Learn PowerShell Toolmaking in a Month of Lunches

You don’t have to be a software developer to build PowerShell tools. With this book, a PowerShell user is a step away from becoming a proficient toolmaker.

Learn PowerShell Toolmaking in a Month of Lunches is the best way to learn PowerShell scripting and toolmaking in just one hour a day. It’s packed with hands-on labs to reinforce what you’re learning. It’s an easy-to-follow guide that covers core scripting concepts using four practical examples. Each chapter builds on the previous one as you add custom formatting, error handling, input validation, help files and documentation and more.

Purchase of the print book comes with an offer of a free PDF, ePub, and Kindle eBook from Manning. Also available is all code from the book.

What’s Inside

• Build your own administrative tools
• Learn by doing with hands-on labs
• Make scripts that feel like native PowerShell cmdlets

This book does not assume you are a programmer. Experience using PowerShell as a command-line interface is helpful but not required.

About the Authors

Don Jones is a PowerShell MVP, speaker, and trainer. Jeffery Hicks is a PowerShell MVP and an independent consultant, trainer, and author. Don and Jeff coauthored Learn Windows PowerShell 3 in a Month of Lunches, Second Edition (Manning 2012) and PowerShell in Depth (Manning 2013).

Table of Contents

PART 1 INTRODUCTION TO TOOLMAKING

1. Before you begin
2. PowerShell scripting overview
3. PowerShell’s scripting language
4. Simple scripts and functions
5. Scope

PART 2 BUILDING AN INVENTORY TOOL

1. Tool design guidelines
2. Advanced functions, part 1
3. Advanced functions, part 2
4. Writing help
5. Error handling
6. Debugging techniques
7. Creating custom format views
8. Script and manifest modules
9. Adding database access
10. Interlude: creating a new tool 157

PART 3 ADVANCED TOOLMAKING TECHNIQUES

• Making tools that make changes
• Creating a custom type extension
• Creating PowerShell workflows
• Troubleshooting pipeline input
• Using object hierarchies for complex output
• Globalizing a function
• Crossing the line: utilizing the .NET Framework

PART 4 CREATING TOOLS FOR DELEGATED ADMINISTRATION

• Creating a GUI tool, part 1: the GUI
• Creating a GUI tool, part 2: the code
• Creating a GUI tool, part 3: the output
• Creating proxy functions
• Setting up constrained removing endpoints
• Never the end