Get-ChildItem | Write-Host
The command in the title lists all the short names of files and folders in the current folder, whereas `Get-ChildItem * | Write-Host` lists the full names (including paths). I compared the output of `Get-ChildItem | gm` with the output of `Get-ChildItem * | gm`: no difference. If the very same objects are piped into Write-Host, how can the cmdlet give consistently different outputs?Accept pipeline input?
The off-line help files of all parameters of all cmdlets have the answer False to the question in the title. This is confusing and wrong. And since I'm at it: the 3rd and 4th syntax item of the off-line help file of Get-Help miss the parameters -Examples, -Parameters, respectively (compared to the syntax items of the on-line help). I'm a learner of PowerShell and find it tiresome that the off-line help is unreliable and that I have to go to the online help so often. I use Windows PowerShell version 5.1.26100.8457
Powershell Entra and General Forum Layout Questions
Hello, I am returning to PowerShell, and it seems a lot has changed. I need to create some Security Groups in MS Entra and would like to know the best way to do so. I have a .csv file for the groups. Also, what is the best way to display the topic titles as a list in this forum? At this moment, I have to go scroll through pages of posts, and it's not easy. I used to like the old formats that let you see all the thread titles. ThanksError PowerShell 300-1015 (80)
Hello, using P.Shell for office installation, with ODT, it gives me the following error shown in the photo, or opening the console in any folder with the right mouse button "open the P.S. window here" gives an error: Missing termination character in the string: ". + CategoryInfo : ParserError: (:) [], ParentContainsErrorRecordException + FullyQualifiedErrorId : TerminatorExpectedAtEndOfString While if I run the command on the desktop, the window opens normally! ThanksError PowerShell 30015-1015 (80)
Hello, using PowerShell for office installation, with ODT, it gives me the following error shown in the photo, or opening the console in any folder with the right mouse button "open the P.S. window here" gives an error: Missing termination character in the string: ". + CategoryInfo : ParserError: (:) [], ParentContainsErrorRecordException + FullyQualifiedErrorId : TerminatorExpectedAtEndOfString Or Set-Location : Impossibile trovare un parametro posizionale che accetta l'argomento 'Ripristino\Office\Office'. In riga:1 car:1 + Set-Location -literalPath D:\Ripristino\File Ripristino\Office\Office ... + ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ + CategoryInfo : InvalidArgument: (:) [Set-Location], ParameterBindingException + FullyQualifiedErrorId : PositionalParameterNotFound,Microsoft.PowerShell.Commands.SetLocationCommand While if I run the command on the desktop, the window opens normally! Thanks
Gui to deploy folder contents to multiple VMs
I am trying to improve imaging computers where I work. I need to create a gui for new hires since the imaging process is so complicated. I need the GUI to request necessary computer names that are being imaged and then copy files from a local workstation to the machines that are being imaged on the network that our technicians do not have physical access to. I have turned to Powershell for the solution in an attempt to improve on my knowledge which is basic really. Below is the code I have come up with so far. In this code I am getting the location of the file. I would rather copy the entire folder instead of the file but I couldnt find the code to do that. So, if that is possible please show me how. If not I figure I would have to save these imaging files to a ZIP file. Then I could maybe use this GUI I am working on to move the zip file to the remote computers. Add-Type -AssemblyName System.Windows.Forms # Create the form $form = New-Object System.Windows.Forms.Form $form.Text = "File and Network Location Collector" $form.Size = New-Object System.Drawing.Size(400, 200) # Create the label for file name $fileLabel = New-Object System.Windows.Forms.Label $fileLabel.Text = "File Name:" $fileLabel.Location = New-Object System.Drawing.Point(10, 20) $form.Controls.Add($fileLabel) # Create the text box for file