Announcements!

• PowerShell v7.6.0-rc.1 Release
  Come get the first release candidate for PowerShell 7.6
• PowerShell, OpenSSH, and DSC team investments for 2026
  As is tradition, we are publishing our planned team investments for the year. This is based on our current understanding of customer and community needs, but is subject to change based on emerging priorities throughout the year.

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• Using Dev Proxy with the Microsoft Graph PowerShell SDK
  Dev Proxy is a Microsoft tool built to help developers figure out the most effective way of using Microsoft Graph API requests. On the surface, Dev Proxy doesn’t seem like a tool that would interest people who use the Microsoft Graph PowerShell SDK to write scripts for Microsoft 365. But all tools have some use, and Dev Proxy can help.
• Exchange Online deprecates -Credential parameter in Connect-ExchangeOnline PowerShell cmdlet
  Microsoft announced on February 12, 2026, a significant change to its Exchange Online PowerShell module: the deprecation of the -Credential parameter for the Connect-ExchangeOnline cmdlet. This change represents part of a broader initiative to enhance security across Microsoft 365 administrative interfaces by eliminating authentication methods that do not support multifactor authentication.
• Using the ZLocation PowerShell Module to navigate folders
  Switching back and forth between folders on your system requires a lot of typing and thinking about where that xyz folder was located... Zlocation helps you navigate frequently accessed folders. In this small blog post, I will show you how it works.
• Validating PowerShell script syntax in GitHub Actions workflows - Gérald Barré
  Learn how to validate the syntax of PowerShell scripts embedded in GitHub Actions workflows using a custom PowerShell function.

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• PSNotes v 1.0.0.0
  PSNotes is a PowerShell module that provides a structured, versioned snippet and script library for reusable automation patterns. Create notes with aliases, tags, and metadata to quickly execute, copy, or preview commands. Organize notes into local or remote catalogs, search by name, tag, details, or snippet content, and turn frequently used automation into first-class commands.
• Template for the Win32 PowerShell script installer in Microsoft Intune
  Introduction Microsoft Intune now supports using a PowerShell script as the installer for Win32 apps. Instead of specifying a command line, you upload a script. This gives admins more flexibility when deploying applications. I’ve created a template (install and uninstall) that can serve as inspiration
• dbatools v 2.7.25
  The community module that enables SQL Server Pros to automate database development and server administration
• PSClaudeCode
  Ever wondered how AI agents like Claude Code work their magic? Dive into this PowerShell implementation and build your own intelligent assistant from scratch!

Community

• Learning PowerShell in 2026 with Tara Learning PowerShell in 2026 with Tara
  In this episode of The PowerShell Podcast, Andrew Pla is joined by Tara, a longtime IT professional who has officially started her PowerShell learning journey. Tara shares her honest experience transitioning from a GUI-first mindset to learning PowerShell fundamentals, including objects, verb-noun commands, variables, pipelines, and error messages. The conversation captures the real emotions of learning something new later in a career—confusion, frustration, breakthroughs, and growing confidence.
• PowerShell Community Call - February 19th, 2026
  The PowerShell Community Call is held on the 3rd Thursday of every month for 30 minutes at 9:30 AM US Pacific Time. Topics include PowerShell 7, Windows OpenSSH, PSEditorServices/VSCode-PowerShell, PSScriptAnalyzer, PowerShell Gallery, Azure PowerShell/CLI, DSCv3 and any other projects owned by the PowerShell Team.

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA
• Monad to Millions - Celebrating Jeffrey Snover & the PowerShell Community
  Join us, Thu, Mar 12, 2026, for a special live-stream celebration honoring Jeffrey Snover, the creator of PowerShell, and the incredible community that turned a bold idea (Monad) into a global movement.

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.

I just released PSNotes v1.0.0.

PSNotes is a PowerShell module that lets you build your own snippet library with:

• Aliases for quick recall
• Catalog-based organization
• Direct execution or clipboard copy
• Executing script via paths or as saved snippets
• Support for remote catalogs allowing you to have your snippets everywhere
• Quick browser to see all your notes at a glance
• Works from Windows Terminal, VSCode, pwsh, or any PowerShell host (even ISE if you're still using that)

The goal is simple: make it easier to reuse the commands you run constantly and remember the ones you don’t. Or if you are like me and get sick of typing out [System.Collections.Generic.List[PSObject]] forty times a day.

Full documentation and samples: https://github.com/mdowst/PSNotes

Release notes: https://github.com/mdowst/PSNotes/releases/tag/v1.0.0

PowerShell Gallery Listing: https://www.powershellgallery.com/packages/PSNotes/1.0.0.0

I hope you find it useful. And as always, I'm open to any suggestions or feedback.

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• Using Dev Proxy to Identify Excessive Microsoft Graph Permissions in Your PowerShell Scripts
  The goal of this article is to show how Microsoft Dev Proxy can be used to audit Microsoft Graph permissions in PowerShell scripts and detect unnecessary scopes.
• Is Your Azure Service Retiring? Build a PowerShell Monitor
  Build a PowerShell monitor that queries Azure Resource Graph to identify retiring services and alert your team before 90-day deadlines become 9-day emergencies.
• a Hidden gem in PowerShell : Format-Custom
  It was something I ran into this week, Format-Custom. Usually I display things in a list or table, but this is different... And very useful! In this blog post, I will show you how it works.
• Azure Key Vault: How to Find Expired Secrets Using KQL
  Ever had a production app break because an Azure Key Vault secret expired? It’s painful—and usually happens at the worst time. The good news is you can catch it early. With Event Grid publishing Key Vault events and Log Analytics giving you KQL visibility, you can track expirations proactively and trigger alerts (or even automation)
• Better Error Catching
  A better use of try catch blocks in powershell
• The Time I Asked My Boss: Are You An Idiot?
  A Microsoft engineer recently told me he used Copilot to script a way out of a laggy system. He was delighted. The story triggered a memory from the early days of PowerShell when my diplomacy was c…

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• Deactivating an Entra ID Application
  This article explores how to deactivate applications (aka disable apps) in Entra ID. Everything is done through PowerShell and the Microsoft Graph PowerShell SDK because the feature isn’t currently available in the Entra admin center. We’ve even included a fully functional example script to show you how the process works. Feel free to fix or enhance our code in GitHub!
• Verify Windows UEFI CA 2023 Certificate with PowerShell
  Microsoft announced that the original Secure Boot certificates introduced during the Windows 8 development cycle begin expiring in June and October 2026. For full details about the impact, timelines, and update process, see the official Microsoft articles listed in the references section of this article.
• PSWorkItem
  A PowerShell 7 module for managing work and personal tasks or to-do items. This module uses a SQLite database to store task and category information. The module is not a full-featured project manag...

Books, Media, and Learning Resources

• Tara Writes Her First PowerShell Script Live
  Tara's PowerShell learning continues this week as we watch her write her first script. We will demystify what a "script" really is, and build one together step-by-step.

Community

• PowerShell Is Fun mkay with Harm Veenstra
  Microsoft MVP Harm Veenstra, creator of PowerShellIsFun.com, joins The PowerShell Podcast to talk about productivity, consistency, and why PowerShell really is fun. Harm shares how blogging regularly helped accelerate his learning, improve his workflow, and deepen his connection to the community. He also discusses his recent transition to macOS, how he uses PowerShell across Mac, Linux, and Windows, and why modern PowerShell is far more cross-platform than many people realize.
• Status on PowerShell 7.6? · PowerShell PowerShell · Discussion #26754
  Is there anything the PowerShell team can communicate around the delay on PowerShell 7.6? It is approaching 2 months since the last preview and 3 months since .NET 10 was officially released. It se...
• Monad to Millions - Celebrating Jeffrey Snover & the PowerShell Community
  Join us on Thu, Mar 12, 2026 for a special live-stream celebration honoring Jeffrey Snover, the creator of PowerShell, and the incredible community that turned a bold idea (Monad) into a global movement.

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA
• Chocolatey Fest 2026 @ PowerShell Summit : Call for Speakers
  Chocolatey Fest is a community-driven conference focused on Windows automation (WinOps), DevOps practices, and the broader ecosystem around Chocolatey...

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• PowerShell: How to reverse a String
  In this post, I will show how to reverse a string, i.e., how to change it from back to front.
• Install Nerdfonts using PowerShell
  Yes, I'm a nerd, and nerds like to use NerdFonts :-) In this small blog post, I will show you how you can use the NerdFonts PowerShell module from Ryan L McIntyre.
• Getting started with the PowerShell script installer for Win32 apps
  This week is all about the recently introduced functionality to use PowerShell scripts for installing and uninstalling Win32 apps.
• Intune Documentation as Code
  Configure and export Intune documentation automatically, converting JSON files to Markdown. All made possible with PowerShell scripts, and GitHub Actions.
• Set up an Ubuntu 24.04 LTS VM in VirtualBox using PowerShell
  I needed a fresh Ubuntu VM in VirtualBox this weekend so I figured I can take this opportunity to refresh my PowerShell based process.
• How to customize Teams recording and transcription consent notifications with PowerShell
  This post explains how to configure custom Teams recording and transcription consent notifications for meetings and calls using PowerShell, including message templates, localization, and known limitations.
• Automating Azure VM & Arc Server Data Collection Rule Association with PowerShell
  Onboarding Azure VMs and Arc-enabled servers to Data Collection Rules (DCRs) is critical for monitoring and security, but doing it manually can be time-consuming and error-prone.

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• AsBuiltReport Release v1.6.0
  AsBuiltReport.Core v1.6.0! Check out what's new!

Books, Media, and Learning Resources

• Hello World - PowerShell Pocket Blog
  I may have taken "Hello World" examples a bit too far...
• Building Your First PowerShell Module (Live) | Module 101 w/ Fred Weinmann
  Ever wondered how PowerShell modules are actually built?

Community

• Owning Your Career and Your Time with Don Jones
  Recently retired PowerShell icon Don Jones joins The PowerShell Podcast for a wide-ranging conversation on career ownership, community leadership, and building a life that aligns with what you actually value. Don reflects on the difference between your job and your career, why investing in yourself pays off, and how asking better questions can change the way you influence decisions at work. The episode also dives into Don’s journey as a fiction author, his role in shaping the PowerShell community and Summit culture, and why real success comes from clarity, kindness, and helping others win.
• PowerShell Community Call - January 15th, 2026
  Recoiding of the January PowerShell Community Call

Fun

• 5 weirdly fun things you can do in PowerShell when you’re bored
  I use Windows 11 PowerShell for silly things, stress-relief scripts, and visual tweaks that turn a boring terminal into a fun distraction.

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA
• Chocolatey Fest 2026 @ PowerShell Summit : Call for Speakers
  Chocolatey Fest is a community-driven conference focused on Windows automation (WinOps), DevOps practices, and the broader ecosystem around Chocolatey...

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• Stop Configuration Drift in Microsoft 365 Using the new Configuration Management API’s – A Deep Dive
  Microsoft has released into public preview a new set of APIs that enable administrators to monitor and alert on configuration changes across one or more tenants, spanning multiple Microsoft 365 workloads, including:
• How to Control Access to Entra Multi-Tenant Apps
  Entra multi-tenant applications can be used by any tenant - unless you restrict sign-in audiences to permit only specific tenants to use the application. In this article, we explain the preview feature and use the Microsoft Graph PowerShell SDK to restrict sign-in audiences by defining a list of permitted tenant identifiers in the properties of multi-tenant applications.
• EntraFIDOFinder: New Web UI and Over 70 New Authenticators
  You read that right, over 70 new authenticators are now approved for Entra Attestation and have been add to the web ui and the PowerShell module! I knew they had to be holding back after these last few updates. Also I’ve updated the web UI and curious of your thoughts.
• Intune Win32 PowerShell Installer Type
  This month, Microsoft re-released PowerShell as a command-line option for Intune Win32 packages, making it easy to update the installation script without recreating the IntuneWin package. In this blog post, I will show you how it works.
• Quick Tip - Enable vTPM on Hyper-V VMs
  Here is a quick PowerShell script to enable vTPM on one or more VMs in Hyper-V. Here is a quick PowerShell script to enable vTPM on one or more VMs in Hyper-V.

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• Configure default fonts in Outlook (classic) with PowerShell and Microsoft Intune
  Introduction In my previous post, I shared a PowerShell template for managing registry settings via Microsoft Intune Remediations. The script handles both HKCU and HKLM, supports all registry types, and works on Microsoft Entra ID and hybrid joined devices.
• DeployR - Backing up your Task Sequences and Content.
  In this post I’ll be going a bit deeper into a Script I wrote to help backup specific things. I created it so I can transfer specific things from one environment to another without having to backup everything.

Books, Media, and Learning Resources

• PoshBytes: Measure-Command For Optimizing Your Code
  Measure-Command is the fastest way to find out how long a command actually takes, so you can stop guessing and start optimizing with receipts. We will time a few real scripts, compare approaches, and learn how to avoid misleading results.
• Understanding PowerShell Output
  Tara returns for her second PowerShell lesson. She's already learned the 3 core commands: Get-Help, Get-Command, and Get-Member.

Community

• Stop Trying So Hard and Start Automating Smarter with Jake Hildreth
  Principal Security Consultant and community favorite Jake Hildreth returns to The PowerShell Podcast to talk about building smarter automation, leveling up through community, and creating tools that solve real problems. Andrew shares his “stop trying so hard” theme for the year, how working smarter applies directly to scripting and security, and why getting involved with others is one of the fastest ways to grow in your career.

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.

Announcements!

• Jeffrey Snover Retires!
  After years of bringing us tons of automation join Jeffrey Snover hangs up his keyboard

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• Microsoft Entra PowerShell v1.2.0 brings Agent Identity Blueprint management and new automation features
  Microsoft released version 1.2.0 of the Microsoft Entra PowerShell module, introducing production-ready support for Agent Identity Blueprints, enhanced application configuration parameters, and modernized invitation APIs. This update consolidates Agent Identity functionality into the main module and delivers new cmdlets for automated identity management across Microsoft Entra ID environments.
• Get latest Windows release
  Maybe you heard of this already but I found this hidden gem (at least for me) where you can easily get the latest Windows release in PowerShell. The module is written by Jose Schenardie. You can find it here in the PowerShell gallery. So, what does it actually do?
• Test SSL/TLS Protocols using PowerShell
  Testing enabled SSL and TLS protocols on servers is something I have to do for hardening and security purposes. Of course, you can do that using PowerShell with the Test-TlsProtocols Module from TechnologyAnimal :) In this blog post, I will show you how.
• Getting Started with SSH in Windows PowerShell
  PowerShell and automation articles for click-free IT pros from another systems engineer.
• Intune PowerShell script installer feature
  Today we are going to have a look at the new PowerShell script installer feature that is available since January 2026 in Microsoft Intune. It’s now possible to upload a PowerShell script as the installer.

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• January 19, 2026 Updates to EntraFIDOFinder
  It’s been a bit since an update on the PowerShell module EntraFIDOFinder as there haven’t been any new keys and only a few keys have have changed functionality.
• Synchronizing Security and Microsoft 365 Group Memberships
  An article from 2018 uses the AzureAD and Exchange PowerShell modules to synchronize membership between a security and a Microsoft 365 group. The idea is to enable collaboration for the members of the security group. This version does the work with the Microsoft Graph PowerShell SDK. The code is better and it will work as an Azure Automation runbook, which is always nice.
• PowerShellWeb/Reptile
  Read Evaluate Print Terminal Input Loop Editor - A Scaley Simple PowerShell Data REPL.
• PSClaudeCode v 1.0.3
  A PowerShell module for building Claude Code using Anthropic, with reference implementations for tool-based interactions.

Books, Media, and Learning Resources

• PowerShell EOL 7.4 and 7.5 updates
  Get to know when long-term support is ending for PowerShell versions 7.4 (Nov. 2026), 7.5 (May 2026), and other versions.

Community

• From SharePoint to Security with David Sass
  Newly minted Microsoft MVP David Sass joins The PowerShell Podcast to talk about PowerShell notebooks, terminal tooling, and making automation approachable for teams that are hesitant to touch the console. David shares how he uses Jupyter/PowerShell notebooks as a practical “click-to-run” interface for colleagues, helping them safely run approved automation while keeping the logic documented, repeatable, and under source control.
• Chocolatey Fest 2026 @ PowerShell Summit : Call for Speakers
  Chocolatey Fest is a community-driven conference focused on Windows automation (WinOps), DevOps practices, and the broader ecosystem around Chocolatey and Windows package management.

Fun

• A complete history of MDT (abridged)
  Way back in 2008, I published a blog post (now captured by the Wayback Machine) that gave a concise history of BDD, now known as MDT. Eighteen years later, I can now complete that story and expand on some of the items in more detail. (I will refrain from getting too carried away, hence the abridged part of the title, because you probably don't care to read a small novel.)

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• PowerShell coding in WSL using VSCode
  This is something I do on my Windows company device, using WSL instances to develop PowerShell scripts. In this blog post, I will show you how it works and how to set it up.
• Some Microsoft Graph PowerShell SDK Cmdlets Lose Body Parameters
  A change made for some Directory Graph APIs has flowed through to the Microsoft Graph PowerShell SDK and affected how the associated cmdlets work, including the beta cmdlet to restore a deleted user account and while replacing the user principal name. Fortunately, the workaround is easy, but it is upsetting when something that worked suddenly doesn’t, even if it is a beta cmdlet.
• How to Remove Old (Unused) PowerShell Modules
  This article explains how to safely remove a PowerShell module installed on a Windows computer. This may be necessary in order to uninstall old or unused modules, resolve PowerShell slow…
• Practical Graph: Microsoft Graph PowerShell SDK Cmdlets and Graph Throttling
  The Microsoft Graph service uses throttling to restrain applications that might want to use more resources than they should. Graph throttling applies to Microsoft Graph PowerShell SDK cmdlets, but you might never notice this because of the way that the retry handler works to smoothen delays imposed by the Graph service.

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• PSToExe
  An example project of how to create a single EXE file for distribution of a PowerShell script without needing to install PowerShell 7.5.4 on target machines.
• Announcing DotnetPsCmds - PowerShell CmdLets for .NET
  Have you ever wondered why there aren't PowerShell Cmdlets similar to dotnet CLI commands? Well not there are.
• Release PSAppDeployToolkit 4.1.8
  This release strengthens Windows Installer (.msi) and Patch (.msp) deployment reliability, improves process and handle safety, enhances dialog behavior, and hardens serialization and exception reporting. It also modernizes dependencies and standardizes UTF-8 handling.

Books, Media, and Learning Resources

• Watch Tara Learn PowerShell (From Scratch)
  Tara says that she wants to learn #PowerShell this year, and we are starting that journey live on PowerShell Wednesday.I'll guide her through her first few steps and help build a solid foundation, and you can help
• GitHub for Intune Admins Part 1: A Beginner Guide (No Developer Skills Needed)
  This is Part 1 of a new series where I walk through getting started with GitHub for Intune and Microsoft 365 admins, specifically geared toward non-developers. No coding background required, no assumptions made.

Community

• Reliability Through Planning with Matthew Gill
  Matthew Gill joins The PowerShell Podcast to talk about what it means to be a Site Reliability Engineer (SRE) and how SRE thinking changes the way you approach automation, reliability, and problem solving. Matthew and host Andrew Pla break down core concepts like SLAs, SLOs, and SLIs, and why reliability through planning matters more than rushing straight to the keyboard.

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• PowerShell: Select-String (Examples)
  In this blog post, I’ll take a closer look at how to search for strings in PowerShell.
• ConsentFix – The Quickfix
  Just when you thought OAuth was safe, along comes ConsentFix to remind us that attackers are always  two steps ahead. If you’ve been following security news lately, you’ve probably heard about this clever attack that abuses legitimate Microsoft authentication flows to steal authorization codes. The good news? There’s a dead-simple PowerShell fix that’ sorts this out.
• Installing PowerShell on macOS
  What's the first thing that you install on your new MacBook M4? Yes, Microsoft Edge, and then PowerShell afterwards ;-) In this final blog post of 2025, I will outline the available installation options.
• 2025 Overview
  It's 2026, so it's time to reflect on 2025 :). In this blog post, I will highlight the great PowerShell moments that happened this year.
• 3 Easy PowerShell Scripting Tips for Coding Masochists
  Tip: Read the ‘Important Notes’ section, because these are notes that are important.

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• Oh My Posh Visual Configurator
  A web-based drag-and-drop builder for oh-my-posh that makes creating beautiful terminal prompts actually fun!
• Release v2.4.0 · SeeminglyScience/ClassExplorer
  v2.4.0 of PowerShell module ClassExplorer is released! New commands Invoke-Member and Get-AssemblyLoadContext
• PSNetDetour
  A PowerShell module which you can use to hook any (caveats of course) .NET method and have it run your ScriptBlock instead. Great for experimentation, debugging, testing
• MarkX
  Markdown, XML, and PowerShell

Books, Media, and Learning Resources

• Automating Microsoft 365 with PowerShell Update 19
  Update #19 of the Automating Microsoft 365 with PowerShell eBook is now available. Subscribers can download the updated PDF and EPUB files from Gumroad.com. A paperback version is also available, but we can’t update the print characters. In any case, a new SharePoint create Site API is in beta, and a new version of the Microsoft Graph PowerShell SDK is available. Both have their moments, as we discuss here.
• PoshBytes: PowerShell Splatting - The Art of Throwing Parameters With Style
  In this PoshBytes episode, you will learn PowerShell splatting to make long commands readable and reusable. We will also demo PSNotes cmdlets that generate splats for you and convert existing commands into splatted form.

Community

• PowerShell to Distinguished Engineer with Ryan Spletzer
  Distinguished Software Engineer Ryan Spletzer joins The PowerShell Podcast to talk about building a long-term career in tech through curiosity, continuous learning, and strong community connections. Ryan shares how PowerShell helped shape his path from early work in SharePoint, automation, and identity management to leading AI initiatives at Autodesk, where his team built an internal ChatGPT-style solution using Azure OpenAI before enterprise ChatGPT options existed.
• Living in PowerShell with Jeff Hicks
  PowerShell legend Jeff Hicks joins The PowerShell Podcast to talk about what it really means to live in PowerShell every day. From running his entire workflow in the console to building highly polished terminal tools, Jeff shares how PowerShell can be used far beyond infrastructure management—to organize your day, automate personal tasks, and multiply productivity.
• Building PowerShell Tools You Wish Existed with Jorge Suarez
  Jorge Suarez joins The PowerShell Podcast to share his journey into PowerShell, automation, and community contribution. From attending his first MMS conference to building creative and practical PowerShell projects, Jorge talks about how PowerShell became the primary driver of his career growth. The conversation covers his popular Intune Hydration Kit, creative TUI projects inspired by shows like Severance, and how curiosity and experimentation led him to build tools he wished existed earlier in his career.

Fun

• RandomBirthday.ps1
  I role play on occasion, and I find it useful to have a birthday. From that I can look up the zodiac signs, which allows me to apply some stereotypical traits to the character. I find this to be a useful starting point in fleshing out a character's personality.

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.

The final PowerShell Weekly of 2025 is here.

If you’re new: PowerShell Weekly is hand-curated every single week of the year. No bots, no auto-aggregation. I read, select, and organize the content so it’s actually worth your time.

Which is what I take two weeks off at the end of the year to recharge and get ready to do 50 editions again next year.

If you’ve been reading, sharing, or contributing this year, thank you. It genuinely makes the effort worthwhile.

Go check out this last issue of 2025, enjoy the holidays, and I’ll see you back here the first week of 2026.

Announcements!

• v7.6.0-preview.6 Release of PowerShell
  A ton of great improvement and new feature. Come check them out!

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• F# and PowerShell
  Included in Sergey’s F# advent calendar 2025, thank you Sergey and thank you F# dev community for this magic time of the year again
• Fake Leonardo DiCaprio Movie Torrent Drops Agent Tesla Through Layered PowerShell Chain
  Bitdefender researchers investigate a complex infection chain embedded in a fake movie torrent for One Battle After Another.
• How I Automated the Tracking of the Holiday Metra Train
  This post is a bit different from my usual content, as it may only be of interest to people living in the Chicagoland area. Chicago’s regional commuter rail is called the Metra, and during the holidays they have several trains that are decked out in holiday lights and the inside is decorated with lights, ornaments, and other holiday decor.
• PowerShell Try/Catch specific Error Types
  I use Try/Catch a lot in my scripts, but I usually catch all errors in a single error message... In this short blog post, I will show you how to be more specific when displaying errors.
• When Az PowerShell Gets Weird: How to Clean Up Duplicate Modules Without Breaking Anything
  The companion code for this blog can be found here.One thing you may have noticed is that I have been in PowerShell a bit more frequently as of late.
• Gaining Confidence with Az CLI and Az PowerShell: Introducing What if & Export Bicep | Microsoft Community Hub
  Ever hesitated before hitting Enter on a command, wondering what changes it might make? You’re not alone. Whether you’re deploying resources or updating...

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• PowerShell Preworkout (PSPreworkout)
  A special mix of tools to help jump start your PowerShell session!
• SearchScript: Search PowerShell Scripts
  Every once in a while, we've got to search our scripts, often to make a particular update. Sadly, we're often falling back on Select-String to do this. This isn't ideal, because this means we lose the context around our scripts. So why not make a quick tool to search PowerShell ScriptBlocks using the Abstract Syntax Tree?
• PowerShell Containers
  PowerShell Runtime Containers generation is working again, including the latest 7.6 preview 6

Community

• Mentorship, Mindset, and Microsoft Ignite with Shannon Eldridge-Kuehn
  In this episode of The PowerShell Podcast, Shannon Eldridge-Kuehn returns to discuss her journey since becoming a Microsoft MVP, her experiences at Microsoft Ignite, and her evolving views on technology, communication, and personal growth. Shannon shares stories from Ignite, including Mark Russinovich’s fascinating demo on optical computing, and offers insight into how AI is reshaping IT work, both in efficiency and responsibility.The conversation expands beyond tech, touching on mentorship, emotional intelligence, and the importance of grace, empathy, and connection in professional and personal life. Shannon and host Andrew Pla explore how better communication, mental health awareness, and authentic collaboration can transform careers and communities alike.
• Powerlifting and PowerShell: A Discussion with Jake Hildreth - Phillip Wylie
  About The Guest: Jake is a cybersecurity professional with a background in system administration. He has a deep understanding of Active Directory security and is currently the Active Directory Security Assessment Service Lead at Trimarc. Jake is also the head developer of the open-source tool Locksmith, which focuses on Active Directory Certificate Services misconfigurations.

Fun

• PoshBytes: 12 Logical Days of Christmas
  I just taught PowerShell to sing the 12 Days of Christmas with emojis and had to fight Unicode to do it. Come see how in the latest PoshBytes.

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.

Announcements!

• Invoke-WebRequest Breaking Change
  Windows PowerShell 5.1 now displays a security confirmation prompt when using the Invoke-WebRequest command to fetch web pages without special parameters.

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• Create Web Links as HTML Files using PowerShell
  You know, I’m not even sure of my visitor count these days, but last I looked this site still receives a few hundred pages views per week. Something like that, at least. I wrote something at work today that brought me over here, as it may help others. I guess I still do care enough
• PowerShell String Manipulation: Swap Lines
  In this article I will show you how you can swap lines. I will use an example and show you what is important. Let’s dive in.
• Checking Where Tenant Users Go as Guests
  After all the fuss about Teams users inviting people to chat via email, tenant administrators realize that knowing where users are active as guest accounts is not as easy as it might seem. Part of the problem is that data about user activity is mostly controlled by host rather than home tenants. However, it’s possible to extract some information from audit sign-in logs to figure out where tenant users go as guests.
• When Santa brings you a work request: Searching GitHub Repos and Gists for Text Patterns with PowerShell
  This is my feeble attempt at blogging again. Now that blogging is out of fashion and we trust AI to tell us what to think, drink and eat, it’s probably as good a time to do it as ever. So, th…

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• Entra ECMA2Host Tools PowerShell Module
  If you’ve ever worked with the ECMA2Host for Entra Outbound Provisioning you’ll be immediately presented with a lack of visibility of the connectors. Especially if you’ve previously used Microsoft / Forefront Identity Manager.
• PowerShell OSD Frontend Project
  Hey Folks, so I recently had the need for a front end, so I looked at the regular community ones, but they didn’t fit my needs.
• Deploying and configuring uBlock Origin Lite with PowerShell and Microsoft Intune
  Introduction Ad blocking is often dismissed as a convenience feature for users tired of intrusive banners and pop-ups. But in 2025 – almost 2026 – it’s time to reframe the conversation: ad blocking is a fundamental security control every organization should implement.
• Servers101
  Simple Servers in PowerShell.

Books, Media, and Learning Resources

• Invoke-WebRequest Just Started Asking Questions
  This video explains the new security prompt added to Invoke-WebRequest in Windows PowerShell 5.1 and shows how to prevent it from affecting any of your automations.
• Building Custom MCP Tools in PowerShell Universal
  In this video, we look at how to build custom MCP tools using PowerShell Universal. It leverages the experimental MCP plugin to expose PowerShell scripts as tools. As an example, we quickly build a system monitoring dashboard.

Community

• Cryptography, Cracking Codes, and Breaking CBC with Dr. Al Carlson
  In this episode of The PowerShell Podcast, host Andrew Pla welcomes Dr. Al Carlson, a cryptographer, mathematician, and engineer whose career spans more than four decades in military intelligence, embedded systems, and advanced encryption research. Dr. Carlson explains how set theory and mathematical patterns underpin all cryptography, breaking down complex systems like AES into understandable concepts. He discusses his groundbreaking work on isomorphic cipher reduction, polymorphic encryption, and how simplicity, not complexity, is often the key to true security.
• The Cmdlet Decision: When to Be Weird
  I’ve spent a lot of time, and acquired a lot of scar tissue, in this industry, and if there is one thing I’ve learned, it’s that most people are terrified of looking different. People hug the cente…

Fun

• Saving Christmas with PowerShell: Building a Reusable Matching Algorithm
  What starts as a simple Secret Santa script quickly turns into a full-blown constraint-based matching engine.

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA
• PSConfEU 2026 Call for Speakers
  Submissions must be posted by this Sunday, 14 Dec 2025

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.

The recent breaking change to Invoke-WebRequest in Windows PowerShell 5.1 has the potential to affect a lot of automation, especially in older environments. To make it easier to assess the impact, I published a script called Search-CmdletParameterUsage.ps1.

This tool recursively scans your scripts and modules for any cmdlet + parameter usage. While I built it to identify places where Invoke-WebRequest is not using -UseBasicParsing, it works generically for any cmdlet you're concerned about.

If you maintain large codebases or inherited automation, this can save a ton of manual review.

Script: https://gist.github.com/mdowst/9d00ff37ea79dcbfb98e6de580cbedbe

KB on the breaking change: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/topic/powershell-5-1-preventing-script-execution-from-web-content-7cb95559-655e-43fd-a8bd-ceef2406b705

Happy scripting! And good luck hunting down those IWR calls.

