Set Execution Policy within PowerShell

By default, PowerShell will allow individual commands but will not execute scripts.  To set the execution policy, use the Set-ExecutionPolicy commandlet.  The commandlet has four different execution policies available:

• Restricted - No scripts can be run. Windows PowerShell can be used only in interactive mode.

• AllSigned - Only scripts signed by a trusted publisher can be run.

• RemoteSigned - Downloaded scripts must be signed by a trusted publisher before they can be run.

• Unrestricted - No restrictions; all Windows PowerShell scripts can be run.

The PowerShell prompt or ISE must be launched with local administrative authority for the change to be made.  The Get-ExecutionPolicy can be used to verify the existing setting.

mRemoteNG

mRemoteNG is a fork of mRemote, an open source, tabbed, multi-protocol, remote connections manager.  mRemoteNG adds bug fixes and new features to mRemote.

mRemoteNG supports the following protocols:

• RDP (Remote Desktop/Terminal Server)
• VNC (Virtual Network Computing)
• ICA (Citrix Independent Computing Architecture)
• SSH (Secure Shell)
• Telnet (TELecommunication NETwork)
• HTTP/HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol)
• rlogin
• Raw Socket Connections

http://www.mremoteng.org/

SSDLife

SSDLife is an application that will let you know how many times your drive has been powered on, written to, what its health and S.M.A.R.T. status is, and even give you an estimated lifespan of the drive.

http://ssd-life.com/

Introduction to PowerCLI

PowerCLI is a snapin for PowerShell that is intended for use with a VMware environment.  It can be found at:

http://communities.vmware.com/community/vmtn/vsphere/automationtools/powercli

Once launched, help can be found using the Get-VICommand commandlet or the Get-PowerCLIHelp commandlet.

To connect to a ESX/ESXi host, use the Connect-VIServer commandlet.  An example would be:

Connect-VIServer –Server IP address –Protocol https –User root –Password passwordvalue

Once connected, a message should be displayed:

Once connected to a host, commandlets such as Get-VM and Get-VMHost can be used.

The | format-list option can provide additional details.

More details can be displayed using the | Select-Object * option as well.

The Get-VMGuest commandlet will offer some additional details on a particular VM:

The Get-HardDisk commandlet pulls storage information:

The Get-DataStore commandlet can offer details on items such as free disk space available.

The Disconnect-VIServer commandlet will remove the connection to the host: