Using PowerShell for System Administration and Automation Tasks

PowerShell is a command shell and full-featured object-oriented scripting language based on .NET. that can be used to manage computers and create scripts to automate various administrative tasks. The PowerShell environment is pre-installed on Windows by default.

You can run PowerShell commands (called cmdlets) from the powershell.exe command line (or pwsh.exe if you are using PowerShell Core 6.x, 7.x), or use the built-in Windows PowerShell ISE script editor (with code highlighting, command reference, and debugging tools). The free Visual Studio Code (VSCode) editor gives you more power over PowerShell code. A history of the commands that you have previously run is available in the PowerShell console.

There are currently two branches of PowerShell:

With PowerShell, system administrators can automate and manage various components of the desktop versions of Windows, Windows Server roles, and other components of the Microsoft infrastructure, and third-party products.

powershell automation for system administrators

Windows Server roles and features administration with PowerShell

PowerShell is an excellent tool for the automation of configuration and management of the Windows server platform. Almost anything that you can do with the graphical Windows Server snap-ins can be done with PowerShell. Managing dozens or hundreds of Windows Server 2022/2019/2016/2012R2 hosts simultaneously is made much easier with PowerShell.

PowerShell cmdlets and scripts for Windows 10 and 11 desktop computers

On user workstations running desktop operating systems (Windows 10 and 11), you can use PowerShell to configure various settings:

Active Directory administration with PowerShell

The RSAT-AD PowerShell module is used to manage an Active Directory forest/domain and objects:

Working with files and folders in PowerShell

PowerShell for Exchange administrators

PowerShell cmdlets are an important tool for administration and automating on-premises Exchange Server and Exchange Online (Microsoft 365). To connect to Exchange Online, you need to install the EXO module. You can remotely connect to an on-premises Exchange Server host from any computer and import Exchange PowerShell cmdlets into your session.

PowerShell administration for Microsoft Teams

Manage Microsoft 365 with PowerShell

PowerShellremoteconnections

Managing VMware products with PowerShell

Using PowerShell automation in third-party products