Module:

Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility Module

Sorts objects by property values.

Sort-Object    [[-Property] <Object[]>]    [-Stable]    [-Descending]    [-Unique]    [-InputObject <PSObject>]    [-Culture <String>]    [-CaseSensitive]    [<CommonParameters>]

Sort-Object    [[-Property] <Object[]>]    -Top <Int32>    [-Descending]    [-Unique]    [-InputObject <PSObject>]    [-Culture <String>]    [-CaseSensitive]    [<CommonParameters>]

Sort-Object    [[-Property] <Object[]>]    -Bottom <Int32>    [-Descending]    [-Unique]    [-InputObject <PSObject>]    [-Culture <String>]    [-CaseSensitive]    [<CommonParameters>]

TheSort-Object cmdlet sorts objects in ascending or descending order based on object propertyvalues. If sort properties aren't included in a command, PowerShell uses default sort propertiesof the first input object. If the input object's type has no default sort properties,PowerShell attempts to compare the objects themselves. For more information, see theNotessection.

You can sort objects by a single property or multiple properties. Multiple properties use hashtables to sort in ascending order, descending order, or a combination of sort orders. Properties aresorted as case-sensitive or case-insensitive. Use theUnique parameter to remove duplicatesfrom the output.

This example sorts the files and subdirectories in a directory.

Get-ChildItem -Path C:\Test | Sort-Object

    Directory: C:\TestMode                LastWriteTime         Length Name----                -------------         ------ -----a----        2/13/2019     08:55             26 anotherfile.txt-a----        2/13/2019     13:26             20 Bfile.txt-a----        2/12/2019     15:40         118014 Command.txt-a----         2/1/2019     08:43            183 CreateTestFile.ps1d-----        2/25/2019     18:25                Filesd-----        2/25/2019     18:24                Logs-ar---        2/12/2019     14:31             27 ReadOnlyFile.txt-a----        2/12/2019     16:24             23 Zsystemlog.log

TheGet-ChildItem cmdlet gets the files and subdirectories from the directory specified by thePath parameter,C:\Test. The objects are sent down the pipeline to theSort-Object cmdlet.Sort-Object doesn't specify a property so the output is sorted by the default sort property,Name.

This command displays the files in the current directory by length in ascending order.

Get-ChildItem -Path C:\Test -File | Sort-Object -Property Length

    Directory: C:\TestMode                LastWriteTime         Length Name----                -------------         ------ -----a----        2/13/2019     13:26             20 Bfile.txt-a----        2/12/2019     16:24             23 Zsystemlog.log-a----        2/13/2019     08:55             26 anotherfile.txt-ar---        2/12/2019     14:31             27 ReadOnlyFile.txt-a----         2/1/2019     08:43            183 CreateTestFile.ps1-a----        2/12/2019     15:40         118014 Command.txt

TheGet-ChildItem cmdlet gets the files from the directory specified by thePath parameter.TheFile parameter specifies thatGet-ChildItem only gets file objects. The objects are sentdown the pipeline to theSort-Object cmdlet.Sort-Object uses theLength parameter to sortthe files by length in ascending order.

This example displays processes with the highest memory usage based on their working set (WS) size.

Get-Process | Sort-Object -Property WS | Select-Object -Last 5

 NPM(K)    PM(M)      WS(M)     CPU(s)      Id  SI ProcessName ------    -----      -----     ------      --  -- -----------    136   193.92     217.11     889.16   87492   8 OUTLOOK    112   347.73     297.02      95.19  106908   8 Teams    206   266.54     323.71      37.17   60620   8 MicrosoftEdgeCP     35   552.19     549.94     131.66    6552   8 Code      0     1.43     595.12       0.00    2780   0 Memory Compression

TheGet-Process cmdlet gets the list of processes running on the computer. The process objects aresent down the pipeline to theSort-Object cmdlet.Sort-Object uses theProperty parameter tosort the objects byWS. The objects are sent down the pipeline to theSelect-Object cmdlet.Select-Object uses theLast parameter to specify the last five objects, which are the objectswith the highestWS usage.

In PowerShell 6, theSort-Object parameterBottom is an alternative toSelect-Object. Forexample,Get-Process | Sort-Object -Property WS -Bottom 5.

This command sorts the PowerShell session'sHistoryInfo objects using theId property. EachPowerShell session has its own command history.

Get-History | Sort-Object -Property Id -Descending

  Id CommandLine  -- -----------  10 Get-Command Sort-Object -Syntax   9 $PSVersionTable   8 Get-Command Sort-Object -Syntax   7 Get-Command Sort-Object -ShowCommandInfo   6 Get-ChildItem -Path C:\Test | Sort-Object -Property Length   5 Get-Help Clear-History -Online   4 Get-Help Clear-History -Full   3 Get-ChildItem | Get-Member   2 Get-Command Sort-Object -Syntax   1 Set-Location C:\Test\

TheGet-History cmdlet gets the history objects from the current PowerShell session. The objectsare sent down the pipeline to theSort-Object cmdlet.Sort-Object uses thePropertyparameter to sort the objects byId. TheDescending parameter sorts the command history fromnewest to oldest.

