Variable in WinSCP script

Question

I'm asked to automate some SFTP download processes via WinSCP. I'm not familiar with WinSCP scripting.

ftprun.cmd:

C:\Program Files\WinSCP\winscp.com" /script=D:\testsftp\ftpscript.txt

ftpscript.txt:

option batch continue
option confirm off
open [email protected]
set mydate=%date:~6,4%%date:~3,2%%date:~0,2%
cd /cygdrive/h/ftproot/PROD/MRMRSA/eMotor/
lcd D:\testsftp
mkdir %mydate%
exit

When I run the script, system shows

Unknown command 'set'.

Have been searching high and low to solve this but no luck.

Solution

There's indeed no set command in WinSCP.

The set command, with syntax you are using, is a Windows command.

As such, you need to execute it from a Windows batch file, such as yours ftprun.cmd.

WinSCP can resolve Windows environment variables in its script:

So all you actually need to do is to move the set line to the ftprun.cmd, before the call to winscp.com:

set mydate=%date:~6,4%%date:~3,2%%date:~0,2%
"C:\Program Files\WinSCP\winscp.com" /script=D:\testsftp\ftpscript.txt

---

Anyway, note that your date magic is locale-specific, so make sure that every machine, where you use the script, use the same locale (language) as the machine you develop/test this on. For example with my Czech locale, the mydate resolves to nonsense 06.12čt, because the date is čt 12. 06. 2014.

Better solution, is to use the WinSCP %TIMESTAMP% syntax:

mkdir %TIMESTAMP#yyyymmdd%