Table of Contents

Foreword; Preface; Who This Book Is For; How This Book Is Organized; What You Need to Use This Book; Conventions Used in This Book; Code Examples; Safari® Books Online; How to Contact Us; Acknowledgments; Tour; A Guided Tour of Windows PowerShell; Introduction; An Interactive Shell; Structured Commands (Cmdlets); Deep Integration of Objects; Administrators as First-Class Users; Composable Commands; Techniques to Protect You from Yourself; Common Discovery Commands; Ubiquitous Scripting; Ad Hoc Development; Bridging Technologies; Namespace Navigation Through Providers; Much, Much More; Fundamentals; Chapter 1: The Windows PowerShell Interactive Shell; 1.1 Introduction; 1.2 Run Programs, Scripts, and Existing Tools; 1.3 Run a PowerShell Command; 1.4 Resolve Errors Calling Native Executables; 1.5 Supply Default Values for Parameters; 1.6 Invoke a Long-Running or Background Command; 1.7 Program: Monitor a Command for Changes; 1.8 Notify Yourself of Job Completion; 1.9 Customize Your Shell, Profile, and Prompt; 1.10 Customize PowerShell’s User Input Behavior; 1.11 Customize PowerShell’s Command Resolution Behavior; 1.12 Find a Command to Accomplish a Task; 1.13 Get Help on a Command; 1.14 Update System Help Content; 1.15 Program: Search Help for Text; 1.16 Launch PowerShell at a Specific Location; 1.17 Invoke a PowerShell Command or Script from Outside PowerShell; 1.18 Understand and Customize PowerShell’s Tab Completion; 1.19 Program: Learn Aliases for Common Commands; 1.20 Program: Learn Aliases for Common Parameters; 1.21 Access and Manage Your Console History; 1.22 Program: Create Scripts from Your Session History; 1.23 Invoke a Command from Your Session History; 1.24 Program: Search Formatted Output for a Pattern; 1.25 Interactively View and Process Command Output; 1.26 Program: Interactively View and Explore Objects; 1.27 Store the Output of a Command into a File; 1.28 Add Information to the End of a File; 1.29 Record a Transcript of Your Shell Session; 1.30 Extend Your Shell with Additional Commands; 1.31 Use Commands from Customized Shells; 1.32 Save State Between Sessions; Chapter 2: Pipelines; 2.1 Introduction; 2.2 Filter Items in a List or Command Output; 2.3 Group and Pivot Data by Name; 2.4 Program: Simplify Most Where-Object Filters; 2.5 Program: Interactively Filter Lists of Objects; 2.6 Work with Each Item in a List or Command Output; 2.7 Automate Data-Intensive Tasks; 2.8 Program: Simplify Most Foreach-Object Pipelines; 2.9 Intercept Stages of the Pipeline; 2.10 Automatically Capture Pipeline Output; 2.11 Capture and Redirect Binary Process Output; Chapter 3: Variables and Objects; 3.1 Introduction; 3.2 Display the Properties of an Item as a List; 3.3 Display the Properties of an Item as a Table; 3.4 Store Information in Variables; 3.5 Access Environment Variables; 3.6 Program: Retain Changes to Environment Variables Set by a Batch File; 3.7 Control Access and Scope of Variables and Other Items; 3.8 Program: Create a Dynamic Variable; 3.9 Work with .NET Objects; 3.10 Create an Instance of a .NET Object; 3.11 Create Instances of Generic Objects; 3.12 Reduce Typing for Long Class Names; 3.13 Use a COM Object; 3.14 Learn About Types and Objects; 3.15 Get Detailed Documentation About Types and Objects; 3.16 Add Custom Methods and Properties to Objects; 3.17 Create and Initialize Custom Objects; 3.18 Add Custom Methods and Properties to Types; 3.19 Define Custom Formatting for a Type; Chapter 4: Looping and Flow Control; 4.1 Introduction; 4.2 Make Decisions with Comparison and Logical Operators; 4.3 Adjust Script Flow Using Conditional Statements; 4.4 Manage Large Conditional Statements with Switches; 4.5 Repeat Operations with Loops; 4.6 Add a Pause or Delay; Chapter 5: Strings and Unstructured Text; 5.1 Introduction; 5.2 Create a String; 5.3 Create a Multiline or Formatted String; 5.4 Place Special Characters in a String; 5.5 Insert Dynamic Information in a String; 5.6 Prevent a String from Including Dynamic Information; 5.7 Place Formatted Information in a String; 5.8 Search a String for Text or a Pattern; 5.9 Replace Text in a String; 5.10 Split a String on Text or a Pattern; 5.11 Combine Strings into a Larger String; 5.12 Convert a String to Uppercase or Lowercase; 5.13 Trim a String; 5.14 Format a Date for Output; 5.15 Program: Convert Text Streams to Objects; 5.16 Generate Large Reports and Text Streams; 5.17 Generate Source Code and Other Repetitive Text; Chapter 6: Calculations and Math; 6.1 Introduction; 6.2 Perform Simple Arithmetic; 6.3 Perform Complex Arithmetic; 6.4 Measure Statistical Properties of a List; 6.5 Work with Numbers as Binary; 6.6 Simplify Math with Administrative Constants; 6.7 Convert Numbers Between Bases; Chapter 7: Lists, Arrays, and Hashtables; 7.1 Introduction; 7.2 Create an Array or List of Items; 7.3 Create a Jagged or Multidimensional Array; 7.4 Access Elements of an Array; 7.5 Visit Each Element of an Array; 7.6 Sort an Array or List of Items; 7.7 Determine Whether an Array Contains an Item; 7.8 Combine Two Arrays; 7.9 Find Items in an Array That Match a Value; 7.10 Compare Two Lists; 7.11 Remove Elements from an Array; 7.12 Find Items in an Array Greater or Less Than a Value; 7.13 Use the ArrayList Class for Advanced Array Tasks; 7.14 Create a Hashtable or Associative Array; 7.15 Sort a Hashtable by Key or Value; Chapter 8: Utility Tasks; 8.1 Introduction; 8.2 Get the System Date and Time; 8.3 Measure the Duration of a Command; 8.4 Read and Write from the Windows Clipboard; 8.5 Generate a Random Number or Object; 8.6 Program: Search the Windows Start Menu; 8.7 Program: Show Colorized Script Content; Common Tasks; Chapter 9: Simple Files; 9.1 Introduction; 9.2 Get the Content of a File; 9.3 Search a File for Text or a Pattern; 9.4 Parse and Manage Text-Based Logfiles; 9.5 Parse and Manage Binary Files; 9.6 Create a Temporary File; 9.7 Search and Replace Text in a File; 9.8 Program: Get the Encoding of a File; 9.9 Program: View the Hexadecimal Representation of Content; Chapter 10: Structured Files; 10.1 Introduction; 10.2 Access Information in an XML File; 10.3 Perform an XPath Query Against XML; 10.4 Convert Objects to XML; 10.5 Modify Data in an XML File; 10.6 Easily Import and Export Your Structured Data; 10.7 Store the Output of a Command in a CSV or Delimited File; 10.8 Import CSV and Delimited Data from a File; 10.9 Manage JSON Data Streams; 10.10 Use Excel to Manage Command Output; 10.11 Parse and Interpret PowerShell Scripts; Chapter 11: Code Reuse; 11.1 Introduction; 11.2 Write a Script; 11.3 Write a Function; 11.4 Find a Verb Appropriate for a Command Name; 11.5 Write a Script Block; 11.6 Return Data from a Script, Function, or Script Block; 11.7 Package Common Commands in a Module; 11.8 Write Commands That Maintain State; 11.9 Selectively Export Commands from a Module; 11.10 Diagnose and Interact with Internal Module State; 11.11 Handle Cleanup Tasks When a Module Is Removed; 11.12 Access Arguments of a Script, Function, or Script Block; 11.13 Add Validation to Parameters; 11.14 Accept Script Block Parameters with Local Variables; 11.15 Dynamically Compose Command Parameters; 11.16 Provide -WhatIf, -Confirm, and Other Cmdlet Features; 11.17 Add Help to Scripts or Functions; 11.18 Add Custom Tags to a Function or Script Block; 11.19 Access Pipeline Input; 11.20 Write Pipeline-Oriented Scripts with Cmdlet Keywords; 11.21 Write a Pipeline-Oriented Function; 11.22 Organize Scripts for Improved Readability; 11.23 Invoke Dynamically Named Commands; 11.24 Program: Enhance or Extend an Existing Cmdlet; Chapter 12: Internet-Enabled Scripts; 12.1 Introduction; 12.2 Download a File from an FTP or Internet Site; 12.3 Upload a File to an FTP Site; 12.4 Download a Web Page from the Internet; 12.5 Parse and Analyze a Web Page from the Internet; 12.6 Script a Web Application Session; 12.7 Program: Get-PageUrls; 12.8 Interact with REST-Based Web APIs; 12.9 Connect to a Web Service; 12.10 Export Command Output as a Web Page; 12.11 Send an Email; 12.12 Program: Monitor Website Uptimes; 12.13 Program: Interact with Internet Protocols; Chapter 13: User Interaction; 13.1 Introduction; 13.2 Read a Line of User Input; 13.3 Read a Key of User Input; 13.4 Program: Display a Menu to the User; 13.5 Display Messages and Output to the User; 13.6 Provide Progress Updates on Long-Running Tasks; 13.7 Write Culture-Aware Scripts; 13.8 Support Other Languages in Script Output; 13.9 Program: Invoke a Script Block with Alternate Culture Settings; 13.10 Access Features of the Host’s User Interface; 13.11 Program: Add a Graphical User Interface to Your Script; 13.12 Interact with MTA Objects; Chapter 14: Debugging; 14.1 Introduction; 14.2 Prevent Common Scripting Errors; 14.3 Trace Script Execution; 14.4 Set a Script Breakpoint; 14.5 Debug a Script When It Encounters an Error; 14.6 Create a Conditional Breakpoint; 14.7 Investigate System State While Debugging; 14.8 Program: Watch an Expression for Changes; 14.9 Program: Get Script Code Coverage; Chapter 15: Tracing and Error Management; 15.1 Introduction; 15.2 Determine the Status of the Last Command; 15.3 View the Errors Generated by a Command; 15.4 Manage the Error Output of Commands; 15.5 Program: Resolve an Error; 15.6 Configure Debug, Verbose, and Progress Output; 15.7 Handle Warnings, Errors, and Terminating Errors; 15.8 Output Warnings, Errors, and Terminating Errors; 15.9 Program: Analyze a Script’s Performance Profile; Chapter 16: Environmental Awareness; 16.1 Introduction; 16.2 View and Modify Environment Variables; 16.3 Modify the User or System Path; 16.4 Access Information About Your Command’s Invocation; 16.5 Program: Investigate the InvocationInfo Variable; 16.6 Find Your Script’s Name; 16.7 Find Your Script’s Location; 16.8 Find the Location of Common System Paths; 16.9 Get the Current Location; 16.10 Safely Build File Paths Out of Their Components; 16.11 Interact with PowerShell’s Global Environment; 16.12 Determine PowerShell Version Information; 16.13 Test for Administrative Privileges; Chapter 17: Extend the Reach of Windows PowerShell; 17.1 Introduction; 17.2 Automate Programs Using COM Scripting Interfaces; 17.3 Program: Query a SQL Data Source; 17.4 Access Windows Performance Counters; 17.5 Access Windows API Functions; 17.6 Program: Invoke Simple Windows API Calls; 17.7 Define or Extend a .NET Class; 17.8 Add Inline C# to Your PowerShell Script; 17.9 Access a .NET SDK Library; 17.10 Create Your Own PowerShell Cmdlet; 17.11 Add PowerShell Scripting to Your Own Program; Chapter 18: Security and Script Signing; 18.1 Introduction; 18.2 Enable Scripting Through an Execution Policy; 18.3 Disable Warnings for UNC Paths; 18.4 Sign a PowerShell Script, Module, or Formatting File; 18.5 Program: Create a Self-Signed Certificate; 18.6 Manage PowerShell Security in an Enterprise; 18.7 Block Scripts by Publisher, Path, or Hash; 18.8 Verify the Digital Signature of a PowerShell Script; 18.9 Securely Handle Sensitive Information; 18.10 Securely Request Usernames and Passwords; 18.11 Program: Start a Process as Another User; 18.12 Program: Run a Temporarily Elevated Command; 18.13 Securely Store Credentials on Disk; 18.14 Access User and Machine Certificates; 18.15 Program: Search the Certificate Store; 18.16 Add and Remove Certificates; 18.17 Manage Security Descriptors in SDDL Form; Chapter 19: Integrated Scripting Environment; 19.1 Introduction; 19.2 Debug a Script; 19.3 Customize Text and User Interface Colors; 19.4 Connect to a Remote Computer; 19.5 Extend ISE Functionality Through Its Object Model; 19.6 Quickly Insert Script Snippets; 19.7 Add an Item to the Tools Menu; Administrator Tasks; Chapter 20: Files and Directories; 20.1 Introduction; 20.2 Determine the Current Location; 20.3 Get the Files in a Directory; 20.4 Find All Files Modified Before a Certain Date; 20.5 Clear the Content of a File; 20.6 Manage and Change the Attributes of a File; 20.7 Find Files That Match a Pattern; 20.8 Manage Files That Include Special Characters; 20.9 Program: Get Disk Usage Information; 20.10 Monitor a File for Changes; 20.11 Get the Version of a DLL or Executable; 20.12 Program: Get the MD5 or SHA1 Hash of a File; 20.13 Create a Directory; 20.14 Remove a File or Directory; 20.15 Rename a File or Directory; 20.16 Move a File or Directory; 20.17 Create and Map PowerShell Drives; 20.18 Access Long File and Directory Names; 20.19 Unblock a File; 20.20 Interact with Alternate Data Streams; 20.21 Program: Move or Remove a Locked File; 20.22 Get the ACL of a File or Directory; 20.23 Set the ACL of a File or Directory; 20.24 Program: Add Extended File Properties to Files; 20.25 Program: Create a Filesystem Hard Link; 20.26 Program: Create a ZIP Archive; Chapter 21: The Windows Registry; 21.1 Introduction; 21.2 Navigate the Registry; 21.3 View a Registry Key; 21.4 Modify or Remove a Registry Key Value; 21.5 Create a Registry Key Value; 21.6 Remove a Registry Key; 21.7 Safely Combine Related Registry Modifications; 21.8 Add a Site to an Internet Explorer Security Zone; 21.9 Modify Internet Explorer Settings; 21.10 Program: Search the Windows Registry; 21.11 Get the ACL of a Registry Key; 21.12 Set the ACL of a Registry Key; 21.13 Work with the Registry of a Remote Computer; 21.14 Program: Get Registry Items from Remote Machines; 21.15 Program: Get Properties of Remote Registry Keys; 21.16 Program: Set Properties of Remote Registry Keys; 21.17 Discover Registry Settings for Programs; Chapter 22: Comparing Data; 22.1 Introduction; 22.2 Compare the Output of Two Commands; 22.3 Determine the Differences Between Two Files; 22.4 Verify Integrity of File Sets; Chapter 23: Event Logs; 23.1 Introduction; 23.2 List All Event Logs; 23.3 Get the Newest Entries from an Event Log; 23.4 Find Event Log Entries with Specific Text; 23.5 Retrieve and Filter Event Log Entries; 23.6 Find Event Log Entries by Their Frequency; 23.7 Back Up an Event Log; 23.8 Create or Remove an Event Log; 23.9 Write to an Event Log; 23.10 Run a PowerShell Script for Windows Event Log Entries; 23.11 Clear or Maintain an Event Log; 23.12 Access Event Logs of a Remote Machine; Chapter 24: Processes; 24.1 Introduction; 24.2 List Currently Running Processes; 24.3 Launch the Application Associated with a Document; 24.4 Launch a Process; 24.5 Stop a Process; 24.6 Get the Owner of a Process; 24.7 Get the Parent Process of a Process; 24.8 Debug a Process; Chapter 25: System Services; 25.1 Introduction; 25.2 List All Running Services; 25.3 Manage a Running Service; 25.4 Configure a Service; Chapter 26: Active Directory; 26.1 Introduction; 26.2 Test Active Directory Scripts on a Local Installation; 26.3 Create an Organizational Unit; 26.4 Get the Properties of an Organizational Unit; 26.5 Modify Properties of an Organizational Unit; 26.6 Delete an Organizational Unit; 26.7 Get the Children of an Active Directory Container; 26.8 Create a User Account; 26.9 Program: Import Users in Bulk to Active Directory; 26.10 Search for a User Account; 26.11 Get and List the Properties of a User Account; 26.12 Modify Properties of a User Account; 26.13 Change a User Password; 26.14 Create a Security or Distribution Group; 26.15 Search for a Security or Distribution Group; 26.16 Get the Properties of a Group; 26.17 Find the Owner of a Group; 26.18 Modify Properties of a Security or Distribution Group; 26.19 Add a User to a Security or Distribution Group; 26.20 Remove a User from a Security or Distribution Group; 26.21 List a User’s Group Membership; 26.22 List the Members of a Group; 26.23 List the Users in an Organizational Unit; 26.24 Search for a Computer Account; 26.25 Get and List the Properties of a Computer Account; Chapter 27: Enterprise Computer Management; 27.1 Introduction; 27.2 Join a Computer to a Domain or Workgroup; 27.3 Remove a Computer from a Domain; 27.4 Rename a Computer; 27.5 Program: List Logon or Logoff Scripts for a User; 27.6 Program: List Startup or Shutdown Scripts for a Machine; 27.7 Deploy PowerShell-Based Logon Scripts; 27.8 Enable or Disable