Overview
This course provides students with the fundamental knowledge and skills to use PowerShell for administering and automating administration of Windows servers. It enables students to identify and build the commands required to perform specific tasks, as well as to build scripts for advanced tasks such as automating repetitive activities and generating reports. The course provides prerequisite skills supporting a broad range of Microsoft products, including Windows Server, Windows Client, Microsoft Azure, and Microsoft 365. In keeping with this goal, the course does not focus on any single product; however, Windows Server is used as the primary example platform for the techniques taught.
What You Will Learn
- Describe Windows PowerShell and its major versions
- Identify the common Windows PowerShell hosting applications
- Describe important considerations when using PowerShell
- Explain how to configure the Windows PowerShell console host
- Explain how to configure the Windows PowerShell ISE host
- Describe how to use Visual Studio Code for PowerShell scripting
1. Get started with Windows PowerShell
This learning path introduces you to Windows PowerShell and provides an overview of the product’s functionality. It explains how to open and configure Windows PowerShell, run commands, and use its built-in Help system.
2. Maintain system administration tasks in Windows PowerShell
This learning path covers cmdlets that are commonly used for system administration tasks related to Active Directory, network configuration, server administration, and Windows 10 device administration.
3. Work with the Windows PowerShell pipeline
This learning path explains the purpose and use of the PowerShell pipeline and how to use it to sort, filter, enumerate, and display output data for PowerShell cmdlets. It also explains how to pass pipeline objects.
4. Work with PowerShell providers and PowerShell drives in Windows PowerShell
This learning path explains two technologies—PowerShell providers and PowerShell drives—which let you work with many forms of storage by using the same commands and techniques used to manage the file system.
5. Query management information by using Common Information Model and Windows Management Instrumentation
This learning path covers Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) and Common Information Model (CIM). These technologies help access information about a computer and provide both local and remote access to management information from the operating system, computer hardware, and installed software.
6. Use variables, arrays, and hash tables in Windows PowerShell scripts
This learning path explains how to work with variables, arrays, and hash tables in Windows PowerShell scripts.
7. Create and modify scripts by using Windows PowerShell
This learning path explains how to create and modify scripts. It covers useful scripting techniques such as importing data from a file, accepting user input, and handling errors.
8. Administer remote computers by using Windows PowerShell
This learning path covers PowerShell remoting primarily in its default configuration using HTTP on port 5985. It also explains how to configure remoting to allow or require encryption using Secure Sockets Layer (SSL).
9. Manage cloud resources by using Windows PowerShell
This learning path explains how to install required modules for cloud services management and use PowerShell commands to perform basic administrative tasks on cloud resources such as Azure virtual machines, Azure storage accounts, and Azure subscriptions. It also covers how to use the Azure Cloud Shell environment for PowerShell-based or Bash-based administration directly from the Azure portal.
10. Manage Microsoft 365 services by using Windows PowerShell
This learning path explains how to efficiently manage commonly used Microsoft 365 services, including Microsoft Entra ID, Microsoft Exchange Online, Microsoft SharePoint Online, and Microsoft Teams.
11. Create and manage background jobs and scheduled jobs in Windows PowerShell
This learning path explains the Windows PowerShell jobs feature. Jobs are an extension point in PowerShell, and several job types exist, each with distinct capabilities.