Environment variables are used to tune many parameters of operating systems. Thus, the path variable tells the system the path to search for executable files.
Instructions
Step 1
Right-click on the My Computer icon located on the desktop or in the Start menu. In the context menu that appears, select the very bottom line "Properties" - a new window "System Properties" will open. You can also bring up the System Properties window by pressing the Windows + Pause Break hotkey. If you are using the Windows 7 operating system, then also right-click on the "My Computer" icon, select "Properties", then select "Advanced system settings" in the left part of the properties window.
Step 2
In the "System Properties" window, go to the "Advanced" tab by clicking on it with the left mouse button - you will see three sections of additional system settings. Below them there will be two more buttons - "Environment Variables" and "Error Reporting". You need environment variables - click on the appropriate button.
Step 3
The Environment Variables window contains two categories of variables, one for user environment variables and the other for system requirements. Find the path variable in the list of system variables and select it by pressing the left mouse button.
Step 4
Now, with the path variable highlighted, click on the "Change" button located under the list box - a small window "Change the system variable" will open, where two input lines will be located - "Variable name" and "Variable value". Change the value of the path variable to whatever you want.
Step 5
In another way, you can change the value of the path variable as follows: in the "Environment Variables" window, click the "New" button, then in the window that opens, in the "Variable name" field, enter "path" and in the "Variable value" field, enter the desired value. This will change the current value of the path variable to the one you just entered.