name $fileTextBox = New-Object System.Windows.Forms.TextBox $fileTextBox.Location = New-Object System.Drawing.Point(100, 20) $fileTextBox.Size = New-Object System.Drawing.Size(250, 20) $form.Controls.Add($fileTextBox) # Create the label for network location $networkLabel = New-Object System.Windows.Forms.Label $networkLabel.Text = "Network Location:" $networkLabel.Location = New-Object System.Drawing.Point(10, 60) $form.Controls.Add($networkLabel) # Create the text box for network location $networkTextBox = New-Object System.Windows.Forms.TextBox $networkTextBox.Location = New-Object System.Drawing.Point(100, 60) $networkTextBox.Size = New-Object System.Drawing.Size(250, 20) $form.Controls.Add($networkTextBox) # Create the button to submit $submitButton = New-Object System.Windows.Forms.Button $submitButton.Text = "Submit" $submitButton.Location = New-Object System.Drawing.Point(150, 100) $form.Controls.Add($submitButton) # Add event handler for the button click $submitButton.Add_Click({ $fileName = $fileTextBox.Text $networkLocation = $networkTextBox.Text [System.Windows.Forms.MessageBox]::Show("File Name: $fileName`nNetwork Location: $networkLocation") }) # Show the form $form.ShowDialog() In this portion of the code it is copying from one source to many locations. Thank you for any assistance as this would help my organization a lot. We are getting several new hires who are very new to the industry. This would be a huge blessing. Pardon the change in font size. It did that for no reason, its my first time using the blog, and there appears to be no way to change the sizes lol. Forgive me. #Define the source folder and the list of target computers $sourceFolder = "C:\Path\To\SourceFolder" $destinationFolder = "C:\Path\To\DestinationFolder" $computers = @("Computer1", "Computer2", "Computer3") # Replace with actual computer names # Function to copy the folder function Copy-Folder { param ( [string]$source, [string]$destination ) Copy-Item -Path $source -Destination $destination -Recurse -Force } # Execute the copy operation on each computer foreach ($computer in $computers) { Invoke-Command -ComputerName $computer -ScriptBlock { param ($source, $destination) Copy-Folder -source $source -destination $destination } -ArgumentList $sourceFolder, $destinationFolder } Write-Host "Folder copied to all specified computers."Edit Windows Shortcut properties TargetPath and WorkingDirectory with a script?
I've moved data to a new drive, and there are a lot of shortcuts (*.lnk files) to different files in the data set. I'd like to create a script that edits the file paths in the shortcut properties "TargetPath" and WorkingDirectory" so that these paths are accurate based on where the files are now located. Only parts of the file paths must change, and the file names must not be changed. For example, if the old path and filename are "D:\Dataset\Folder1\Folder2\filenameX.doc" the new path should be "E:\Folder1\Folder2\filenameX.doc" - where the drive letter is changed from D to E and the folder "Dataset" is removed from the path. The following script was created for me by Google search results, but it doesn't alter the values of these named properties at all. If anyone can provide edits that cause the script to work, I'd appreciate it very much. Thanks! # Define the paths and folder to search $searchFolder = "E:\Internet Files\Shortcut Ops temp" $oldPath = "D:\Dataset\" $newPath = "E:\" # Create the COM object for shell operations $shell = New-Object -ComObject WScript.Shell # Get all .lnk files in the search folder (including subfolders) $shortcuts = Get-ChildItem -Path $searchFolder -Filter *.lnk -Recurse foreach ($file in $shortcuts) { # Open the existing shortcut $lnk = $shell.CreateShortcut($file.FullName) # Check if the TargetPath contains the old path string if ($lnk.TargetPath -like "*$oldPath*") { # Update TargetPath and WorkingDirectory by replacing the old string $lnk.TargetPath = $lnk.TargetPath.Replace($oldPath, $newPath) $lnk.WorkingDirectory = $lnk.WorkingDirectory.Replace($oldPath, $newPath) # Save the changes to the existing file $lnk.Save() Write-Host "Updated: $($file.Name)" -ForegroundColor Cyan } }PowerShell 7.x ISE-style app — would anyone be interested in testing or reviewing the source?
Hi everyone, My name is Ron, and I have been working on a Windows desktop app called PowerShellStudio. It is intended to be a modern PowerShell 7.x ISE-style scripting environment for Windows. The app is written in .NET 10 using Visual Studio 2026. I am not trying to replace VS Code. The idea is closer to the original Windows PowerShell ISE: a focused editor, integrated PowerShell console, script execution, syntax diagnostics, command and parameter completion, metadata-based IntelliSense, and a simpler workflow for people who liked the old ISE experience. The app is running and usable, but it is still under active development. Before I go further, I wanted to see whether there is any community interest. I am preparing a final preview version to add to GitHub. If people are interested, I will upload the complete source code so anyone can examine it, build it, and run it themselves. Since this is a scripting tool that can run local PowerShell code, I want to make the project as transparent as possible. I would especially appreciate feedback on: Whether this kind of app would be useful to anyone How the editor and console should behave compared with the legacy ISE What features would be expected before it feels useful Any concerns about the approach Whether anyone would be willing to test or review the code I am not presenting it as finished or perfect. I am looking for honest feedback while I am still actively working on it. Thanks, RonGet-Secret fails when PowerShell script runs as a scheduled task.
I have a PowerShell backup script that connects to SMB shares, copies files from one share to the other share, and disconnects. Passwords used to connect to the shares are stored in a SecretStore. The user account that the script runs under is an unpriviledged Backup Operator that has access to the SMB shares. THe SecretStore was created under the same user context. I can run the script manually in the console, and it executes correctly. When I run the same script as a scheduled task, running under the same user account, the script stops when the Get-Secret cmdlet is called. Here is some pertinent information: PS C:\Users\incodebackup\Documents\Scripts\TUNet_Backup> $PSVersionTable Name Value ---- ----- PSVersion 5.1.14393.3471 PSEdition Desktop PSCompatibleVersions {1.0, 2.0, 3.0, 4.0...} BuildVersion 10.0.14393.3471 CLRVersion 4.0.30319.42000 WSManStackVersion 3.0 PSRemotingProtocolVersion 2.3 SerializationVersion 1.1.0.1 PS C:\Users\incodebackup\Documents\Scripts\TUNet_Backup> Get-Module -ListAvailable Directory: C:\Program Files\WindowsPowerShell\Modules ModuleType Version Name ExportedCommands ---------- ------- ---- ---------------- Script 1.0.1 Microsoft.PowerShell.Operation.V... {Get-OperationValidation, Invoke-OperationValidation} Binary 1.1.2 Microsoft.PowerShell.SecretManag... {Register-SecretVault, Unregister-SecretVault, Get-SecretVault, Set-SecretVaultDefault...} Binary 1.0.6 Microsoft.PowerShell.SecretStore {Unlock-SecretStore, Set-SecretStorePassword, Get-SecretStoreConfiguration, Set-SecretStoreConfiguration...} PS C:\Users\incodebackup\Documents\Scripts\TUNet_Backup> Get-SCheduledTask | Format-List -Property * State : Ready Actions : {MSFT_TaskExecAction} Author : WIN-M95PVJLVDAB\incodebackup Date : 2026-01-27T15:28:35.7952875 Description : This task copies files out of the TUNET/datafile directory once a say to ARCHIBALD. Documentation : Principal : MSFT_TaskPrincipal2 SecurityDescriptor : Settings : MSFT_TaskSettings3 Source : TaskName : Daily TUNet Backup Copy TaskPath : \ Triggers : {MSFT_TaskDailyTrigger} URI : \Daily TUNet Backup Copy Version : PSComputerName : CimClass : Root/Microsoft/Windows/TaskScheduler:MSFT_ScheduledTask CimInstanceProperties : {Actions, Author, Date, Description...} CimSystemProperties : Microsoft.Management.Infrastructure.CimSystemProperties I execute Start-Transcript early in the script execution, and because of the crash(?), it is short enough to included in its entirety: ********************** Windows PowerShell transcript start Start time: 20260127190002 Username: WIN-M95PVJLVDAB\incodebackup RunAs User: WIN-M95PVJLVDAB\incodebackup Machine: WIN-M95PVJLVDAB (Microsoft Windows NT 10.0.14393.0) Host Application: C:\Windows\System32\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0\powershell.exe -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -NonInteractive -File C:\Users\Incodebackup\Documents\Scripts\TUNet_Backup\Copy-TUNetBackup.ps1 -daily -test Process ID: 2084 PSVersion: 5.1.14393.3471 PSEdition: Desktop PSCompatibleVersions: 1.0, 2.0, 3.0, 4.0, 5.0, 5.1.14393.3471 BuildVersion: 10.0.14393.3471 CLRVersion: 4.0.30319.42000 WSManStackVersion: 3.0 PSRemotingProtocolVersion: 2.3 SerializationVersion: 1.1.0.1 ********************** Transcript started, output file is C:\Users\Incodebackup\Documents\Scripts\TUNet_Backup\daily_2026-01-27_190002.log 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 940 TUNet backup script started. 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 941 Copy-TUNetBackup.ps1 Version: 6.0F 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 942 Parameter qhourly: False 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 943 Parameter hourly: False 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 944 Parameter daily: True 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 945 Parameter purge: False 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 946 Parameter archive: False 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 947 Parameter test: True 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 1035 Creating mutex object. 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 1037 Creating semaphore object. 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 1058 Mutex timeout set: 300000 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 1072 Attempting to acquire mutex to enter semaphore... 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 1074 ...got the mutex! 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 1075 Attempting to enter the semaphore... 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 1077 ... got the semaphore! 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 719 Release-Mutex: Attempting to release mutex... 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 721 Release-Mutex: ...done. 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 1090 Using TEST values for source and destination paths. 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 1109 TUnet Source: \\192.168.100.46\Netbackup\Netbackup\Tantalus\test_src\datafile 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 1110 ARCHIE Dest: \\192.168.100.46\Netbackup\Netbackup\Tantalus\test_dest\datafile 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 1114 Attempt to acquire mutex to mount network shares... 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 1116 ...got the mutex! 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 1117 Opening SecretStore vault...! 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 1120 ... vault opened! 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 1121 Checking connection to \\192.168.100.46\Netbackup\Netbackup\Tantalus ... 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 1126 ...not connected to \\192.168.100.46\Netbackup\Netbackup\Tantalus . 2026/01/27 19:00:02 INFO 1127 Get FULTON\incodebackup password... ********************** Windows PowerShell transcript end End time: 20260127190002 ********************** Now I will show you the script around line 1127 where it goes out into the weeds: Write-Log -Level "INFO" -Message "$(__LINE__) Opening SecretStore vault...!" $pw = Import-CliXml -Path '.\TUNet-Backup-Vault.xml' -Verbose Unlock-SecretStore -Password $pw Write-Log -Level "INFO" -Message "$(__LINE__) ... vault opened!" # # Statements omitted # Write-Log -Level "INFO" -Message "$(__LINE__) Get $archie_un password..." try { $pw = Get-Secret -Name $archie_un -Verbose -Debug } catch { $err_msg = "Get-Secret exception. Name: $archie_un Exception: $($_.Exception.Message)" Write-Log -Level "FATAL" -Message "$(__LINE__) $err_msg" throw $err_msg } Write-Log -Level "INFO" -Message "$(__LINE__) ...done!" I was able to unlock the SecretStore, but Get-Secret fails. The very odd thing, besides not getting my password out the SecretStore, is that there is no exception posted by Powershell. I have no information at all about why my attempt did not work. If Get-Secret exited, then I would expect one of the two possible log messages printed in the transcript, but as you can see, the transcript ended. Note: the entire script body is encapsulated in a try{} block, which has an associated finally{} block, which contains other logging commands that execute when the finally{} block is entered, but in scheduled task instance, nothing. If anyone can tell me how to make Get-Secret work, that would be great, but I'll settle very gratefully for some way to get more information from this system to try to figure out why it is not, that would be most helpful. Additional information supplied on request.
