About PowerShell

PowerShell is a task automation and configuration management framework from Microsoft, consisting of a command-line shell and associated scripting language built on the .NET Framework.

What is PowerShell?

PowerShell provides a powerful and flexible environment for system administrators and developers to:

• Execute commands interactively.
• Write scripts to automate repetitive tasks.
• Manage Windows and other Microsoft products efficiently.
• Interact with services and APIs using cmdlets and providers.

Unlike traditional shells that primarily deal with text streams, PowerShell treats data as objects. This object-oriented approach allows for more structured data manipulation and robust scripting.

Key Concepts

• Cmdlets (Command-lets): These are the basic commands in PowerShell, typically written in verb-noun format (e.g., Get-Process, Set-Location). They are .NET classes compiled into modules.
• Providers: These allow you to access different data stores (like the registry or file system) as if they were file systems, using standard cmdlets.
• Objects: PowerShell passes objects between cmdlets, preserving their properties and methods. This is a fundamental difference from text-based shells.
• Pipeline: The pipe symbol (|) allows you to send the output of one cmdlet as input to another, enabling complex operations through chaining.
• Scripting Language: PowerShell includes a rich scripting language with support for variables, loops, conditional statements, functions, and error handling.

PowerShell Editions

There are two primary editions of PowerShell:

• Windows PowerShell: Included with Windows operating systems. It is built on the .NET Framework.
• PowerShell (formerly PowerShell Core): A cross-platform (Windows, macOS, Linux) version built on .NET. It is open-source and actively developed. You can install it independently.

While both share much of the same syntax and cmdlets, PowerShell (Core) has undergone significant modernization and offers new features.

Getting Started

You can start using PowerShell by opening the PowerShell application from your Windows Start Menu or by running pwsh in your terminal if you have PowerShell (Core) installed on a supported platform.

Explore the following resources to deepen your understanding: