Getting Started with PowerShell

Welcome to the world of PowerShell, a powerful command-line shell and scripting language built on the .NET framework. This guide will walk you through the essential steps to get started with PowerShell, from installation to running your first commands.

1. What is PowerShell?

PowerShell is designed for system administration tasks and is available on Windows, macOS, and Linux. It provides a consistent way to perform tasks by using a command-line shell, a scripting language, and a configuration management framework.

2. Installation

PowerShell comes pre-installed on modern Windows versions. For other operating systems or to get the latest version, you can download it from the official GitHub repository.

For Windows:

PowerShell 5.1 is included by default. You can install the newer PowerShell 7 (also known as PowerShell Core) side-by-side.

Visit the PowerShell GitHub Releases page.
Download the appropriate MSI package for your Windows version.
Run the installer and follow the on-screen instructions.

For macOS and Linux:

Follow the instructions for your specific distribution:

3. Running Your First PowerShell Commands

Once installed, you can launch PowerShell from your applications menu (search for "PowerShell" or "PowerShell 7") or by opening a command prompt/terminal and typing pwsh.

Basic Commands:

Let's try some simple commands:

To get help about any command, use the Get-Help cmdlet. For example:
```
Get-Help Get-Command
```
To see a list of available commands, use Get-Command:
```
Get-Command
```
To get information about your system:
```
Get-ComputerInfo
```
To list files in the current directory:
```
Get-ChildItem
```
You can also use the alias ls or dir for this command.

4. Understanding PowerShell Concepts

PowerShell uses cmdlets (command-lets), which are verb-noun pairs (e.g., Get-Process, Stop-Service). They output objects, not just text, making it powerful for manipulating data.

Key concepts to learn next:

Cmdlet syntax and parameters
Object pipeline
Providers
Variables and data types
Scripting fundamentals

Explore Core Concepts

MSDN Docs