This example uses two properties to sort the objects,Status andDisplayName.Status issorted in descending order andDisplayName is sorted in ascending order.

A hash table is used to specify theProperty parameter's value. The hash table uses anexpression to specify the property names and sort orders. For more information about hash tables,seeabout_Hash_Tables.

TheStatus property used in the hash table is an enumerated property. For more information, seeServiceControllerStatus.

Get-Service |    Sort-Object -Property @{Expression = "Status"; Descending = $true},                          @{Expression = "DisplayName"; Descending = $false}

Status   Name               DisplayName------   ----               -----------Running  Appinfo            Application InformationRunning  BthAvctpSvc        AVCTP serviceRunning  BrokerInfrastru... Background Tasks Infrastructure Ser...Running  BDESVC             BitLocker Drive Encryption ServiceRunning  CoreMessagingRe... CoreMessagingRunning  VaultSvc           Credential ManagerRunning  DsSvc              Data Sharing ServiceRunning  Dhcp               DHCP Client...Stopped  ALG                Application Layer Gateway ServiceStopped  AppMgmt            Application ManagementStopped  BITS               Background Intelligent Transfer Ser...Stopped  wbengine           Block Level Backup Engine ServiceStopped  BluetoothUserSe... Bluetooth User Support Service_14fb...Stopped  COMSysApp          COM+ System ApplicationStopped  smstsmgr           ConfigMgr Task Sequence AgentStopped  DeviceInstall      Device Install ServiceStopped  MSDTC              Distributed Transaction Coordinator

TheGet-Service cmdlet gets the list of services on the computer. The service objects are sentdown the pipeline to theSort-Object cmdlet.Sort-Object uses theProperty parameter with ahash table to specify the property names and sort orders. TheProperty parameter is sorted bytwo properties,Status in descending order andDisplayName in ascending order.

Status is an enumerated property.Stopped has a value of1 andRunning has a valueof4. TheDescending parameter is set to$true so thatRunning processes are displayedbeforeStopped processes.DisplayName sets theDescending parameter to$false to sortthe display names in alphabetical order.

This command sorts text files in descending order by the time span betweenCreationTime andLastWriteTime.

Get-ChildItem -Path C:\Test\*.txt |    Sort-Object -Property {$_.CreationTime - $_.LastWriteTime} |    Format-Table CreationTime, LastWriteTime, FullName

CreationTime          LastWriteTime        FullName------------          -------------        --------11/21/2018 12:39:01   2/26/2019 08:59:36   C:\Test\test2.txt12/4/2018 08:29:41    2/26/2019 08:57:05   C:\Test\powershell_list.txt2/20/2019 08:15:59    2/26/2019 12:09:43   C:\Test\CreateTestFile.txt2/20/2019 08:15:59    2/26/2019 12:07:41   C:\Test\Command.txt2/20/2019 08:15:59    2/26/2019 08:57:52   C:\Test\ReadOnlyFile.txt11/29/2018 15:16:50   12/4/2018 16:16:24   C:\Test\LogData.txt2/25/2019 18:25:11    2/26/2019 12:08:47   C:\Test\Zsystemlog.txt2/25/2019 18:25:11    2/26/2019 08:55:33   C:\Test\Bfile.txt2/26/2019 08:46:59    2/26/2019 12:12:19   C:\Test\LogFile3.txt

TheGet-ChildItem cmdlet uses thePath parameter to specify the directoryC:\Test and allof the*.txt files. The objects are sent down the pipeline to theSort-Object cmdlet.Sort-Object uses theProperty parameter with a scriptblock to determine each files time spanbetweenCreationTime andLastWriteTime.

This example shows how to sort a list from a text file. The original file is displayed as anunsorted list.Sort-Object sorts the contents and then sorts the contents with theUniqueparameter that removes duplicates.

# All items unsortedGet-Content -Path C:\Test\ServerNames.txt

localhostserver01server25LOCALHOSTServer19server3localhost

# All items sortedGet-Content -Path C:\Test\ServerNames.txt | Sort-ObjectlocalhostLOCALHOSTlocalhostserver01Server19server25server3

# Unique filtered items sortedGet-Content -Path C:\Test\ServerNames.txt | Sort-Object -Unique

localhostserver01Server19server25server3

TheGet-Content cmdlet uses thePath parameter to specify the directory and filename. ThefileServerNames.txt contains an unsorted list of computer names.

TheGet-Content cmdlet uses thePath parameter to specify the directory and filename. ThefileServerNames.txt contains an unsorted list of computer names. The objects are sent down thepipeline to theSort-Object cmdlet.Sort-Object sorts the list in the default order, ascending.

