MICROSOFT 55039: Windows PowerShell Scripting and Toolmaking (501683)

This course is intended for administrators in a Microsoft-centric environment who want to build reusable units of automation, automate business processes, and enable less-technical colleagues to accomplish administrative tasks.

After completing this course, students will be able to:

• Describe the correct patterns for building modularized tools in Windows PowerShell
  
• Build highly modularized functions that comply with native PowerShell patterns
  
• Build controller scripts that expose user interfaces and automate business processes
  
• Manage data in a variety of formats
  
• Write automated tests for tools
  
• Debug tools

• Tools do one thing
• Tools are flexible
• Tools look native

Module 2: Start with a Command

• Why start with a command?
• Discovery and experimentation

Module 3: Build a Basic Function and Module

• Start with a basic function
  
• Create a script module
  
• Check prerequisites
  
• Run the new command

Module 4: Adding CmdletBinding and Parameterizing

• About CmdletBinding and common parameters
  
• Accepting pipeline input
  
• Mandatory-ness
  
• Parameter validation
  
• Parmeter aliases

Module 5: Emitting Objects as Output

• Assembling information
  
• Constructing and emitting output
  
• Quick tests

Module 6: An Interlude: Changing Your Approach

• Examining a script
  
• Critiquing a script
  
• Revising the script

Module 7: Using Verbose, Warning, and Informational Output

• Knowing the six channels
  
• Adding verbose and warning output
  
• Doing more with verbose output
  
• Informational output

Module 8: Comment-Based Help

• Where to put your help
  
• Getting started
  
• Going further with comment-based help
  
• Broken help

Module 9: Handling Errors

• Understanding errors and exceptions
  
• Bad handling
  
• Two reasons for exception handling
  
• Handling exceptions in our tool
  
• Capturing the actual exception
  
• Handling exceptions for non-commands
  
• Going further with exception handling
  
• Deprecated exception handling

Module 10: Basic Debugging

• Two kinds of bugs
  
• The ultimate goal of debugging
  
• Developing assumptions
  
• Write-Debug
  
• Set-PSBreakpoint
  
• The PowerShell ISE

Module 11: Going Deeper with Parameters

• Parameter positions
  
• Validation
  
• Multiple parameter sets
  
• Value from remaining arguments
  
• Help messages
  
• Aliases
  
• More CmdletBinding

Module 12: Writing Full Help

• External help
  
• Using PlatyPs
  
• Supporting online help
  
• “About” topics
  
• Making your help updatable

Module 13: Unit Testing Your Code

• Sketching out the test
  
• Making something to test
  
• Expanding the test
  
• Going further with Pester

Module 14: Extending Output Types

• Understanding types
  
• The Extensible Type System
  
• Extending an object
  
• Using Update-TypeData

Module 15: Analyzing Your Script

• Performing a basic analysis
  
• Analyzing the analysis

Module 16: Publishing Your Tools

• Begin with a manifest
  
• Publishing to PowerShell Gallery
  
• Publishing to private repositories

Module 17: Basic Controllers: Automation Scripts and Menus

• Building a menu
  
• Using UIChoice
  
• Writing a process controller

Module 18: Proxy Functions

• A proxy example
  
• Creating the proxy base
  
• Modifying the proxy
  
• Adding or removing parameters

Module 19: Working with XML Data

• Simple: CliXML
  
• Importing native XML
  
• ConvertTo-XML
  
• Creating native XML from scratch

Module 20: Working with JSON Data

• Converting to JSON
  
• Converting from JSON

Module 21: Working with SQL Server Data

• SQL Server terminology and facts
  
• Connecting to the server and database
  
• Writing a query
  
• Running a query
  
• Invoke-SqlCmd
  
• Thinking about tool design patterns

Module 22: Final Exam

• Lab problem
  
• Break down the problem
  
• Do the design
  
• Test the commands
  
• Code the tool

• Microsoft Official Courseware
  
• Bloc notes e penna
  
• Attestato di fine corso

Before attending this course, students must have:

• Experience at basic Windows administration
  
• Experience using Windows PowerShell to query and modify system information
  
• Experience using Windows PowerShell to discover commands and their usage
  
• Experience using WMI and/or CIM to query system information