Saving Christmas with PowerShell: Building a Reusable Matching Algorithm

This video isn’t just “here’s a script.” It walks step-by-step through the whole evolution of the solution:

• Start with a naive random shuffle
• Add constraints and filtering
• Introduce backtracking when things get messy
• Turn it all into a clean, reusable function

The end result is a robust matching engine you can adapt for scheduling, load balancing, on-call rotations, pairing systems, etc.

Watch: https://youtu.be/4uwQh6Nap5M
Code: https://www.dowst.dev/?p=3971

Feedback and ideas welcome!

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• App-Only Authentication for SharePoint Online PowerShell
  The latest versions of the SharePoint Online PowerShell module support app-only authentication (certificate-based authentication) for the Connect-SPOService cmdlet. In other words, applications can now connect to SharePoint Online to run administrative cmdlets by presenting a registered Entra ID app and an X.509 certificate instead of the credentials for a human SharePoint administrator. It’s a good change, even if I still prefer using the Graph APIs for SharePoint automation.
• Using the POSH-SYSLOG PowerShell module for logging
  In my home network, I run a Graylog Syslog instance in Docker for logging network and Linux events. But you can also log events from PowerShell scripts to Syslog for easy filtering or correlation. In this blog post, I will show you how that works.

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• rs-devtools
  Various tools I made to automate very niche gamedev & media manipulation tasks
• PSIntro
  A welcome screen for PowerShell and a set of brief tutorials designed for absolute beginners. The module also includes a few commands to help absolute PowerShell beginners manage their environment.
• GitHubBlueSky.ps1
  Get a GitHub user's BlueSky
• PSRainbow 1.1.0
  Provides a library of 24-bit colors that can be used in PowerShell scripts.

Books, Media, and Learning Resources

• PoshBytes: Numeric Precision in PowerShell
  In this PoshBytes short you will see how PowerShell can silently lose precision when big integer math is promoted to double and how using the right numeric types and decimal literals helps keep your results exact.
• PowerShell 7 Fundamentals
  More and more we turn to automation in IT to help improve efficiency for our day to day operations. PowerShell has always been at the forefront of automation tools. The courses in this path start with the absolute basics of PowerShell so that you can learn how to automate away your problems from the ground up. You’ll begin with installation before moving on to exploration of the PowerShell language and using your acquired skills to perform tasks from your day to day operations. Finally, you’ll get a taste of writing actual PowerShell scripts to round out your automation skills and toolset.

Community

• Free Security Wins for Sysadmins with Spencer Alessi
  Newly minted Microsoft MVP, pentester, and returning guest Spencer Alessi joins The PowerShell Podcast to talk about growth, giving back, and building security through PowerShell. Spencer shares lessons from his journey from sysadmin to pen tester, including the importance of learning from mistakes, documenting wins, and advocating for yourself in your career. He also introduces his latest open-source project, AppLocker Inspector, and discusses tools like Locksmith, Pink Castle, and Purple Knight that help IT pros secure their environments and build confidence in automation and defense.

Fun

• Advent of Code 2025
  Advent of Code is an Advent calendar of small programming puzzles for a variety of skill levels that can be solved in any programming language you like. People use them as interview prep, company training, university coursework, practice problems, a speed contest, or to challenge each other.

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA
• PSConfEU 2026 Call for Speakers
  Call closed 14 Dec 2025 - This time it will be held in Wiesbaden, Germany. June 1-4, 2026

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• Gaining Confidence with Az CLI and Az PowerShell: Introducing What if & Export Bicep | Microsoft Community Hub
  Ever hesitated before hitting Enter on a command, wondering what changes it might make? You’re not alone. Whether you’re deploying resources or updating...
• Fired techie admits sabotaging ex-employer, causing $862K in damage
  PowerShell script locked thousands of workers out of their accounts
• How to Install Exchange Online PowerShell Module
  The Exchange Online PowerShell module is essential for managing Microsoft 365 mailboxes, compliance tasks, role assignments, transport rules, migrations, and automated scripts.

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• IntuneHydrationKit v 0.1.1
  Hydrates Microsoft Intune tenants with best-practice baseline configurations including policies, compliance packs, enrollment profiles, dynamic groups, security baselines, and conditional access starter packs.
• PSYahooFinance-AI v 1.0.1
  PowerShell module for getting financial data from Yahoo Finance. A port of the Python agno YFinanceTools toolkit.
• SpotifyUtils v 1.2.1
  A PowerShell module for managing your Spotify tracks and playlists via Spotify's API.
• Update to PSCloudPc
  Stefan Dingemanse and I made an update to our PowerShell module called PSCloudPc. This PowerShell module enables you to manage Windows 365 via PowerShell with easy to use command lets. The MSGraph powershell module requires you to construct JSON body’s. We made this in to easy to use “one-liners” Check out our Project website.
• PsAstViewer v 1.0.6
  A graphical viewer and explorer for PowerShell Abstract Syntax Trees (AST)

Books, Media, and Learning Resources

• Pair Programming a PowerShell Platformer Live
  I am going to be live-coding some improvements to a game written in PowerShell. I will start by getting familiar with the codebase, then I will move into looking at the open issues on the project, choose one, and then hopefully close the issue with a successful PR! Oh, did I mention that the game dev will be watching and criticising my every move? Yeah, Greg Martin is joining me.
• PoshBytes: Mastering Here-Strings in PowerShell
  Learn PowerShell here-strings the fast way with practical examples.

Community

• Falling, Learning, and Laughing with PowerShell Friends
  Recorded live from SpiceWorld 2025 in Austin, Texas, this special PowerShell Podcast bar session brings together community members Jeffery Hayes, Stephen Engler, Sean Wheeler, and Steven Judd for a fun and insightful celebration of PowerShell and community. Host Andrew Pla reflects on reaching the 200-episode milestone while sharing stories about growth, learning, and the value of connection. From early PowerShell journeys to the power of conferences, mentorship, and even a few bar-side life lessons, this lively session captures the heart of the PowerShell community.

Fun

• GitHub - StartAutomating/PowerArcade: A Retro Arcade Game Console in PowerShell
  A Retro Arcade Game Console in PowerShell.

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA
• PSConfEU 2026 Call for Speakers
  Call closed 14 Dec 2025 - This time it will be held in Wiesbaden, Germany. June 1-4, 2026

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.

Announcements!

• Happy Birthday to PowerShell
  It released 19 years ago today, and the shell has never been the same!

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• Using the EntraExporter PowerShell module
  In the past, I used LDIFDE or CSVDE to export Active Directory information. For Entra ID, there's EntraExporter from Merill Fernando :-) In this blog post, I will show you how it works.
• Renaming Domain Controllers-Without Breaking It
  Yes, you can rename an Active Directory domain controller. (Usual disclaimers apply: just because you can, doesn't mean you should.) If you do, be sure to follow Jorge's advice and use PowerShell to do it!
• Making PowerShell More Comfortable: Configuring PSReadLine
  A practical guide to installing, updating, and configuring PSReadLine to make PowerShell faster, smarter, and more comfortable for everyday use.
• Best Practices for PowerShell Dot Sourcing, Part 2
  Let's dive into some practical advice on naming conventions, variable management and code organization to keep dot sourced scripts efficient, consistent and secure.

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• CommandWatch v 1.0.0
  A watch-like command runner for PowerShell.
• Removing Inactive Entra ID User Accounts with PowerShell
  The Entra ID Governance solution includes a workflow to detect and remove inactive user accounts. Sounds good, but the same can be done with PowerShell if you want to avoid the cost of Entra ID Governance licenses or want to create a bespoke workflow that’s better suited to the business needs of the organization. Azure Automation would be a good way to process this workflow.
• Uninstall Microsoft Graph & Entra PowerShell fast!
  Free PowerShell module to completely uninstall Microsoft Graph PowerShell & Entra PowerShell modules. Fixes dependency conflicts and authentication issues.
• Toolbox v 1.0.2
  A robust PowerShell module for parallel remote task orchestration with runspaces, throttling, timeout controls, structured output, error aggregation, retry logic, and pluggable task framework.