TheGet-Content cmdlet uses thePath parameter to specify the directory and filename. ThefileServerNames.txt contains an unsorted list of computer names. The objects are sent down thepipeline to theSort-Object cmdlet.Sort-Object uses theUnique parameter to removeduplicate computer names. The list is sorted in the default order, ascending.

This example shows how to sort a text file that contains string objects as integers. You can sendeach command down the pipeline toGet-Member and verify that the objects are strings instead ofintegers. For these examples, theProductId.txt file contains an unsorted list of product numbers.

In the first example,Get-Content gets the contents of the file and pipes lines to theSort-Object cmdlet.Sort-Object sorts the string objects in ascending order.

# String sortedGet-Content -Path C:\Test\ProductId.txt | Sort-Object

0112345150022800350041005006200778899999

# Integer sortedGet-Content -Path C:\Test\ProductId.txt | Sort-Object {[int]$_}

0127788500150028003500410062001234599999

In the second example,Get-Content gets the contents of the file and pipes lines to theSort-Object cmdlet.Sort-Object uses a scriptblock to convert the strings to integers. In thesample code,[int] converts the string to an integer and$_ represents each string as it comesdown the pipeline. The integer objects are sent down the pipeline to theSort-Object cmdlet.Sort-Object sorts the integer objects in numeric order.

When you use theTop,Bottom, orStable parameters, the sorted objects are delivered inthe order they were received bySort-Object when the sort criteria are equal. In this example, weare sorting the numbers one through 20 by the their value 'modulo 3'. The modulo value ranges fromzero to two.

1..20 |Sort-Object {$_ % 3}

1831561291161310741911814517220

1..20 |Sort-Object {$_ % 3} -Stable

3691215181471013161925811141720

The output from the first sort is correctly grouped by the modulus value but the individual itemsaren't sorted within the modulus range. The second sort uses theStable option to return astable sort.

If you want to sort by multiple properties, separate the properties by commas.

Get-ChildItem -Path C:\Test | Sort-Object Length,Name

    Directory: C:\TestMode                 LastWriteTime         Length Name----                 -------------         ------ -----a---          13/10/2021    22:16              2 File01.txt-a---          13/10/2021    22:16              2 File03.txt-a---          13/10/2021    22:18             64 File02.txt-a---          13/10/2021    22:18             64 File04.txt

TheGet-ChildItem cmdlet gets the files from the directory specified by thePath parameter.The objects are sent down the pipeline to theSort-Object cmdlet.Sort-Object uses theLength andName parameter to sort the files by length in ascending order. SinceFile01.txt andFile03.txt have the same length, they're further sorted by their propertyName.

Beginning in PowerShell 6,Sort-Object supports sorting ofhashtable input by key values. Thefollowing example sorts an array of hashtables by the value of each hashtable'sweight key.

@(    @{ name = 'a' ; weight = 7 }    @{ name = 'b' ; weight = 1 }    @{ name = 'c' ; weight = 3 }    @{ name = 'd' ; weight = 7 }) | Sort-Object -Property weight -OutVariable Sorted$Sorted | ForEach-Object -Process { "{0}: {1}" -f $_.name, $_.weight }

Name                           Value----                           -----Weight                         1Name                           bWeight                         3Name                           cWeight                         7Name                           aWeight                         7Name                           db: 1c: 3a: 7d: 7

This cmdlet supports the common parameters: -Debug, -ErrorAction, -ErrorVariable,-InformationAction, -InformationVariable, -OutBuffer, -OutVariable, -PipelineVariable,-ProgressAction, -Verbose, -WarningAction, and -WarningVariable. For more information, seeabout_CommonParameters.

You can pipe the objects to be sorted to this cmdlet.

This cmdlet returns the sorted objects.

PowerShell includes the following aliases forSort-Object:

• Windows:
  • sort

TheSort-Object cmdlet sorts objects based on properties specified in the command or the defaultsort properties for the object type. Default sort properties are defined using thePropertySetnamedDefaultKeyPropertySet in atypes.ps1xml file. For more information, seeabout_Types.ps1xml.

If an object doesn't have one of the specified properties, the property value for that object isinterpreted bySort-Object asNull and placed at the end of the sort order.

When no sort properties are available, PowerShell attempts to compare the objects themselves.Sort-Object uses theCompare method for each property. If a property doesn't implementIComparable, the cmdlet converts the property value to a string and uses theCompare methodforSystem.String. For more information, seePSObject.CompareTo(Object) Method.

If you sort on an enumerated property such asStatus,Sort-Object sorts by the enumerationvalues. For Windows services,Stopped has a value of1 andRunning has a value of4.Stopped is sorted beforeRunning because of the enumerated values. For more information,seeServiceControllerStatus.

The performance of the sorting algorithm is slower when doing a stable sort.