TechNet Webcast: Introduction to Windows PowerShell (Level 200)

  Language(s): English. Product(s): Windows Server 2008. Audience(s): IT Professional. Duration: 90 Minutes Start Date: Monday, December 08, 2008 11:30 AM Pacific Time (US & Canada)  
Event Overview

In this webcast, we provide an introduction to Windows PowerShell for IT professionals and show how to automate client administrative activities in the Windows Server 2008 and Windows Vista operating systems. We explore the features and capabilities of Windows PowerShell, describe customer scenarios to manage day-to-day server and client administration activities, and discuss command-line syntax usage.

Presenters: John Baker, IT Pro Evangelist, Microsoft Corporation, and Yung Chou, IT Pro Evangelist, Microsoft Corporation

TechNet Webcast: Advanced Windows Powershell Scripting (Level 400)

Language(s): English. Product(s): Windows Server 2008. Audience(s): IT Professional. Duration: 90 Minutes Start Date: Monday, December 15, 2008 11:30 AM Pacific Time (US & Canada)  
Event Overview

In this webcast, we look at some of the powerful scripting capabilities of Windows PowerShell. First, we introduce some of the basics of Windows PowerShell.  We examine how the help system works and review the Windows PowerShell command structure. We also discuss how to format output and some basic Windows PowerShell commands. Next, we explore variable declaration and scripting constructs in Windows PowerShell to perform basic programmatic functions, like loops and branching. Then we look at advanced scripting techniques involving functions, filters, script blocks, and error handling. We also look briefly at how to use Windows PowerShell with Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) to gain access to a wide variety of system objects and settings. Finally, we look at how to use the Microsoft .NET Framework to build a simple form using Windows PowerShell.

Presenters: John Baker, IT Pro Evangelist, Microsoft Corporation, and Yung Chou, IT Pro Evangelist, Microsoft Corporation

Enjoy,

Greetings /\/\o\/\/

Following a note on this blogpage about Powershell for needed for the Azure Services Training Kit, I decided to check it out :

And yes the dowload page states you need PowerShell for  this, so I downloaded this Kit and did a DIR -REC on the directory for .PS1 files :

    Directory: C:\AzureServicesKit\Assets\DependencyChecker\Scripts\Dependencies\Check

Mode                LastWriteTime     Length Name
----                -------------     ------ ----
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01        501 CheckASPNETFutures.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01        484 CheckCCT.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01         98 CheckIis6Comp.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01        162 CheckIis7AspNet.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01        517 CheckLiveFrameworkTools.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01        269 CheckLiveServicesSDK.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01        493 CheckNET35.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01        497 CheckNET35SP1.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01        758 CheckNetServicesSDK.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01        112 CheckServer2008.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01        468 CheckSHSDK.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01        486 CheckSilverlight.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01        492 CheckSilverlightDevTools.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01        490 CheckSQL2008.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01        497 CheckVS2008.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01        895 CheckVSTSSP1.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01        162 CheckWCFHTTPAct.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01        162 CheckWinAuth.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01         85 CheckWmiIis7.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01        498 CheckZermattSDK.ps1
-a---        24-10-2008     20:01         59 QueryWmiIis7.ps1

    Directory: C:\AzureServicesKit\Labs\AdvancedSQLDataServices\Assets

Mode                LastWriteTime     Length Name
----                -------------     ------ ----
-a---         6-11-2008     18:25       2828 SDSCreateStorage.ps1
-a---         6-11-2008     18:25        176 SDSFinalize.ps1
-a---         6-11-2008     18:25        595 SDSSetup.ps1

    Directory: C:\AzureServicesKit\Labs\ConcurrencySQLDataServices\Assets

Mode                LastWriteTime     Length Name
----                -------------     ------ ----
-a---         6-11-2008     18:25        459 SDSCreateStorage.ps1
-a---         6-11-2008     18:25        176 SDSFinalize.ps1
-a---         6-11-2008     18:25        595 SDSSetup.ps1

 

you can see there are some basic prereq tests written in powerShell

I decided to do a quick check on the contents of the scripts

 PS C:\AzureServicesKit> ls . -rec *.ps1 | gc 

In the first directory we can find some scripts where PowerShell is just used to do some Dependency checks, all of them very simple and some are even oneliners (e.g. registry checks) and make for excelent example scripts to get started with PowerShell

I nice helper function that came back in a lot of the Dependency check scripts :

function SearchUninstall($SearchFor)
{
$uninstall = "HKLM:SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\"
$uninstallObjects = ls -path $uninstall ;
$found = $FALSE;

foreach($uninstallEntry in  $uninstallObjects)
{
   $entryProperty = Get-ItemProperty -path registry::$uninstallEntry
   if($entryProperty.DisplayName -like $searchFor)
    {
       $found = $TRUE;
       break;
    }
}

$found;
}

SearchUninstall -SearchFor 'Microsoft SQL Server 2008*';

and in the SDS (SQL Data Services) examples a custom snapin is used :

#Register the commandlets
$psSnapInDll = resolve-path Microsoft.Samples.AzureServices.PowerShell.dll
&$env:windir\Microsoft.net\Framework\v2.0.50727\installutil.exe -i $psSnapInDll >> $null

#Add the commandlet
Add-pssnapin AzureServicesManagement
. .\SDSSetup.ps1

 You can see that PowerShell is mostly just used a GLUE here, and  to provide access to a Custom DLL (SnapIn) as you mostly find in an SDK also.

This may not look much added value to make this Training Kit depending on PowerShell, but it (the Snapin Provided)  does make Programatic (Script) access much easier for administrators as the Former SDK managed DLL only solution, with the sample scripts to get started with.

Also the other provided sample scripts are a good starting point for learning PowerShell a bit like the PowerShell support in SBS (Small Business  Server), an not intrusive way to get into PowerShell as Susan Bradley, an SBS MVP, did a very good job in explaining in the latest PowerScripting Podcast : 

Episode 49 - PowerScripting Podcast - Susan Bradley

So I think this is an excelent evolution ;-)

Enjoy,

Greetings /\/\o\/\/

The High quality video recordings of the PowerShell Panel discussion are now online here  :

http://microsofttech.fr.edgesuite.net/TechEdOnline/Videos/406_high.wmv

 The following PowerShell Breakout sessions from Teched are online now :

Managing Large Infrastructures with PowerShell v2 (Jeffrey Snover) This session focuses on how to remotely administer both clients and servers throughout your enterprise, using PowerShell V2. Firstly, this session will cover the infrastructure requirements necessary to successfully use PowerShell V2. The session will then introduce and explain PowerShell scripts that solve real world administrative challenges on an enterprise scale.   PowerShell V2 - the next stage in the IT revolution (Jeffrey Snover) PowerShell V1 delivered a radically simplified approach to the traditional problem of interactive Shell, Scripting and Admin GUIs. Come and learn how V2 makes it easier to create and debug your scripts with a graphical environment, write production quality scripts using script cmdlets, modules and transactions, manage large distributed environments using WSMAN, improved WMI support and the new Unified Code Execution Model, and write smaller simpler scripts through improvements to the language and new/improved cmdlets.   Dimitry's Speaker Idol session can also be found there (can't find a direct link but search for PowerShell)    and also there is a new PowerScripting Podcast :   Episode 49 - Lee Holmes   Enjoy, Greetings /\/\o\/\/

 Yesterday we had a great Powershell Panel Discussion and you can already find the audio version online.

http://get-scripting.blogspot.com/2008/11/get-scripting-podcast-episode-4-teched.html 

This episode was recorded live on Tuesday 4th November at TechEd EMEA, Barcelona and features only the recorded Powershell Panel Discussion.

Enjoy,

Greetings /\/\o\/\/