PowerShell is a cross-platform task automation solution made up of a command-line shell, a scriptinglanguage, and a configuration management framework. PowerShell runs on Windows, Linux, and macOS.

Command-line Shell

PowerShell is a modern command shell that includes the best features of other popular shells. Unlikemost shells that only accept and return text, PowerShell accepts and returns .NET objects. The shellincludes the following features:

• Robust command-linehistory
• Tab completion and command prediction (Seeabout_PSReadLine)
• Supports command and parameteraliases
• Pipeline for chaining commands
• In-consolehelp system, similar to Unixman pages

Scripting language

As a scripting language, PowerShell is commonly used for automating the management of systems. It'salso used to build, test, and deploy solutions, often in CI/CD environments. PowerShell is built onthe .NET Common Language Runtime (CLR). All inputs and outputs are .NET objects. No need to parsetext output to extract information from output. The PowerShell scripting language includes thefollowing features:

• Extensible throughfunctions,classes,scripts, andmodules
• Extensibleformatting system for easy output
• Extensibletype system for creating dynamic types
• Built-in support for common data formats likeCSV,JSON, andXML

Automation platform

The extensible nature of PowerShell provides an ecosystem of PowerShell modules to deploy and managealmost any technology you work with. For example:

Microsoft modules

• Azure
• Windows
• Exchange
• SQL

Third-party modules

• AWS
• VMware
• Google Cloud

Configuration management

PowerShell Desired State Configuration (DSC) is a management framework in PowerShell thatenables you to manage your enterprise infrastructure with configuration as code. With DSC, you can:

• Create declarativeconfigurations and custom scripts for repeatable deployments
• Enforce configuration settings and report on configuration drift
• Deploy configuration usingpush or pull models

Monad Manifesto

Jeffrey Snover, the inventor of PowerShell, wrote the Monad Manifesto to explain his vision forPowerShell and how it would change the way we manage systems. Use the following link to download acopy of theMonad Manifesto.

This PDF file is a version of the original Monad Manifesto, which articulated the long-term vision andstarted the development effort that became PowerShell. PowerShell has delivered on many of theelements described in this document.

Next steps

Getting started

Are you new to PowerShell and don't know where to start? Take a look at these resources.

• Install PowerShell
• Discover PowerShell
• PowerShell 101
• Microsoft Virtual Academy videos
• PowerShell Learn modules

PowerShell in action

Take a look at how PowerShell is being used in different scenarios and on different platforms.

• PowerShell remoting over SSH
• Getting started with Azure PowerShell
• Building a CI/CD pipeline with DSC
• Managing Microsoft Exchange