Learn PowerShell - PowerShell Fundamentals & Console Basics

#Introduction

In episode 1 we understood why PowerShell exists — born from Monad to solve the chaos of Windows administration. Now it's time to touch the real thing: the console and command fundamentals. This episode is the "basic etiquette" — what you see on screen, how commands are structured, how to ask the system questions, and the security rules that govern script execution.

If episode 0 prepared the environment and episode 1 prepared the mindset, episode 2 prepares the language. Master this section, and all the following episodes — variables, operators, conditionals, and functions — will feel like adding vocabulary to a language you already understand.

#Console: powershell.exe vs pwsh.exe

There are two PowerShell engines you'll encounter on a Windows machine, and telling them apart is the first skill you must have:

Both can coexist on the same machine. The quickest way to confirm which engine is running:

$PSVersionTable.PSEdition

The value Core means PowerShell 7, while Desktop means Windows PowerShell 5.1. Throughout this series we use pwsh, unless there's a special note about 5.1 compatibility.

#Console vs ISE vs VS Code

You need a place to write and run PowerShell. Each host has its own strengths:

Rule of thumb: use the console to explore, VS Code to build. You'll switch often — testing commands in the console, then pouring them into scripts in VS Code. Windows Terminal is recommended for both because it provides tabs for many sessions.

#Profile: A Console Ready for Use

Every time pwsh starts, it reads the profile file — a script that executes automatically. This is where you store aliases, functions, and your favorite colors so every session feels like home. See your profile's location:

$PROFILE

If the file doesn't exist yet, create it first. A simple example profile:

if (-not (Test-Path $PROFILE)) {
    New-Item -Path $PROFILE -ItemType File -Force
}
 
Set-Location C:\Users\arman\Documents
Set-Alias g git
function kls {
    Get-ChildItem | Format-Wide -Column 4
}
Write-Host "Profile loaded - welcome, $env:USERNAME" -ForegroundColor Green

$PROFILE is the same file for powershell.exe and pwsh.exe — if you use both, create a separate profile for each so your settings don't get mixed up.

#Command Structure: Verb-Noun

Every PowerShell command is called a cmdlet (command-let), and its name always follows the Verb-Noun pattern. The most basic example:

Get-Process -Name pwsh

• Get is the verb: taking something.
• Process is the noun: what is being taken.
• -Name pwsh is the parameter: filters the results.

The genius of this convention: because names are consistent, you can guess. Want to create a service? New-Service. Remove a file? Remove-Item. Run something? Invoke-Command. The system becomes predictable.

#Common and Approved Verbs

Microsoft maintains a list of approved verbs — official verbs you're allowed to use. Its purpose is to make the entire ecosystem (Microsoft and the community) speak the same vocabulary. Using a verb outside the list will trigger a warning when you create your own functions in later episodes.

#Help: Get-Help

Nobody can memorize every parameter. That's exactly why PowerShell provides a rich built-in help system:

Get-Help Get-Process

PowerShell 7 has updatable help — documents that can be downloaded to stay fresh:

Update-Help -Force

Besides per-cmdlet help, there are conceptual about_* topics explaining general rules — like execution policies and automatic variables. Try Get-Help about_* to see the list, or go straight to Get-Help about_Execution_Policies.

#Discovery: Get-Command, Get-Member, Get-Module

Help alone isn't enough — you need to explore what's available on the system.

Get-Command finds commands. Search all cmdlets containing a certain word using wildcards:

Get-Command -Name *Process*

Get-Member unpacks the contents of objects — what properties and methods a value has. This is the window to understand what you can do with the data you're holding:

Get-Process pwsh | Get-Member

Get-Module lists available and loaded modules — units that bring collections of cmdlets, for example the Active Directory or Azure module. Show-Command displays a small GUI to compose commands with a parameter form.

#Execution Policy: The Security Rulebook

Execution policy is not antivirus protection — it's a reminder: Windows won't run PowerShell scripts silently. There are five main modes:

On modern Windows 10/11, the default value is generally RemoteSigned — a wise compromise: scripts you write yourself run normally, while scripts downloaded from the internet (the riskiest ones) require a signature.

View your current policy, then change it if needed:

Get-ExecutionPolicy
Set-ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Scope CurrentUser

Scope determines how broadly a rule applies: Process (this session only), CurrentUser (this user), or LocalMachine (all users, requires administrator). Start with CurrentUser — the safest for learning.

#Conclusion

Episode 2 closes out the language fundamentals: you now know how to tell powershell.exe and pwsh.exe apart, choose the right host, read the Verb-Noun cmdlet structure, ask the system questions with Get-Help and Get-Command, dissect objects with Get-Member, and understand the execution policy and its scopes.

Key takeaways:

• pwsh.exe (7+) is the series' main engine; powershell.exe (5.1) for compatibility.
• Console to explore, VS Code to build, Windows Terminal to run both.
• All commands follow the Verb-Noun pattern — understand the pattern, and the system becomes easy to predict.
• The exploration trio: Get-Command to find, Get-Help to read, Get-Member to dissect.
• Keep the execution policy at RemoteSigned and only change it in the scope that needs it.

In the next episode, episode 3, we get into the "raw materials" of scripting: variables & data types — how to store values in $variable, getting to know types like string, number, boolean, array, and hashtable, plus the string manipulation techniques you'll use in almost every script. Make sure your pwsh is warm, because the material ahead gets more concrete!