Collection of Useful PowerShell Scripts (CUPS)

This repository contains 40+ useful cross-platform PowerShell scripts - to be used on the command-line (CLI), for remote control, by context menu, by voice control, or by automation software (e.g. Jenkins).

List of Scripts

The following PowerShell scripts can be found in the Scripts/ subfolder:

• clone-repos.ps1 - clones well-known Git repositories
• configure-git.ps1 - sets up the Git configuration
• download.ps1 - downloads the file/directory from the given URL
• empty-dir.ps1 - empties the given directory
• enable-crash-dumps.ps1 - enables the writing of crash dumps
• inspect-exe.ps1 - prints basic information of the given executable file
• list-empty-dirs.ps1 - lists empty subfolders in a directory tree
• list-unused-files.ps1 - lists unused files in a directory tree
• list-cmdlets.ps1 - lists the PowerShell cmdlets
• list-modules.ps1 - lists the PowerShell modules
• list-processes.ps1 - lists the local computer processes
• locate-city.ps1 - prints the lat/long coordinates of the given city
• locate-ipaddress.ps1 - locates the geographic position of the given IP address
• MD5.ps1 - prints the MD5 checksum of the given file
• make-install.ps1 - installs built executables and libs to the installation directory
• moon.ps1 - prints the current moon phase
• open-browser.ps1 - starts the default Web browser
• password.ps1 - generates and prints a single new password
• passwords.ps1 - generates and prints a list of new passwords
• poweroff.ps1 - halts the local computer (needs administrator rights)
• news.ps1 - prints the latest news
• reboot.ps1 - reboots the local computer (needs administrator rights)
• scan-ports.ps1 - scans the network for open/closed ports
• send-email.ps1 - sends an email message
• send-tcp.ps1 - sends a TCP message to the given IP address and port
• send-udp.ps1 - sends a UDP datagram message to the given IP address and port
• SHA1.ps1 - prints the SHA1 checksum of the given file
• SHA256.ps1 - prints the SHA256 checksum of the given file
• simulate-presence.ps1 - simulates the human presence against burglars
• speak-file.ps1 - speaks the content of the given text file by text-to-speech (TTS)
• speak-text.ps1 - speaks the given text by text-to-speech (TTS)
• switch-shelly1.ps1 - switches a Shelly1 device in the local network
• take-screenshot.ps1 - takes a single screenshot
• take-screenshots.ps1 - takes multiple screenshots
• test.ps1 - simple test script
• train-dns-cache.ps1 - trains the DNS cache with frequently used domain names
• translate-file.ps1 - translates the given file from source to target language
• translate-text.ps1 - translates the given text into other languages
• txt2wav.ps1 - converts text into a audio .WAV file
• validate-xml.ps1 - validates the given XML file
• weather.ps1 - prints the current weather forecast
• weather-alert.ps1 - checks the current weather for critical values
• weather-report.ps1 - prints the local weather report
• weather-worldwide.ps1 - prints the current weather of cities world-wide
• wakeup.ps1 - sends a magic packet to the given computer, waking him up
• zip-dir.ps1 - creates a zip archive of the given folder

What is PowerShell?

PowerShell is a task automation and configuration management framework from Microsoft, consisting of a command-line shell and associated scripting language.

• it's powerful: fully control your computer
• it's cross-platform: available for Linux, Mac OS and Windows
• it's open-source: see the Github repository at https://github.com/PowerShell/PowerShell
• it's easy to learn: see the tutorial at https://www.guru99.com/powershell-tutorial.html
• it's fully documented: see the official docs at https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/powershell/

How to get PowerShell?

• Windows 7 and newer do provide PowerShell by default. It's recommended to install Windows Terminal (see the Microsoft Store at https://www.aka.ms/terminal) for a comfortable command-line usage. Per default, Windows does not allow script execution (execution policy "restricted"). To enable this, enter as administrator:

  $ Set-ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned
  

• On CentOS, Debian, Docker, Fedora, macOS, openSUSE, Red Hat, Ubuntu visit https://github.com/PowerShell/PowerShell for installation.

Afterward, install CUPS by clicking on the green "Code" button or execute:

$ git clone https://github.com/fleschutz/PowerShell

Configure PowerShell as Default Shell

• Linux: make sure PowerShell is installed, then execute: chsh -s /snap/bin/powershell <username>
• Windows: no need to, PowerShell is the default shell

Adding the Scripts to the Search Path

Want to use the PowerShell scripts everywhere on the command-line? Then you need to add the Scripts/ subfolder to the search path:

• Bash or sh: edit .profile in your home directory and add the line: PATH="$PATH:/path/to/PowerShell/Scripts"
• Windows: open the environment variables dialogue and add the full path to Scripts/ to the system environment variable "Path"

Using PowerShell in Context Menus

• to enable "right-click > New > Windows PowerShell Script" execute Add_ps1_to_New_context_menu.reg in subfolder Context_Menus/
• to disable this execute Remove_ps1_from_New_context_menu.reg in subfolder Context_Menus/

Script Conventions

Each PowerShell script should follow the 7 golden rules:

• Rule 1: the filename should be named <verb>-<object>.ps1
• Rule 2: to support PowerShell on Linux the first line reads: #!/snap/bin/powershell
• Rule 3: to support PowerShell on Linux the script has execute file permissions (chmod a+rx )
• Rule 4: add a metadata header containing the syntax, description, author, source, and license
• Rule 5: prefer command-line options, but may ask the user in case no option is given
• Rule 6: the encoding of the script is in UTF-8 with BOM to support Unicode characters
• Rule 7: exit 0 for success, else print an error message and exit with the error code (mostly 1)

Feedback

Send your email feedback to: markus [at] fleschutz [dot] de

License & Copyright

This open source release is licensed under the CC0 license. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners.