPath, $i)
    If @error Then ExitLoop
    ConsoleWrite("Subkey " & $i & ": " & $sSubKey & @CRLF)
    $i += 1
WEnd

; Delete registry value (cleanup)
RegDelete($sKeyPath, $sValueName)

Advanced Features

COM Object Automation

; Excel automation example
Local $oExcel = ObjCreate("Excel.Application")
If @error Then
    MsgBox($MB_SYSTEMMODAL, "Error", "Failed to create Excel object")
    Exit
EndIf

$oExcel.Visible = True
Local $oWorkbook = $oExcel.Workbooks.Add()
Local $oWorksheet = $oWorkbook.ActiveSheet

; Add data to cells
$oWorksheet.Cells(1, 1).Value = "Name"
$oWorksheet.Cells(1, 2).Value = "Age"
$oWorksheet.Cells(1, 3).Value = "City"

$oWorksheet.Cells(2, 1).Value = "John Doe"
$oWorksheet.Cells(2, 2).Value = 30
$oWorksheet.Cells(2, 3).Value = "New York"

$oWorksheet.Cells(3, 1).Value = "Jane Smith"
$oWorksheet.Cells(3, 2).Value = 25
$oWorksheet.Cells(3, 3).Value = "Los Angeles"

; Format cells
Local $oRange = $oWorksheet.Range("A1:C1")
$oRange.Font.Bold = True
$oRange.Interior.Color = 0xCCCCCC

; Auto-fit columns
$oWorksheet.Columns("A:C").AutoFit()

; Save workbook
$oWorkbook.SaveAs(@DesktopDir & "\AutoItData.xlsx")

; Cleanup
$oWorkbook.Close()
$oExcel.Quit()
$oExcel = 0

Network Operations

#include <InetConstants.au3>
#include <MsgBoxConstants.au3>

; Download file from internet
Local $sURL = "https://www.autoitscript.com/autoit3/files/readme.txt"
Local $sLocalFile = @TempDir & "\downloaded_file.txt"

Local $hDownload = InetGet($sURL, $sLocalFile, $INET_FORCERELOAD)
InetClose($hDownload)

If FileExists($sLocalFile) Then
    Local $sContent = FileRead($sLocalFile)
    MsgBox($MB_SYSTEMMODAL, "Downloaded Content", StringLeft($sContent, 200) & "...")
    FileDelete($sLocalFile)
Else
    MsgBox($MB_SYSTEMMODAL, "Error", "Failed to download file")
EndIf

; Check internet connectivity
If Ping("google.com", 1000) Then
    ConsoleWrite("Internet connection is available" & @CRLF)
Else
    ConsoleWrite("No internet connection" & @CRLF)
EndIf

Functions and Error Handling

Custom Functions

; Function with parameters and return value
Func CalculateArea($fLength, $fWidth)
    If $fLength <= 0 Or $fWidth <= 0 Then
        SetError(1, 0, 0)  ; Set error flag
        Return 0
    EndIf
    
    Return $fLength * $fWidth
EndFunc

; Function with optional parameters
Func DisplayMessage($sMessage, $sTitle = "Information", $iType = $MB_SYSTEMMODAL)
    Return MsgBox($iType, $sTitle, $sMessage)
EndFunc

; Using the functions
Local $fArea = CalculateArea(5.5, 3.2)
If @error Then
    MsgBox($MB_SYSTEMMODAL, "Error", "Invalid input for area calculation")
Else
    DisplayMessage("Area: " & $fArea, "Calculation Result")
EndIf

; Function with ByRef parameters (pass by reference)
Func SwapValues(ByRef $vVar1, ByRef $vVar2)
    Local $vTemp = $vVar1
    $vVar1 = $vVar2
    $vVar2 = $vTemp
EndFunc

Local $iA = 10, $iB = 20
ConsoleWrite("Before: A=" & $iA & ", B=" & $iB & @CRLF)
SwapValues($iA, $iB)
ConsoleWrite("After: A=" & $iA & ", B=" & $iB & @CRLF)

Development Tools and Best Practices

Debugging and Testing

; Debug output
ConsoleWrite("Debug: Variable value = " & $sVariable & @CRLF)

; Error handling
Local $iResult = SomeFunction()
If @error Then
    ConsoleWrite("Error occurred in SomeFunction()" & @CRLF)
    ; Handle error appropriately
EndIf

; Assertions for testing
Func AssertEqual($vExpected, $vActual, $sMessage = "")
    If $vExpected <> $vActual Then
        Local $sError = "Assertion failed: Expected '" & $vExpected & "' but got '" & $vActual & "'"
        If $sMessage <> "" Then $sError &= " - " & $sMessage
        MsgBox($MB_SYSTEMMODAL, "Test Failed", $sError)
        Exit 1
    EndIf
EndFunc

; Performance timing
Local $hTimer = TimerInit()
; ... code to time ...
Local $fElapsed = TimerDiff($hTimer)
ConsoleWrite("Execution time: " & $fElapsed & " ms" & @CRLF)

Best Practices

• Use meaningful variable names with prefixes ($s for string, $i for integer, $a for array)
• Include relevant header files for constants
• Handle errors appropriately with @error checking
• Use functions to organize code and avoid repetition
• Add comments to explain complex logic
• Test scripts thoroughly before deployment

Common Use Cases

System Administration

• Automated software installation and updates
• System monitoring and reporting
• User account management
• Network configuration tasks

Business Process Automation

• Data entry and form filling
• Report generation and distribution
• File processing and organization
• Email automation

Application Testing

• Automated GUI testing
• Regression testing scenarios
• Load testing simulation
• User interface validation

Personal Productivity

• Desktop automation and customization
• File management utilities
• Backup and synchronization tools
• Media organization and processing

AutoIt continues to be a powerful tool for Windows automation, offering an excellent balance of simplicity and functionality for both novice and experienced developers.