Community

• The PSADT Framework Explained and What’s New in Version 4.1 with Dan Cunningham
  In this episode, PowerShell Podcast host Andrew Pla chats with Dan Cunningham, Strategic Innovation Leader for PowerShell App Deployment Toolkit (PSADT), about the history, architecture, and evolution of the open-source framework used for enterprise software deployment. Dan explains how PSADT simplifies installs, improves logging, enhances user experience with UI dialogs, and provides consistency across environments. He also discusses the latest release, v4.1, which removes the need for Microsoft’s ServiceUI, boosting both security and usability for Intune and SCCM deployments.
• Why is "Handles" in PowerShell plural?
  Here the answer from the man himself Jeffery Snover.

Fun

• ThoughtForTheDay v 2.0.2
  Provides a bit of daily wisdom

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA
• PSConfEU 2026 Call for Speakers
  Call closed 14 Dec 2025 - This time it will be held in Wiesbaden, Germany. June 1-4, 2026

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.

Announcements!

• dbatools v 2.7.7
  Check out what's all new and updated in the latest version of dbatools

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• Notify Requesters When GitLab Issues Move Through the Development Pipeline
  I use GitLab’s Customer Relationship Management (CRM) feature to track who requested each item. From there, I wanted a way for requesters to be automatically notified as their item moved through the development pipeline, from Backlog to In Progress, Testing/Review, and finally Done.
• Practical Graph: How to Check Unexpected Sign-Ins Against Utility Accounts
  Utility accounts exist in every Microsoft 365 tenant. These accounts are not intended for normal user activity and include accounts used for Exchange room and shared mailboxes and the break-glass or emergency accounts intended to allow administrators to sign-in if their usual accounts are blocked. This article shows how to use PowerShell and the Microsoft Graph to check sign-in events to ensure that the accounts aren't being accessed.
• How to Run PowerShell Scripts: A Complete Guide
  This guide covers how to run PowerShell scripts: everything from basic script execution to remote operations, parameter passing, and troubleshooting. PowerShell is useful for automating administrative tasks, but before you can run PowerShell scripts, you need to understand the mechanisms that control script execution.
• A beginners guide to Microsoft Graph API rate limiting in Intune
  Ever seen your PowerShell script crash with a mysterious HTTP 429 Too Many Requests from Microsoft Graph? That’s rate limiting - the API’s polite way of telling you to slow down. In this post, we dig into Graph’s global and Intune-specific limits, how to read the Retry-After header when it appears (and what to do when it doesn’t), and how to build exponential backoff into your scripts so your automations stay smooth, resilient, and throttle-friendly
• Notifying users on Windows when an iOS update is required – Microsoft Intune, Automation Account and Toast Notification Script combined
  Introduction Your users carry iPhones but spend most of their workday on Windows devices. When Apple releases an iOS update, Intune can flag non-compliance – but the built-in notifications on iOS are often overlooked and don’t have the same visibility or urgency as alerts on a user’s primary work device. The solution: cross-platform automation.
• Using the DnsClient-PS PowerShell Module for cross-platform DNS querying
  Because it's always DNS, and because you want to query DNS on non-Windows systems, too, using PowerShell... You can use the DnsClient-PS module. In this brief blog post, I will demonstrate how it works.
• Download/Upload to Azure Storage Accounts with SAS-link and PowerShell
  Super short blogpost today, just two commands on how you use SAS link to download and upload files with PowerShell/RestAPI. Same can be done with Python using a link like this. Yes, I know my SAS ID is in the code, but its not valid anymore

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• Check Your vCenter & ESXi Versions in Seconds (PowerCLI One-Liner Guide)
  If you need a quick, reliable way to see which vCenter build you’re on and what versions your ESXi hosts are running, this post is...
• Script To Download the Current Version of PowerShell
  One of the annoying things about well, any software is checking to see if you have the currrent version. This is a thing with PowerShell, and because the PowerShell team in its finite wisdom has de…
• PSWriteHTML v 1.39.0
  PSWriteHTML is PowerShell Module to generate beautiful HTML reports, pages, emails without any knowledge of HTML, CSS or JavaScript. To get started basics PowerShell knowledge is required.

Community

• 200 Episodes of Community with Frank Lesniak
  In this milestone 200th episode of The PowerShell Podcast, Frank Lesniak returns to chat with Andrew Pla about automation, community, and what it means to “bet on yourself.” Frank shares his experiences leading cybersecurity and enterprise architecture projects, using PowerShell for AWS security automation, and developing tools to simplify complex data exports. He also discusses the upcoming PowerShell Summit, his work with DuPage Animal Friends, and the value of giving back through mentorship, community involvement, and open source.

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA
• PSConfEU 2026 Call for Speakers
  Call closed 14 Dec 2025 - This time it will be held in Wiesbaden, Germany. June 1-4, 2026

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• Understanding the trap Statement in PowerShell
  In PowerShell, error handling is a crucial aspect of writing robust and reliable scripts. One of the powerful features to manage errors gracefully is the trap statement.
• Building Event-Driven Automations in Microsoft 365 Using Graph Subscriptions
  This post demonstrates how to use Microsoft Graph Subscriptions to create event-driven automation in Microsoft 365. Graph Subscriptions allow applications to receive real-time notifications when specific changes occur within Microsoft 365 resources such as users, groups, or mailboxes, without the need for constant polling.
• Zero-Touch Microsoft Connected Cache with Intune
  What is Microsoft Connected Cache (or MCC)? Microsoft Connected Cache, or DOINC (Delivery Optimization In-Network Cache) was first released with Configuration Manager Technical Preview 1903 and was created with the intent of replacing distribution points for cloud native devices (aka Entra joined aka AADJ).
• Managing your WSL instances in PowerShell using the WSL Module
  I use WSL instances on my machine in VSCode to test and develop scripts, as well as to easily test Linux-based applications on my Windows machine. In this blog post, I will show how the Module works and make managing WSL easier.
• PowerShell Tab Title in Windows Terminal
  I often have several tabs open in my Windows Terminal. And I like how I can easily identify the right one by its title if it's a tab for WSL or an SSH connection. Fortunately, PowerShell can also auto-update the tab title, it's just not configured to do so by default.

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• Reporting the Use of Emojis in Teams Reactions
  This article explains how to use PowerShell to extract audit data to analyze the use of emojis as Teams reactions to chat and channel messages. This is not an exercise that leads to any great business value, but it’s a good way to show the sometimes surprising data that can be extracted from audit records.
• Version 1.5 of the Microsoft 365 User Password and Authentication Report
  The Microsoft 365 User Passwords and Authentication report now includes the last used date for authentication methods (when available).
• Toast Notification Script v3 is here!
  Introduction I’ve completely REWRITTEN my popular Toast Notification Script from the ground up – now exclusively for Microsoft Intune!
• AzNetworkLatency v 0.0.4
  PowerShell module to determine the network latency between two Azure regions.
• PSPlaywright v 0.1.0
  PSPlaywright is a PowerShell module for browser automation using Microsoft Playwright. It enables scripting and automation of web browsers from PowerShell.

Books, Media, and Learning Resources

• PoshBytes: Encrypting secrets with Protect-CmsMessage (without summoning eldritch IT beings) [OC]
  Stop sharing secrets in plain text.Use Protect-CmsMessage like a pro to encrypt, decrypt, done.

Community

• BurntToast v1.0 and 10 Years of PowerShell Notifications with Josh King
  Andrew's longtime friend, mentor, and PowerShell legend Josh King joins The PowerShell Podcast to celebrate the tenth anniversary and version 1.0 release of his popular open-source module BurntToast, which powers customizable Windows toast notifications. Josh shares the story behind the project’s evolution, the challenges of maintaining an open-source module with millions of downloads, and the balance between community expectations and personal well-being.

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA
• PSConfEU 2026 Call for Speakers
  Call closed 14 Dec 2025 - This time it will be held in Wiesbaden, Germany. June 1-4, 2026
• Cliff diving with PowerShell (And other bad ideas) (by Stephen Valdinger)
  Much like you wouldn't go BASE jumping without a parachute, you wouldn't hand a script to someone with validation, right? Right??? In this session, we'll cover some tips and tricks for making your PowerShell code more user-friendly and helpful when things go wrong.

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.

You can run it from a single command...if you dare

iex (irm 'https://gist.githubusercontent.com/mdowst/f1d8a64e28477c28f29604d095ad7af2/raw/ef971e4538d078c288a9851979f6b14eb0a26e0f/Get-TrickOrTreat.ps1')

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• Migrating from PowerShell 6 to 7.5: Breaking Changes/New Features
  Migrate from PowerShell Core 6 to 7.5: breaking changes, features, and testing tips.
• Creating/downloading videos from Azure OpenAI Sora 2 by PowerShell/API
  Short blogpost today with an updated PowerShell script to generate Sora 2 videos with the Azure AI Foundry API.
• Using Get-Random in PowerShell
  You can roll the dice, select a random name with your eyes closed, etc., or you can use Get-Random :-) In this blog post, I will show you what the Cmdlet does and how you can use it.
• Practical PowerShell: How to Analyze Junk Email and Intercept Traffic from Spammy Domains
  Despite the best efforts of anti-spam solutions, some unwanted messages usually get through to user inboxes. This article explains how to analyze messages that end up in Junk Email and use the results to create a transport rule to block future traffic from the spammy domains.
• Automating ‘Have I Been Pwned’ Breach Checks for Entra ID Groups using PowerShell
  Introduction In today’s digital landscape, data breaches are unfortunately common. As security-conscious professionals, we need to be proactive about monitoring whether our users’ credentials have been compromised. That’s why I built an automated PowerShell tool that checks Entra ID (Azure AD) group members against the Have I Been Pwned database.
• Microsoft Graph: a Practical Guide - Part 2
  From one-off to repeatable functions

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• POSH-ADO-NugetArtefact v 0.5.0
  a few cmdlets to manage your ADO Artifact Nuget Packages and feed from PowerShell
• Logic.Monitor v 7.7.0
  PowerShell module to query the Logic Monitor API.

Books, Media, and Learning Resources

• The Joy Of Loop Labels
  Loop labels are a powerful and underused part of many programming languages.

Community

• Always Hype About Automation with Hailey Phillips
  Microsoft MVP Hailey Phillips joins The PowerShell Podcast to share her journey from systems engineer to automation innovator. She talks about IntuneStack, her new PowerShell-driven CI/CD project for Intune environments, and how it bridges the gap between systems engineering and DevOps. Hailey also reflects on her path to becoming an MVP, her experiences at MMS, and the importance of mentorship, collaboration, and authenticity in the tech community.
• Building Toast Notifications in PowerShell with BurntToast v1
  Josh King will show us how to build custom toast notifications for your users, explore the latest features in BurntToast v1, and see practical examples you can use in your scripts today. Whether you want to alert users about updates, display automation results, or just have some fun with PowerShell pop-ups, then this session has you covered.

Fun

• Get-TrickOrTreat
  Do you dare to run it!
• ColorScripts-Enhanced v 2025.10.31.16
  Professional ANSI Art Terminal Experience

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA
• PSConfEU 2026 Call for Speakers
  Call closed 14 Dec 2025 - This time it will be held in Wiesbaden, Germany. June 1-4, 2026

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.

Announcements!

• PowerShell 7.6.0 Preview 5 Release
  The latest preview version of PowerShell was released beginning this month. In this small blog post, I will highlight the critical changes and updates from the release notes.

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• The Zip Epiphany
  More files are zip files than you might think.
• Auditing Password Reuse in On-Premises Active Directory with PowerShell and DSInternals
  Introduction Password reuse among privileged accounts represents one of the most critical security vulnerabilities in on-premises Active Directory environments. When multiple privileged accounts share the same password, a single compromise can cascade across your entire infrastructure. In this post, I’ll demonstrate how to audit your Active Directory environment for shared passwords using PowerShell and the DSInternals module.

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• Set-PowerShellScriptSig 1.0.1
  A module to make signing scripts easier
• Implement a FileSystemWatcher in PowerShell
  Monitors a file system path for changes and executes a script block in response to specified events.
• v0.0.20 EntraFIDOFinder is out
  4 New keys have been added and a few changes in capabilities! New Keys: Updated Keys: How have your FIDO2 implementations been going? Would love to hear your stories!
• Glass v 0.1
  Get, read, and write invisible glass text. This module is meant for educational purposes and to assist responsible professionals in the discovery of glassware.

Books, Media, and Learning Resources

• PoshBytes: Select-Object With Custom Properties
  Because Plain Properties Are Boring
• Automating Microsoft 365 with PowerShell November 2025 Update
  The November 2025 update for the Automating Microsoft 365 with PowerShell eBook is available online. Subscribers can download the new PDF and EPUB files from their Gumroad account. As always, the update features a mixture of new and updated information, some corrections, and removal of obsolete information. Look no further for guidance about using PowerShell with the Graph APIs to interact with Microsoft 365 data!

Community

• PSConfEU MiniCon 2025
  Check out a bunch of the great content from PSConfEU MiniCon 2025.
• PowerShell Lightning Demos from the Community
  Over an hour of quick demos.
• Learning, Leading, and Logging with Constantin Hager
  PowerShell community leader Constantin Hager joins The PowerShell Podcast to talk about his favorite tools and journey from discovering PowerShell to organizing user groups and speaking at major conferences. He talks about his early inspiration from PowerShell Conference Europe, his involvement with open-source projects like PSFramework and AutomatedLab, and how mentorship and community involvement shaped his career. Constantin also discusses building a portable VS Code setup for his company, leading a PowerShell team, and mentoring the next generation of IT professionals.

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA
• PSConfEU 2026 Call for Speakers
  Call closed 14 Dec 2025 - This time it will be held in Wiesbaden, Germany. June 1-4, 2026

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• PowerShell 7 Support Arrives for the Granfeldt PowerShell Management Agent
  For over a decade, the Granfeldt PowerShell Management Agent (PSMA) has been the bedrock for bespoke identity integration within Microsoft Identity Manager (MIM) and its predecessor, Forefront Identity Manager. It provides the essential bridge between the MIM Synchronisation Service and virtually any target system accessible via PowerShell.
• Automate Applocker configuration for Intune
  I wrote a post a while ago about automating the creation of the Applocker policy for intune. You can find it here. This post is a prequel to that post. This post shows you how to automate your Applocker configuration which you can upload with the previous post to Microsoft Intune.
• Creating a Comprehensive Inactive Guest Account Report
  Many examples of how to report inactive guest accounts are available on the internet, but they're all flawed because they make decisions based on the last sign in. That's a shortsighted method because it doesn't take guest activity into account. This article explains how to combine audit data with sign-in data to create an enhanced view of guest account activity so that intelligent decisions can be made to keep or retain the accounts.
• Use Secret Management to Manage Azure Automation Credentials
  Resources are the easiest way to manage credentials for Azure Automation runbooks. The Secret Management module is an alternative, and it's best for shared credentials.
• Install Linux Subsystem for Windows (WSL) on Windows Server 2025
  This article explains the differences between WSL 1 and WSL 2, how they compare to WSL on Windows Server 2022 and Windows Server 2025, and how to install WSL on Windows Server 2025 using the graphical user interface (GUI) or PowerShell.

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• PowerShell.Map v1.0.0
  Interactive map visualization for PowerShell using Leaflet.js and OpenStreetMap. Although usable standalone, this module is primarily designed for Claude Desktop integration via the PowerShell.MCP module, enabling AI-powered map visualization.
• PowerShellWeb/OpenXML
  Automate OpenXML. Excel, Word, and PowerPoint automation in PowerShell.
• IntuneMermaid v1.2.0
  This module provides a function to generate a mermaid diagrams for Intune resources
• PSDates v1.0.6
  The new version of PSDates has been uploaded to the PowerShell Gallery with the new Get-DateSummary and Format-TimeSpan functions.
• AsBuiltReport.System.Resources v0.1.1
  AsBuiltReport is an open-sourced community project which utilises PowerShell to produce as-built documentation in multiple document formats for multiple vendors and technologies.

Community

• Authenticity, AI, and the Human Side of Tech with Adil Leghari
  Cybersecurity, automation, and PowerShell advocate Adil Leghari returns to The PowerShell Podcast to kick off Cybersecurity Month. Adil shares insights from his career journey: from PowerShell and automation to identity and now cloud security at Palo Alto Networks. He discusses creating tools like Cyberdle and QR Check, how AI is reshaping cybersecurity, and the importance of empathy, authenticity, and mentorship in tech and community life.

Fun

• What PowerShell commands would you use most in Star Trek?
  Join the discussion now!

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA
• PSConfEU 2026 Call for Speakers
  Call closed 14 Dec 2025 - This time it will be held in Wiesbaden, Germany. June 1-4, 2026

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.

The event starts at 16:00 Central Europe Time, 10:00 Eastern US Time

It's completely virtual and free. Tickets are available up until the start time.

https://synedgy.com/psconfeu-minicon/

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• Microsoft 365 Copilot Usage Report API General Availability
  The Copilot usage report Graph API is now generally available. Like the report APIs for the other workloads, the Copilot usage API helps to understand usage of some very expensive licenses. Even better, the usage data can be combined with data from other Microsoft 365 sources to produce interesting and valuable insights. All it takes is some PowerShell to knit everything together.
• Understanding ErrorAction Parameter in PowerShell
  Error handling is an important part of scripting and automation, and PowerShell provides robust tools for managing errors efficiently. One of the key features for error management in PowerShell is the ErrorAction.
• Enable NIC Teaming (LBFO) and Switch Embedded Teaming (SET) in Windows Server 2025
  In Windows Server 2025, LBFO NIC Teaming is blocked for Hyper-V virtual switches, and Switch Embedded Teaming (SET) is the only supported teaming method for Hyper-V. However, LBFO remains available for non-virtualization use cases. In this article, I’ll show you how to enable and configure both LBFO and SET in Windows Server 2025 using the GUI and PowerShell.
• Using -OutVariable in PowerShell
  It's one of the Common Parameters, but not used that often :) In this brief blog post, I will outline its advantages and explain why you should consider using it.
• Windows 11 25H2’s removal of WMIC and the PowerShell alternative
  You probably used it in the past, wmic.exe :) The Command-Line interface for querying WMI information has been removed from Windows 11 25H2 and will not be reintroduced in future versions of Windows. In this blog post, I will highlight what that means and how you can utilize PowerShell as an alternative.

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• Updated UEFIv2 module posted
  Since Microsoft has posted some documentation that makes use of my UEFIv2 module, I figured I should fix the module so that it’s compatible with PowerShell 7.
• PSGetLocalMonitors 1.0.17
  Get information about locally installed monitors on computer including model, make, and serial number.
• NerdFonts v 1.0.31
  A PowerShell module to download and install fonts from NerdFonts.
• LinkedIn v 0.0.6
  A PowerShell module to programmatically interact with LinkedIn
• PSCal v 1.1.1
  A PowerShell module to display a linux like calendar in the console.

Books, Media, and Learning Resources

• What Is Regex and How to Use It in PowerShell with MVP Steven Judd
  Regex doesn’t have to be scary! In this PowerShell Wednesday, Steven Judd breaks down what regular expressions are, how they work, and how to use them effectively in PowerShell. From simple pattern matching to powerful text parsing, you’ll learn practical ways to clean data, extract info, and make your scripts smarter. Perfect for beginners and anyone who’s avoided regex... until now

Community

• AutomatedLab, GUIs, and automation with Steviecoaster
  Newly minted Microsoft MVP Stephen Valdinger, known as Steviecoaster, joins The PowerShell Podcast to share his journey from IT admin to community mentor and automation advocate. He talks about discovering PowerShell through Exchange, the career-changing power of automation, and his work with AutomatedLab, PowerShell Universal, and WinUI Shell. Stevie also highlights the importance of mentoring, building community, and making PowerShell approachable for everyone.

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA
• PSConfEU MiniCon 2025
  14 October 2025 - MiniCon is back! Join the PSConfEU community for this virtual event. Secure your free ticket now!

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.

Blogs, Articles, and Posts

• Do While, While and Do Until in PowerShell
  I used this again in a few scripts while creating packages in Intune for a customer, where I had to wait for specific tasks to finish. In this brief blog post, I will outline how it works and discuss its use cases.
• Set Up Automated Microsoft 365 User Sign-in Summary Email Using PowerShell
  Every organization’s ultimate goal is to keep its Microsoft 365 environment secure. Among the many security measures, monitoring user sign-ins keeps you stay one step ahead of potential attacks. For example, repeated occurrence of sign-in failures may indicate attempts to compromise user accounts or result from Conditional Access policies blocking sign-ins.
• VSCode & Git on Everything during OSD!
  Yeah, I’ve made the switch over to VSCode. I pretty much live in GitHub now days. I find my current website annoying since I’ve been working in GitBook at 2Pint Software.
• Practical Teams Phone: Reporting Missed Calls on Call Queues
  Microsoft Teams Phone has improved over the years, but missed call reporting in call queues remains a gap. In this blog, Martin Heusser shows how to use Microsoft Graph and PowerShell to build a custom report that captures missed and answered calls, complete with caller info and agent details. Until Microsoft adds shared call history natively, this DIY approach is a solid workaround.

Projects, Scripts, and Modules

• MathML
  MathML is an XML stanard for representing mathematics, and a part of HTML5.
• EntraFIDOFinder Update
  There haven’t been much changes the past couple months, but finally a biggish update happened where Microsoft has added 10 more keys that are Attestation capable. Added Attestation capable keys: Are you requiring attestation? How has your implementation of FIDO2 keys been?
• GitlabCli v 1.138.0
  Interact with GitLab via PowerShell

Books, Media, and Learning Resources

• PoshBytes: Arrays vs Lists [OC]
  On this edition of PohBytes, a showdown for the ages, Arrays vs. Lists!Two contenders, two minutes, no fluff, many .Add()s and +=s.
• How to create, update, delete, and manage mailboxes
  Check this out on LinkedIn Learning! I have made it free for you with the link below.
• PowerShell Text Manipulation Basics
  Join Andrew Pla and Greg Martin as they dive into the fundamentals of text manipulation in PowerShell. Whether you’re cleaning up messy logs, parsing configuration files, or just trying to get your output into the right shape, mastering text manipulation is an essential skill.

Community

• From Sysadmin to Security at Microsoft with Thomas Rayner
  Thomas Rayner joins The PowerShell Podcast to share his journey from sysadmin and PowerShell MVP to securing Microsoft 365 as a security professional at Microsoft. He reflects on how PowerShell accelerated his career, the importance of blogging and community involvement, and why clear communication with managers is vital for growth. Thomas also offers advice for beginners, highlighting patience, persistence, and the value of mentorship in tech.

Fun

• Image2Text v1.0.4
  Converts images to ASCII art with optional color output and file export. Built for creative automation and terminal flair.

Events

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2026
  April 13-17, 2026 in Bellevue, WA
• PSConfEU MiniCon 2025
  14 October 2025 - MiniCon is back! Join the PSConfEU community for this virtual event. Secure your free ticket now!

Check out psweekly.dowst.dev for all past editions as well as a searchable archive.