Let’s talk about a few community efforts taking PowerGUI extensibility to the next level.

As a background, PowerGUI Admin Console was designed with extensibility in mind and has a notion of PowerPacks. Basically, the console is simply displaying and executing the PowerShell code supplied in the PowerPack add-ons you load. Kirk has created a great PowerPack step-by-step tutorial/reference, and shot a ten-minute screencast on that topic.

However, sometimes the native PowerPack management functionality we provide is not sufficient or we are not documenting what you can do fast enough. If you feel like that, I would highly recommend that you:

• Join the PowerShell PowerGUI PowerPack Module open source project which Russell Slater started on codeplex. This module provides programmatic access to PowerPack elements and a few useful functions you might want to use when working on your PowerPacks.
• Check out Russel’s PowerGUIObjects PowerPack which in turn uses Kirk’s AdminConsole module.

If you want to get the most out of your custom PowerGUI admin consoles – these efforts are well worth checking out and actually joining! PowerGUI is so successful because it is a community effort and you could help take it to the next level!

Susan has posted the resuls of the PowerGUI scripting contest we had last month and it was so intense that we ended up with 5 winners instead of 3!

So, without further ado… let me open this envelope… and announce that the winners are…

Most Active Participant ($1000 Amazon certificate) – Adam Murray – IIS7 Powerpack.

Second Most Active Participant ($500 Amazon certificate) – Shannon Ma – NetPoint PowerPack for Windows Management

Best PowerPack ($1000 Amazon certificate) – Alan Renouf – Virtu-Al.Net VMware Virtual Infrastructure / vSphere scripts

Honorable Mention and $250 Amazon certificates:

• Vadims Podans – Enterprise PKI management
• David Moravec – SMS 2003

If you are one of the winners (congratulations!) you will get contacted shortly with details on how you will be able to get the prize.

The competition this year was increadibly intense and all the winning PowerPacks are just great and well worth checking out.

Need a simple and affordable way to manage your Windows systems in batch? Shannon Ma from NetPoint has just posted a free PowerPack which integrates with NetPoint PowerShell interfaces and lets you easily inventory your network.

The PowerPack can work with both free and commercial version of NetPoint (guess, which one gives you more functionality ) and provides a great way to collect various information from computers on your network, as well as install/unistall software, do restarts, run commands, and so on – all in all about 30 various tasks:

Read more, leave your feedback and download the PowerPack here.

Now it is. However, this is not the native management console coming with IIS, but a free PowerPack which Adam Murray posted here.

Not only you can see (and modify) the PowerShell code behind everything the tool is doing, you will enjoy just using the console and all the great features it has, including for example:

• Create, rename, copy and delete application pools
• Configure all app pool properties
• Create, rename, copy and delete web sites
• Create, rename, copy and delete ftp sites
• Set various site properties
• View and manage worker processes
• View and manage IIS services
• Manage site bindings
• Creates the various enum types from the IIS schema to allow the use of dropdowns for configuring properties

To learn about all its features, see screenshots and download the actual tool go to the IIS 7 powerpack page.

And don’t forget about other great PowerPacks Adam have created in the past for WebSphere MQ and SQL Reporting Services PowerPack.

This Sunday at midnight PST marks the closing of our second annual PowerPack Challenge contest.  The rules of this contest are very simple: create a new PowerPack or modify one of your existing PowerPacks and submit it to the contest folder in the PowerPack Library for a chance to win some cool prizes.  Now you might be thinking: "Sunday, but that’s  just three days away…I don’t have time to put together an entry between now and Sunday. Besides, I want my weekend to myself!"  Well, you’re in luck my friend because you don’t need three days…you only need 10 minutes (well, 10 minutes after you watch a screencast showing what you can do with PowerShell, the PowerGUI Admin Console, and 10 minutes of your time).  That’s not even going to take up your whole lunch hour on Friday, and if you plan to go out for lunch you could make your PowerPack during your afternoon break instead!

Here’s all you need to do:

1.  Bookmark the PowerPack section of the wiki.  I published a big update to our wiki earlier this week and it should be able to answer a lot of questions you might have.  Don’t read the whole thing right now though, that might take too long and what you really want to do right now is explained in the next step.

2.  Watch this screencast (also shown below on YouTube) that shows how I created a cool Windows Server Roles and Features PowerPack from scratch earlier today and published it to the PowerPack Library in only 10 minutes.  The PowerPack even has dynamic nodes generated from 4 script nodes, which used to be quite a lot of work but thanks to the AdminConsole module they are much, much easier now.  In fact, if you pay close attention to the screencast, you’ll see that all of the functionality in the PowerPack itself is done with only 7 lines of PowerShell script plus one basic node and two basic actions — that’s pretty amazing.  The entire screencast is longer than 10 minutes because I needed to explain a few things before and after the demonstration, but the creation and publishing of the PowerPack itself is done in only 10 minutes during the screencast.

Now that I’ve armed you with the wiki documentation and the screencast demo, I’ll be looking forward to seeing your PowerPacks in the PowerPack Library after your lunch or afternoon break!

Good luck with your PowerPacks!

Kirk out.

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]]> http://dmitrysotnikov.wordpress.com/2009/11/12/3-days-left-to-submit-your-powerpack/ Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:00:57 +0000 Dmitry Sotnikov http://dmitrysotnikov.wordpress.com/2009/11/12/3-days-left-to-submit-your-powerpack/

What are you waiting for? Install PowerGUI, watch this video, follow this tutorial, create the PowerPack of your dream and win one of the prizes!

This is really easy, fun, and a great way to have your own IT dreams (and dreams of many IT professionals out there in the community) come true.

The deadline is November 15. Details can be found here.

Are you running Microsoft Systems Management Server 2003 and want to have it fully scriptable in PowerShell?

Check out this wonderful SMS/ConfigMgr PowerPack David Moravec put together.

It lets you browse all your SMS configuration and among other things:

• List members of collection
• See package properties
• See programs inside the package
• See distribution points where the package is replicated
• Refresh package on distribution points
• See advertisements assigned to colection
• See your site structure in dynamic nodes (as tree)
• Reports listed by specific categories
• Go to some predefined web pages (e.g. myITforum.com)
• See overall health of your site

And as always with PowerPacks – this one shows all the PowerShell code behind it, lets you customize and tweak it, gives bulk operations, filtering, reporting aand so on!

Download the pack from here and let David know what you think!

Are you also into PowerShell and have a great idea of a tool to make someone’s life easier? Go for it – create your PowerPack and submit it to the contest!

Kirk has published a pretty extensive reference manual on PowerPacks (PowerGUI add-ons), what they are, how to customize them, and how to create the ones of your own.

Great timing considering that you still have 5 days to create a PowerPack and submit it to the PowerPack Challenge!

Check out the document here.

Certificate management used to be tough. There have not been a single tool to manage all the aspects of it and administrators had to launch all these certsrv.msc, certtmpl.msc, certutil.exe, ocsp.msc, pkiview.msc, and so on. We had no bulk operations, had to manage each certificate authority (CA) in a separate MMC snapin, and so on.

That is now all a thing in the past with the new PowerGUI/PowerShell-based certificate management admin console created by PowerShell MVP Vadims Podāns (here’s English translation of his blog) and shared for free here.

Here’s a very quick summary of some of the features his tool has:

• Certificate Authorities management:
  • CRL Distribution Points (CDP)
  • Authority Information Access (AIA) settings
  • Review CRLs
  • Publish new CRLs
  • Change CRL publishing periods including overlap settings
  • Revoked Certificates
  • Issued Certificates
  • Pending requests
  • Failed requests
  • Issued certificate templates
  • Revoke/unrevoke certificates
  • Issue or deny pending requests for certificates
  • Add/remove certificate templates to issue
  • Change CRL/CRT/OCSP URL priorities
• Local certificate store management:
  • Import/Export certificates using various certificate types (such CER/pkcs12/pkcs7/SST)
  • Copy/move certificates between stores
  • Delete certificate from store
  • Validate certificates passing them through certificate chaining engine
  • Sign files
• Online Certificate Status Protocol (OCSP) Responders management
  • Review and change OCSP Responder settings
  • Change OCSP URL priorities

All of these support bulk operations, filtering, and reporting. All are available with their source PowerShell code for your reference and scripting.

Could you ask for more? Please submit your feedback to Vadims – this will help him improve the pack.

Read more about the pack, see the screenshots, and download the tool here.

Are you also into PowerShell and have a great idea of a tool to make someone’s life easier – go for it – create your PowerPack and submit it to the contest!

Tags: Certificate Authority, Certificate Management, PKI, PowerGUI, PowerPack, PowerPack Challenge, PowerShell
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PowerPack Challenge 2009 got its first contestant and it is absolutely fantastic.

If you are an administrator managing VMware infrastructure – this is a great free addition to your arsenal. Just look at the screenshot of the navigation tree. The tool is just an amazing collection of super-useful reports on VMware hosts, guest machines, datacenter, resource pools and clusters, and goes beyond that by adding licensing information and even a virtualization tip of the day!

You can download Alan’s PowerPack here. Read more about the pack and send your feedback here.

Good thing there’s more than one prize for the contest. So if you are into PowerShell and have a great idea of a tool to make someone’s life easier – go for it – create your PowerPack and submit it to the contest!

Tags: PowerGUI, PowerPack, PowerPack Challenge, PowerShell, VMware, Virtualization
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If you are considering participating in the PowerPack Challenge contest (which you should ) this quick video by Darin will help you get started:

Darin walks you through the process of customizing PowerGUI admin console, exporting the new functionality as a PowerPack, and sharing it on the web.

1. Check it out,
2. Think about what you do day to day at work and what would be the graphical console of your dream,
3. Create it,
4. Submit it to the contest,
5. And become one of the winners!

Tags: Demo, PowerGUI, PowerPack, PowerShell, Webcast, video
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Welcome to Scooter Specialties, ScootSpecs for short, the place for all your scooter performance and tuning needs! From simple bolt-ons to make your scooter run smoother, to performance upgrades to make it rip, we got it all, right here at ScootSpecs.

We specialize in carrying performance parts for the Honda Dio and Yamaha Jog platforms, as well as Honda style GY6 50cc 125cc and 150cc motors

We are now carrying a select line of Ruima high performance scooter parts for the Honda Dio style scooter platform! We plan to carry Yamaha Jog style and GY6 parts in the near future, check back soon for updates.

Ruima parts for have now arrived

Ask about discounts for package deals!

scootspecs@gmail.com

Banks Exhaust systems guaranteed to maximize your Ford Powerstroke power. OCDiesel.com is highlighting the Banks PowerPack System with exclusive Techni-Cooler intercooler assembly that cools and condenses engine-air to fortify performance and durability through the drivetrain and to the road surface. PowerPack uncorks best gains of +120 hp, +256 lb-ft torque and 10% more mileage. In terms of raw power, strong acceleration and lugging heavy cargo up a grade, PowerPack-equipped Powerstroke perform circles around the rest. Example: slash nearly a thousand feet off your 0-to-60 mph distance, and tow from there!

System Includes:

Techni-Cooler Intercooler Assembly
TransCommand
DynaFact Gauges
Monster Exhaust
Quick-Turbo Assembly

OCDiesel.com offers a wide variety of diesel performance parts from all of your favorite manufactures including Banks Power. 

Shop OCDiesel.com and SAVE!

Have a question regarding a product? Don’t see what you are looking for? Call us at 1.888.OC.Diesel to speak with a sales representative.

Orange County Diesel offers 0% financing up to 12 months (with approved credit)*. Please call for more details!

JCB Full Line of Light Equipment

JCB is further expanding its robust North American equipment range with the addition of JCB Light Equipment. This exciting new product line features 32 models representing three distinct product categories: Light Compaction, Hydraulic Power Packs and Hydraulic Hand Tools. Because North America represents 27% of the total world market for light equipment, the addition of JCB Light represents a significant market opportunity for JCB. By offering this new product line, JCB and its expanding dealer network can better serve North American customers with a complete portfolio of job site solutions.

Light Compaction
The Light Compaction product category of JCB Light includes rammers, a single drum roller and plate compactors, both forward and reversible.

JCB VMR - Vibrator Rammer

The JCB VMF forward plate compactor series has been specifically designed for easy, effective compaction of asphalt, soil and other non-cohesive (or less-cohesive) materials. Built for fast travel and high productivity, these machines feature powerful Honda engines (Hatz Diesel on the VMF 130D) and a wear-resistant, high-grade cast tamping plate for optimum durability. With three models to choose from, these machines are built to tackle a wide range of compaction jobs. All models are available with an optional sprinkler and throttle kit.

The JCB VMP reversible plate compactors series provides a choice of models to suit every type of compaction application. All units are hydrostatically operated and designed to effectively compact granular and cohesive material. With both reversing and stationary features, these machines allow you to carry out compaction tasks in confined areas where turning would otherwise be difficult or impossible. All VMP models feature a single forward/reverse control lever as well as specially balanced and isolated guide bars to protect the operator against hand-arm vibration effects. To extend product life, the JCB VMP series is equipped with lifetime-lubricated vibrator bearings along with a wear-resistant, high-grade cast damping plate.

The VMR ‘Jumping Jack’ Rammers Series features a low-maintenance design that allows the machine to operate for longer periods of time, resulting in greater productivity. Strong and sturdy, these rammers have a low center of gravity with a four-column guide for more stable operation. In addition, these machines generate a horizontal force to propel themselves forward, making them easier for operators to handle. The rammers feature special damping plate material that acts as a shock absorber, as well as a protected air cleaner on top of the machine for even easier operation and maintenance.

Designed for the compaction of granular and asphalt materials, JCB’s VMS Series Single Drum Roller is ideal for use in confined spaces that cannot be accessed by traditional larger rollers. Compact and maneuverable, VMS Single Drum Rollers are very popular with maintenance contractors for small asphalt reinstatement and ground care applications.

Hydraulic Power Packs
JCB Light Equipment Hydraulic Power Pack range includes four models—HP200, HP300, HP400 and HP500. Hydraulic power packs are earning a reputation for better overall performance and reliability than rival pneumatic and electric options. By combining high performance with a compact, user-friendly design, hydraulic power packs offer a level of efficiency that’s unmatched by other power sources.

HP300 with Disc Cutter

Conventional pneumatic power sources require a large and typically expensive engine that significantly restricts access in tight or confined work spaces. Although they have a far smaller engine than those used by a typical air compressor, JCB’s hydraulic power packs can deliver equally powerful tool performance. As a result of their compact size, they can be easily stored, transported and moved around a job site. Furthermore, typical start up costs of a hydraulic power pack are half those of a comparable pneumatic power source. JCB’s hydraulic power packs feature a power-on-demand system that reduces off-load engine speeds to idle, resulting in lower noise levels, less engine wear and decreased fuel consumption–and increased productivity. The JCB Hydraulic Power Pack range also features a unique suction circuit that eliminates pulsation damage to the cooler.

Hydraulic Hand Tools
JCB now also offers a range of hydraulic hand tools designed to run off JCB Power Packs or the handheld tool circuits (HTC) available on a number of JCB machines. The new range of hand tools includes breakers, pumps, saws, drills, wrenches and augers. Designed for a long trouble-free life, each tool offers an impressive power-to-weight ratio while at the same time being light, manageable and quiet to operate.

HP400/20-30 and Breaker in action

The JCB breaker range consists of five models featuring sturdy cast steel construction for strength and only two moving parts for exceptional reliability and a long service life. JCB has a patented ultra-low vibration system that reduces hand-arm vibration by 60% when compared with a fixed handle breaker. Hydraulic breakers hit harder than the air equivalent, with 80% of the power being transmitted to the tool as compared to 20%-30% with a pneumatic system. The low-vibration breakers give operators excellent control while being more comfortable to use.

Also included in the hydraulic hand tool category are the new JCB pumps. JCB is offering two distinct pump types to match the needs of different applications: trash pumps and submersible pumps. The trash pumps are capable of handling water with mud, leaves and other solids up to 3 inches diameter, while the submersible pumps can be used in clear water applications. Both options are self-priming, and being hydraulically-powered, are self-lubricating and will run dry without damage. All pumps come with a lifting lug for safe and accurate placement. The submersible pumps have flat-faced quick-release, dripless couplings for speedy attachment changes.

Other new hydraulic tools include three types of drills: diamond core drills, hydraulic drills and impact drills; 2 types of impact wrenches; disc cutters and a two-man auger.

JCB will take a multi-tiered approach to the distribution of this new line. Light Equipment will be sold with the construction equipment range through the company’s expanding dealer network in North America. JCB will also sell direct to national account customers and utilize a team of independent manufacturer representatives to bring the product to market.

The introduction of the extensive new JCB Light product line is just another example of JCB’s continued dedication to helping dealers and customers “get the job done.” For more information about JCB’s industry-leading equipment for the construction, agriculture, industrial and waste/recycling markets, or to find a dealer near you, call JCB’s North American Headquarters in Savannah at (912) 447-2000 or visit www.jcbna.com.

About JCB:
The largest private heavy equipment manufacturer in the world, JCB’s North American headquarters are in Savannah, Georgia, with an expanding network of dealers located throughout the U.S. and Canada.

JCB has 18 plants on four continents: 11 in the UK, three in India and others in the USA, China, Germany and Brazil and employs around more than 7,000 people worldwide. JCB celebrated its 60th anniversary in 2005. JCB is privately-owned by the Bamford family and the Chairman, Sir Anthony Bamford, is son of the company’s late founder, Joseph Cyril Bamford.

The company manufactures more than 300 different machines including: backhoe loaders; Loadall telescopic handlers; tracked and wheeled excavators; wheel loaders; articulated dump trucks; rough terrain fork lifts; mini excavators; skid steers loaders; JCB Vibromax compaction equipment; generators and Groundcare equipment. In addition, for agricultural markets, the company produces a range of telescopic handlers and the unique Fastrac Tractor. JCB also manufactures the Teletruk Forklift for the industrial sector.

In 2005, JCB secured one of the largest orders in its history when it won a $290 million deal to supply the U.S. Government with High Mobility Engineer Excavators (HMEEs). Full scale production of the HMEE is now underway at JCB’s plant in Savannah, Ga., USA. The HMEE fulfils a need from the military for rapid deployment high mobility products. To further meet these requirements; JCB has also developed a range of other high mobility products from the High Mobility Fastrac Tractor, through to the High Mobility RoughTerrain Forklift and the High Mobility Utility Vehicle.

В продолжении темы работы удаленно с процессами на компьютерах локальной сети:

На репозиторий PowerShell выложил код ввиде функции View-Process или скачать файл скрипт View-Process.ps1

Для любителей PowerGUI в библеотеку PowerGUI Library выложен PowerPack, который можно скачать тут.

В предыдущем посте “Завершение процесса” опубликован скрипт с помощью, которого можно собственно завершить любой процесс удаленно на компьютере.

Теперь его можно взять с репозитория PowerShell в виде функции Kill-Process или скачать.

Для любителей PowerGUI в библеотеку PowerGUI Library выложен PowerPack, который можно скачать тут.

На репозиторий PowerShell выложил код ввиде функции Get-InstalledProgram, которую в дальнейшем можно лекго использовать:

1. если добавить её в свой профиль PowerShell-а
2. сохранить ввиде файла-скрипта Get-InstalledProgram.ps1

Так же на сайте PowerGUI в библеотеку PowerGUI Library выложен List of Installed Programs PowerPack. Скачать.

gequiz413 posted a photo:

gequiz413 posted a photo:

Call any user in Active Directory or Exchange right from your administrative console, with a single click dial into any conference call (with participant passcode dialed for you ) – all of that is possible with the latest extension for PowerGUI.

PowerGUI Skype PowerPack adds Call buttons for all user accounts and mailboxes, as well as people in your corporate organizational chart. In addition to this you can obviously call any of your Skype contacts or any conference call appointments listed in your Outlook.

