Category: Powershell

Chrissy LeMaire explains how you can simplify Powershell cmdlet calls using hashtables:

Splatting in PowerShell makes code easier to read. Instead of typing a bunch of parameters allllll across the screen, you can use an easy-to-read hashtable or array. Argument splatting was introduced in PowerShell v3 and works with all PowerShell commands, not just dbatools.
Note: I’ve only used splatting with hashtables, as they allow me to be explicit about which parameters I’m passing. It appears that arrays would employ positional parameters, which is less wordy but leaves room for error.

Whenever I hear the word “splatting” I think of the Naked Gun series of movies and OJ Simpson getting run over by a steamroller. Those were some funny movies, so that’s a good connotation.

Jess Pomfret shows us the data compression options available when using dbatools:

Data compression is not a new feature in SQL Server. In fact it has been around since SQL Server 2008, so why does it matter now? Before SQL Server2016 SP1 this feature was only available in Enterprise edition. Now that it’s in Standard edition data compression can be an option for far more people.
dbatools has three functions available to help you work with data compression, and in true dbatools style it makes it easy and fast to compress your databases.

Read on for a breakdown of the Powershell cmdlets available.

Andy Mallon has a quick fix when some rows in a CSV are missing values:

I was just goofing around with the data, so I didn’t really need anything perfect…but I did want something that was good enough to be repeatable, in case I wanted to do it again.
Fixing thousands of rows by hand sounded like torture. Heck. No.
The data was from a publicly available data set, so getting the file format fixed seemed like it would probably be neither quick nor easy. Depending on others could be a dead end, and while this would be the “rightest” solution to ensure a stable future fix, it was overkill for my casual playtime.

Andy has shown the easy way. Now we lock him in a room with sed and a book on regular expressions to learn the other way. The correct answer to that, of course, is to fashion a pick kit out of the book (and whatever else you might be able to acquire) to get out.

Kevin Marquette goes into great detail on Powershell’s $nullconcept:

When a $null value is used in a numeric equation then your results will be invalid if they don’t give an error. Sometimes the $null will evaluate to 0 and other times it will make the whole result $null. Here is an example with multiplication that gives 0 or $nulldepending on the order of the values.

Nulls are tricky to handle in any language, making their nuances important to understand.

Jeffery Hicks might have taken things a bit too far:

Well, I knew I wouldn’t be satisfied. The other day I shared a PowerShell prompt function that could display telemetry like information for a few remote servers. One of the drawbacks was the limited amount of information I could display. I’ve revised that function and have a new version that displays additional information via a few performance counters. I’ve also reorganized the function to make it a bit more efficient. Want to see it?

My jokey lede aside, this is really cool. Click through for details and to get a link to the code.

Garry Bargsley has gone through twelve days of the dbatools module’s functionality:

The final day is upon us and I have saved the best for last and one you can take in to the holiday season as a present from our fearless leader of dbatools.  The Start-DbaMigration is where the dbatools module started years ago.  Who of us have not said “I really should automate this tedious SQL migration stuff” so I do not forget a step when I have not had enough coffee.  Well Chrissy LeMaire (b | t) not only said it, but made it reality.  This early work has grown in to the dbatools module that we know today and has grown in to a multi-tool toolkit that help the DBA expand their skills without having the burden of learning a scripting language and the complexity that goes with hooking it to your SQL Server.

This tool has literally changed my life since finding it a couple years ago.  Not only am I doing work in PowerShell, I am automating work processes.  Also, this has contributed to my personal growth.  Chrissy and team has such a welcoming atmosphere and inclusion around the project, it has guided me to contribute to an open source project as well as guided me to presenting at SQL Saturdays events.

Read the whole thing. And if you missed parts of the series, they’re all up on Garry’s blog.

Max Trinidad walks us through an issue with Powershell Core Preview 3:

Just in case you haven’t try to install PowerShell Core Preview.3, in Windows, which became available on the evening of the 10th of December. If are doing a clean installation, meaning that it was previously manually uninstall, or that this is your first installation, then you are fine.
The issue with installing PowerShell Core Preview.3 is when you do an upgrade over a previous version: either Preview.1 or Preview.2.

That’s a common occupational hazard when working with preview tools.  But Max has your solution.