Enterprise PowerShell Scripting Bootcamp

Brenton J.W. Blawat

• Publisher: Packt Publishing
• Year: 2017
• eBook ISBN: 9781787281158
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Computer Science
• Subtopic: Operating Systems
• Index: Computer Science

The quick start guide for an advanced enterprise PowerShell frameworkAbout This Book• Introduces industry-proven techniques that improve script efficiency and reliability• Example-rich guide based on real-world scenarios• Facilitates building a script that can fully scan a Windows server and identify componentsWho This Book Is ForThis book is for IT professionals and Windows administrators who would like to gain intensive, hands-on knowledge and skills on PowerShell without spending hours and hours in learning. If you have been struggling to find the time to gain proficiency and confidence with PowerShell and everyday scripting tasksWhat You Will Learn• Create an advanced PowerShell scripting template that provides repeatable code to jumpstart all of your scripting projects• Learn how to securely encrypt and store usernames, passwords, and other sensitive data in PowerShell scripts and answer files• Understand how to optimize the performance of scripts to help process large datasets quickly and avoid time-consuming mistakes• Develop a script to scan for non-standard Windows Server configurations and identify service accounts used on Windows Servers• Gather a large list of data from a Windows server without locally or remotely logging in interactivelyIn DetailEnterprise PowerShell Scripting Bootcamp explains how to create your own repeatable PowerShell scripting framework. This framework contains script logging methodologies, answer file interactions, and string encryption and decryption strategies.This book focuses on evaluating individual components to identify the system's function, role, and unique characteristics. To do this, you will leverage built-in CMDlets and Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) to explore Windows services, Windows processes, Windows features, scheduled tasks, and disk statistics. You will also create custom functions to perform a deep search for specific strings in files and evaluate installed software through executable properties.We will then discuss different scripting techniques to improve the efficiency of scripts. By leveraging several small changes to your code, you can increase the execution performance by over 130%.By the end of this book, you will be able to tie all of the concepts together in a PowerShell-based Windows server scanning script. This discovery script will be able to scan a Windows server to identify a multitude of components.Style and approachThis book is all about fast and intensive learning. This means, we don't waste time in helping readers get started. The new content is about leveraging highly-effective examples to build new things, help solving problems in newer and unseen ways, and providing an enterprise-ready platform to create PowerShell Scripts.

Enterprise PowerShell Scripting Bootcamp

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Table of Contents

Enterprise PowerShell Scripting Bootcamp

Credits

About the Author

About the Reviewer

www.PacktPub.com

eBooks, discount offers, and more

Why subscribe?

Customer Feedback

Preface

What this book covers

What you need for this book

Who this book is for

Conventions

Reader feedback

Customer support

Downloading the example code

Downloading the color images of this book

Errata

Piracy

Questions

1. Getting Started with Enterprise PowerShell Scripting

Windows server scanning script

Performance considerations

PowerShell scripting templates

Summary

2. Script Structure, Comment Blocks, and Script Logging

Overall script structure

Comment blocks

Script logging

Creating the logging files

Creating a windows event log source

Creating the logging function

Summary

3. Working with Answer Files

Answer files

XML answer files

Reading XML answer files

XML tag function

Summary

4. String Encryption and Decryption

RijndaelManaged encryption

Creating random salt, initialization vector, and passwords

Encrypting and decrypting strings

Decrypting strings

Securing the password

Decryption with encoded password

Summary

5. Interacting with Services, Processes, Profiles, and Logged on Users

Windows services

Managing Windows processes

Identifying logged on users

User profiles

Summary

6. Evaluating Scheduled Tasks

Scheduled tasks

Identifying scheduled tasks running as alternate users

Summary

7. Determining Disk Statistics

Disk statistics

Retrieving physical and logical disk information

The DriveType property

Converting disk space to MB and GB

Free Space property

Disk information script

Summary

8. Windows Features and Installed Software Detection

Windows features

Installed software detection

Scanning executables in \Program Files

Summary

9. File Scanning

File scanning

Excluding long paths

Excluding files

Summary

10. Optimizing Script Execution Speed

Script execution speed

Speed considerations for the write-host cmdlet

Speed considerations for the write-progress cmdlet

Speed consideration - switches versus if statements

Summary

11. Improving Performance by Using Regular Expressions

Using regular expressions

Dynamically building expressions

Implementating regular expression performance

Summary

12. Overall Script Workflow, Termination Files, and Merging Data Results

Windows server scanning script overview

Pre-script security

Script 1 - randomized password and string generator

Script 2 - string encryption script

XML answer file creation

PowerShell script 3 - the termination files

PowerShell script 4 - merging the scanning script result data

Summary

13. Creating the Windows Server Scanning Script and Post-Execution Cleanup

Windows server scanning script creation

Comment block

Parameter block

Answer file reading function

Decryption function

Populating script answers in variables and arrays

Creating the log files and logging function

Creating a termination function

Multiple Windows server scanning script functions

Scheduled tasks function

Windows processes function

Windows services function

Installed software function

User profiles function

Windows features function

Scan files and folders function

Invoking the functions

Running the script

Performing script cleanup

Summary

Index

Enterprise PowerShell Scripting Bootcamp

Copyright © 2017Packt Publishing

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embedded in critical articles or reviews.

Every effort has been made in the preparation of this book to ensure the accuracy of the information presented. However, the information contained in this book is sold without warranty, either express or implied. Neither the author, nor Packt Publishing, and its dealers and distributors will be held liable for any damages caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by this book.

Packt Publishing has endeavored to provide trademark information about all of the companies and products mentioned in this book by the appropriate use of capitals. However, Packt Publishing cannot guarantee the accuracy of this information.

First published: May2017

Production reference: 1160517

Published by Packt Publishing Ltd.

Livery Place

35 Livery Street

Birmingham B32PB, UK.

ISBN 978-1-78728-828-7

www.packtpub.com

Credits

Author

Brenton J.W. Blawat

Reviewer

Tim Amico

Commissioning Editor

Kartikey Pandey

Acquisition Editor

Namrata Patil

Content Development Editor

Amrita Noronha

Technical Editor

Jovita Alva

Copy Editors

Safis Editing

Laxmi Subramanian

Project Coordinator

Shweta H Birwatkar

Proofreader

Safis Editing

Indexer

Tejal Daruwale Soni

Graphics

Tania Dutta

Production Coordinator

Nilesh Mohite

Cover Work

Nilesh Mohite

About the Author

Brenton J.W. Blawat is an entrepreneur, strategic technical advisor, multi-published author, and enterprise architect who has a passion for the procurement of technology in profit-based organizations. Brenton is business-centric, while technology minded, and has many years of experience bridging the gap between technical staff and decision makers in organizations. He takes pride in his ability to effectively communicate to a diverse audience and provide strategic direction for large and small organizations alike.

Since 2013, he has authored and published multiple books with Packt Publishing, including:

• PowerShell 3.0 WMI Starter
• (Co-authored) PowerShell: Automating Administrative Tasks
• Mastering Windows PowerShell Scripting

Brenton currently works at CDW as an enterprise architect in Strategic Solutions and Services. CDW is a leading mul...

Table of contents

• Enterprise PowerShell Scripting Bootcamp