Windows

Problem

You want to rename a file or directory.

Solution

To rename an item in a provider, use the RenameItem cmdlet: PS > RenameItem example.txt example2.txt

Discussion

The RenameItem cmdlet changes the name of an item. While that may seem like pointing out the obvious, a common mistake is:

PS >RenameItem c:\temp\example.txt c:\temp\example2.txt RenameItem : Cannot rename because the target specified is not a path. At line:1 char:12

+ RenameItem <<<< c:\temp\example.txt c:\temp\example2.txt

Problem

You want to remove a file or directory.

Solution

To remove a file or directory, use the RemoveItem cmdlet:

PS >TestPath NewDirectory True PS >RemoveItem NewDirectory PS >TestPath NewDirectory False

Discussion

The RemoveItem cmdlet removes an item from the location you provide. The RemoveItem cmdlet doesn’t work only against the filesystem, however. Any providers that support the concept of items automatically support this cmdlet as well.

Problem

You want to create a directory, or file folder.

Solution

To create a directory, use the md or mkdir function: PS >md NewDirectory

Directory: Microsoft.PowerShell.Core\FileSystem::C:\temp

Mode
LastWriteTime
Length Name

d

4/29/2007
7:31 PM
NewDirectory

Discussion
 

Discussion

File hashes provide a useful way to check for damage or modification to a file. Adigital hash acts like the fingerprint of a file and detects even minor modifications. If the content of a file changes, then so does its hash. Many online download services provide the hash of a file on that file’s download page so that you can determine whether the transfer somehow corrupts the file.

Problem

You want to monitor the end of a file for new content.

Solution

To monitor the end of a file for new content, use the –Wait parameter of the GetContent cmdlet.

GetContent log.txt Wait

Discussion

Problem

You want to determine the current location from a script or command.

Solution

To retrieve the current location, use the GetLocation cmdlet. The GetLocation cmdlet provides the Drive and Path as two common properties:

$currentLocation = (GetLocation).Path

As a shortform for (GetLocation).Path, use the $pwd automatic variable.

Discussion

The GetLocation cmdlet returns information about the current location. From the information it returns, you can access the current drive, provider, and path.

Discussion

When disk space starts running low, you’ll naturally want to find out where to focus your cleanup efforts. Sometimes, you may tackle this by looking for large directories (including the directories in them), but other times, you may solve this by looking for directories that are large simply from the files they contain.

Problem

You want to use a cmdlet that supports wildcarding but provide a filename that includes wildcard characters.

Solution

To prevent PowerShell from treating those characters as wildcard characters, use the cmdlet’s –LiteralPath (or similarly named) parameter if it defines one: GetChildItem LiteralPath '[My File].txt'

Discussion

One consequence of PowerShell’s advanced wildcard support is that the square brackets used to specify character ranges sometimes conflict with actual filenames. Consider the following example:

Problem

You want to get a list of files that match a specific pattern.

Solution

Use the GetChildItem cmdlet for both simple and advanced wildcard support:

Problem

You want to get or list the files in a directory.

Solution

To retrieve the list of files in a directory, use the GetChildItem cmdlet. To get a specific item, use the GetItem cmdlet:

• To list all items in the current directory, use the GetChildItem cmdlet: GetChildItem
• To list all items that match a wildcard, supply a wildcard to the GetChildItem cmdlet:

GetChildItem *.txt