the Windows Firewall; 27.9 Open or Close Ports in the Windows Firewall; 27.10 Program: List All Installed Software; 27.11 Uninstall an Application; 27.12 Manage Computer Restore Points; 27.13 Reboot or Shut Down a Computer; 27.14 Determine Whether a Hotfix Is Installed; 27.15 Manage Scheduled Tasks on a Computer; 27.16 Retrieve Printer Information; 27.17 Retrieve Printer Queue Statistics; 27.18 Manage Printers and Print Queues; 27.19 Program: Summarize System Information; 27.20 Renew a DHCP Lease; 27.21 Assign a Static IP Address; 27.22 List All IP Addresses for a Computer; 27.23 List Network Adapter Properties; Chapter 28: Windows Management Instrumentation; 28.1 Introduction; 28.2 Access Windows Management Instrumentation and CIM Data; 28.3 Modify the Properties of a WMI or CIM Instance; 28.4 Invoke a Method on a WMI Instance or Class; 28.5 Program: Determine Properties Available to WMI and CIM Filters; 28.6 Program: Search for WMI Classes; 28.7 Use .NET to Perform Advanced WMI Tasks; 28.8 Improve the Performance of Large-Scale WMI Operations; 28.9 Convert a VBScript WMI Script to PowerShell; Chapter 29: Remoting; 29.1 Introduction; 29.2 Find Commands That Support Their Own Remoting; 29.3 Enable PowerShell Remoting on a Computer; 29.4 Interactively Manage a Remote Computer; 29.5 Invoke a Command on a Remote Computer; 29.6 Disconnect and Reconnect PowerShell Sessions; 29.7 Program: Remotely Enable PowerShell Remoting; 29.8 Program: Invoke a PowerShell Expression on a Remote Machine; 29.9 Test Connectivity Between Two Computers; 29.10 Limit Networking Scripts to Hosts That Respond; 29.11 Enable Remote Desktop on a Computer; 29.12 Configure User Permissions for Remoting; 29.13 Enable Remoting to Workgroup Computers; 29.14 Implicitly Invoke Commands from a Remote Computer; 29.15 Create Sessions with Full Network Access; 29.16 Pass Variables to Remote Sessions; 29.17 Configure Advanced Remoting Quotas and Options; 29.18 Invoke a Command on Many Computers; 29.19 Run a Local Script on a Remote Computer; 29.20 Program: Transfer a File to a Remote Computer; 29.21 Determine Whether a Script Is Running on a Remote Computer; 29.22 Create a Task-Specific Remoting Endpoint; Chapter 30: Workflows; 30.1 Introduction; 30.2 Write a Workflow; 30.3 Run a Workflow; 30.4 Suspend and Resume a Workflow; 30.5 Invoke Islands of Traditional PowerShell Script; 30.6 Invoke Workflow Actions in Parallel; 30.7 Customize an Activity’s Connection Parameters; 30.8 Write a Workflow That Requires Human Intervention; 30.9 Add Raw XAML to a Workflow; 30.10 Reference Custom Activities in a Workflow; 30.11 Debug or Troubleshoot a Workflow; 30.12 Use PowerShell Activities from a Traditional Windows Workflow Application; Chapter 31: Transactions; 31.1 Introduction; 31.2 Safely Experiment with Transactions; 31.3 Change Error Recovery Behavior in Transactions; Chapter 32: Event Handling; 32.1 Introduction; 32.2 Respond to Automatically Generated Events; 32.3 Create and Respond to Custom Events; 32.4 Create a Temporary Event Subscription; 32.5 Forward Events from a Remote Computer; 32.6 Investigate Internal Event Action State; 32.7 Use a Script Block as a .NET Delegate or Event Handler; References; PowerShell Language and Environment; Commands and Expressions; Comments; Help Comments; Variables; Booleans; Strings; Numbers; Arrays and Lists; Hashtables (Associative Arrays); XML; Simple Operators; Comparison Operators; Conditional Statements; Looping Statements; Working with the .NET Framework; Writing Scripts, Reusing Functionality; Managing Errors; Formatting Output; Capturing Output; Common Customization Points; Regular Expression Reference; XPath Quick Reference; .NET String Formatting; String Formatting Syntax; Standard Numeric Format Strings; Custom Numeric Format Strings; .NET DateTime Formatting; Custom DateTime Format Strings; Selected .NET Classes and Their Uses; WMI Reference; Selected COM Objects and Their Uses; Selected Events and Their Uses; Standard PowerShell Verbs; Colophon;