Windows PowerShell is a new task-based command line shell and intuitive scripting language for system administration that provides comprehensive control and automation for Windows administrators. Windows PowerShell makes administrators more productive by improving the manageability of the Windows operating system and applications that run on Windows. Exchange Server 2007 and System Center Operations Manager 2007 (Microsoft Operations Manager “V3”) will be built upon Windows PowerShell. The key features of Windows PowerShell include:

• Over 130 standard utilities (called “cmdlets) for completing common system administration tasks such as working with the registry, services, processes, Windows Management Instrumentation, event logs, etc..


• Intuitive, task-based scripting language and support for existing scripts and command line tools..


• Designed for consistency so all tools and system data stores follow a common syntax, common naming conventions and information can be easily shared/piped between tools.


• Simplified command-based navigation of the operating system (including drives, startup files, and registry).


• Powerful object manipulation capabilities (objects can be directly manipulated or pipelined to other tools or databases).


• Designed for extensibility so that independent software vendors and enterprise developers can easily build custom tools and utilities to administer their software.

Also available:

• Windows PowerShell RC1 (for .NET Framework 2.0 RTM) x64
• Windows PowerShell RC1 (for .NET Framework 2.0 RTM) ia64
• Windows PowerShell RC1 Documentation Pack