Lesson -3 : Using the command line for Administration

 General Server Management

 >>> Get-ComputerInfo  // same as systeminfo

 


 What is Get-WindowsFeature?

Get-WindowsFeature is a PowerShell cmdlet used to:

✔️ View all Windows Server roles and features
✔️ Check which features are installed or available
✔️ Manage server components

It’s part of Windows Server administration tools.

 

What does Add-Computer do?

👉 It allows you to:

  • Join a PC to an Active Directory domain
  • Move a computer to a different domain
  • Add it to a workgroup

What does Remove-Computer do?

👉 It:

  • Disconnects the PC from an Active Directory domain
  • Moves it to a workgroup
  • Requires a restart to complete
Remove-Computer -UnjoinDomainCredential (Get-Credential)

What does Rename-Computer do?

👉 It:

  • Changes the system (host) name
  • Can be used on local or remote computers
  • Usually requires a restart

Rename-Computer -NewName "NewPCName"


Restart-Computer -ComputerName <server_name> -Wait -For PowerShell ; Write-Host "DONE"

Restart-Computer -ComputerName

 check the connectivity 

 

What is Test-ComputerSecureChannel?

Test-ComputerSecureChannel is a PowerShell cmdlet used to:

Test-ComputerSecureChannel -Repair 

👉 Check if a computer’s secure connection with a domain is working properly

It is used in Windows domain environments (Active Directory).

 

🔐 What is a Secure Channel?

When a computer joins a domain, it creates a secure trust relationship with the domain controller.

👉 This cmdlet checks:

  • Is the trust still valid?
  • Can the computer authenticate with the domain?

 >>> Test-ComputerSecureChannel

  >>> Test-ComputerSecureChannel -Repair

What does Get-Date do?

👉 It shows:

  • Current date
  • Current time
  • System’s time zone info

What does Get-TimeZone do?

👉 It shows:

  • Current time zone name
  • Offset from UTC
  • Whether Daylight Saving Time (DST) is used

What does Set-Date do?

👉 It allows you to:

  • Set a new date
  • Set a new time
  • Adjust system clock manually

>>> Set-Date -Date "YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS"

Set full date and time

>>> Set-Date -Date "2026-04-15 10:30:00"

Change only date

>>> Set-Date -Date "2026-12-25"

Change only time

>>> Set-Date -Time "14:00:00" 

Add or subtract time

Set-Date -Adjust (New-TimeSpan -Days 1)



Network Settings 

What is Get-NetIPAddress?

Get-NetIPAddress is used in PowerShell to:

👉 View IP address configuration of your system


What is Get-NetAdapterStatistics?

👉 It shows data traffic details such as:

  • Bytes sent & received
  • Packets sent & received
  • Errors and discards


What is Get-DnsClient?

Get-DnsClient is used in PowerShell to:

👉 View DNS client settings for your network adapters


What is Get-DnsClientServerAddress?

Get-DnsClientServerAddress is used in PowerShell to:

👉 View the DNS server IP addresses configured on your computer


What is Get-NetFirewallRule?

Get-NetFirewallRule is a PowerShell cmdlet used to:

👉 View firewall rules configured on your system

It works in PowerShell with the built-in Windows firewall.


ping , works on powershell

What is Test-Connection?

In PowerShell,
👉 Test-Connection works like the ping command

It sends network requests to see if a server or computer is reachable.



What is Test-NetConnection?

👉 It checks:

  • If a server/website is reachable
  • Port connectivity (very important)
  • DNS resolution
  • Network route (traceroute-like info)


>>> Test-NetConnection <ComputerName> -Port 80


Traceroute (PowerShell / Windows)

Traceroute is a network diagnostic tool used to track the path (route) that data takes from your computer to a destination server.

In PowerShell, the equivalent command is:

👉 tracert (Command Prompt)
👉 or Test-NetConnection -TraceRoute (PowerShell)


>>> Test-NetConnection google.com -TraceRoute

similar to >  tracert google.com


Overview of Hyper -V

1. Check Hyper-V feature 

>>> Get-WindowsFeature -Name Hyper-V 

2. Install Hyper-V

>>> Install-WindowsFeature -Name Hyper-V -IncludeManagementTools -Restart


Virtual Machine (VM) Commands 

List all VMs

>>> Get-VM

Create a new VM

>>> New-VM -Name "TestVM" -MemoryStartupBytes 2GB -Generation 2 -NewVHDPath "C:\VMs\TestVM.vhdx" -NewVHDSizeBytes 20GB

 
Start a VM

>>> Start-VM -Name "TestVM"

 
Stop a VM

>>> Stop-VM -Name "TestVM" 

Restart VM

>>> Restart-VM -Name "TestVM" 

 
Delete VM

 >>> Remove-VM -Name "TestVM"

 

Disk & Storage Commands

 9. Create virtual hard disk

>>> New-VHD -Path "C:\VMs\disk.vhdx" -SizeBytes 50GB -Dynamic

 10. Attach disk to VM

 >>>Add-VMHardDiskDrive -VMName "TestVM" -Path "C:\VMs\disk.vhdx"

Network Commands

11. List virtual switches

Get-VMSwitch

12. Create virtual switch

>>> New-VMSwitch -Name "ExternalSwitch" -NetAdapterName "Ethernet" -AllowManagementOS $true

13. Connect VM to switch

>>> Connect-VMNetworkAdapter -VMName "TestVM" -SwitchName "ExternalSwitch"

 

Snapshot (Checkpoint) Commands

14. Create checkpoint

>>> Checkpoint-VM -Name "TestVM"

15. View checkpoints

>>> Get-VMSnapshot -VMName "TestVM"

16. Restore checkpoint

 >>> Restore-VMSnapshot -VMName "TestVM" -Name "CheckpointName"

Useful Monitoring Commands

 17. VM status

 >>> Get-VM | Select Name, State, CPUUsage, MemoryAssigned

18. Detailed VM info

>>> Get-VM -Name "TestVM" | Format-List *


Powershell comparison operators

OperatorMeaningExample
-eqEqual to5 -eq 5 → True
-neNot equal5 -ne 3 → True
-gtGreater than10 -gt 5 → True
-ltLess than2 -lt 5 → True
-geGreater or equal5 -ge 5 → True
-leLess or equal3 -le 5 → True


Querying Active Directory 

Requirement

👉 Install/import AD module in PowerShell

>>> Import-Module ActiveDirectory

Basic AD Query Commands

Get all users

>>> Get-ADUser -Filter *

Get specific user

Show user properties

>>> Get-ADUser -Identity "john" -Properties *

 

Get selected properties (human readable)

 >>> Get-ADUser -Filter * | Select Name, SamAccountName, Enabled

 






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