Check out this 7-minute demo here (highly recommended to watch in HD and full screen):

As always, all the code behind any nodes and actions can be found in their properties, so you can learn how this actually works, modify the pack to suite your needs or extend it to add calling capabilities to whichever other systems you are managing!

This blog post by Shafqat Ahmed helped me a lot when I started working on the PowerPack. My scripts in the pack are basically enhancements built on top of his excellent post.

Download Skype PowerPack here and let us know what you think.

Tags: AD, Active Directory, Demo, Exchange, PowerGUI, PowerPack, PowerShell, Skype
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Windows Server 2008 R2 ships with a great new object undelete feature – Active Directory Recycle Bin. The only problem with this feature (apart from requiring 2008 R2 functional level ) is that PowerShell command-line is the only management interface shipped for the feature.

Well, not anymore. Check out the free GUI Kirk has put together with PowerGUI (make sure you click the HD button when watching this and make it full screen):

It keeps amazing me how great PowerGUI is when you need such GUIs on top of anything exposing PowerShell.

Read more about the PowerPack in Kirk’s blog.

Download the PowerPack here.

Last week Microsoft made the announcement that Windows Server 2008 R2 reached RTM.  Among the many cool new features provided with that release (Hello?  PowerShell v2?  Need I say more?), Microsoft has now added a recycle bin feature to Active Directory.  The management interface provided by Microsoft for this feature is the command line, or more specifically, PowerShell.  That’s great if you’re like me and you love to manage your infrastructure using PowerShell, but what if you prefer a GUI?  Fortunately there is a solution for you too.

As Jackson Shaw suggested on his blog about a week ago, PowerGUI provides an admin console that allows you to create your own management UI that is layered on top of PowerShell.  This admin console can be extended with PowerPacks, which are essentially add-ins that provide additional user interface elements in PowerGUI that invoke PowerShell script when clicked.  All you need to do is add the user interface elements you want and then provide the scripts to power those elements, managing the Active Directory Recycle Bin objects or anything else you need to manage.  Or alternatively you can check to see if someone on the PowerGUI Community like myself has already created a PowerPack with the functionality you are looking for.

In the case of the Active Directory Recycle Bin, you’re in luck.  I just finished creating the first release of a new PowerPack that is designed to allow you to manage any objects in your recycle bin.  You can find the Active Directory Recycle Bin PowerPack by following the hyperlink here or by going directly to http://www.powergui.org and browsing into the Active Directory subcategory in the PowerPack Library.  This PowerPack includes the following features:

• View the contents of the recycle bin, including hierarchies
• Restore individual items in the recycle bin (recursively or not) to their original location
• Restore individual items in the recycle bin (recursively or not) to a specified location
• Permanently delete objects in the recycle bin (recursively or not)
• Empty the contents of the recycle bin
• Modify the number of days that the recycle bin is configured to retain objects and the number of days that objects are to be kept in a tombstone state before permanent deletion

If you would like to see a demo of the Active Directory Recycle Bin PowerPack, watch this screencast:

If you prefer watching a high resolution version of the screencast, you can watch it in flash format here or on YouTube directly in HD format here.

This is the initial release of this PowerPack and it contains a good amount of new functionality.  If you are experimenting with the Active Directory Recycle Bin feature, please take a look at this PowerPack and provide any feedback you have so that we can continue to provide improvements that are valuable to you and others in future releases.

Thanks for listening!

Kirk out.

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Chad Miller @cmille19 has just published his SQL Server PowerShell Extensions PowerPack for anyone to download and use.

The console has tons of functionality to access and manage all the aspects of SQL: servers, databases, permissions, replication, services, and so on, and so forth.

And for accidental DBAs like myself it is just a great resource for managing SQL and learning how to script it (because I can see all the PowerShell code behind!) If you like myself don’t know and might not have time to learn T-SQL and standardize on PowerShell for your scripts – this is a great resource to download and start using.

Read more about the pack in Chad’s blog. Download the pack here.

Tags: PowerGUI, PowerPack, PowerShell, SQL
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