Show-Command
Displays PowerShell command information in a graphical window.
Syntax
Show-Command
[[-Name] <String>]
[-Height <Double>]
[-Width <Double>]
[-NoCommonParameter]
[-ErrorPopup]
[-PassThru]
[<CommonParameters>]Description
This cmdlet is only available on the Windows platform.
The Show-Command cmdlet lets you create a PowerShell command in a command window. You can use the
features of the command window to run the command or have it return the command to you.
Show-Command is a very useful teaching and learning tool. Show-Command works on all command
types, including cmdlets, functions, workflows and CIM commands.
Without parameters, Show-Command displays a command window that lists all available commands in
all installed modules. To find the commands in a module, select the module from the Modules
drop-down list. To select a command, click the command name.
To use the command window, select a command, either by using the Name or by clicking the command name in the Commands list. Each parameter set is displayed on a separate tab. Asterisks indicate the mandatory parameters. To enter values for a parameter, type the value in the text box or select the value from the drop-down box. To add a switch parameter, click to select the parameter check box.
When you're ready, you can click Copy to copy the command that you've created to the clipboard or click Run to run the command. You can also use the PassThru parameter to return the command to the host program, such as the PowerShell console. To cancel the command selection and return to the view that displays all commands, press Ctrl and click the selected command.
In the PowerShell Integrated Scripting Environment (ISE), a variation of the Show-Command window
is displayed by default. For information about using this command window, see the PowerShell ISE
Help topics.
This cmdlet was reintroduced in PowerShell 7.
Because this cmdlet requires a user interface, it does not work on Windows Server Core or Windows Nano Server. This cmdlet is only available on Windows systems that support the Windows Desktop.
Examples
Example 1: Open the Commands window
This example displays the default view of the Show-Command window. The Commands window
displays a list of all commands in all modules that are installed on the computer.
Show-CommandExample 2: Open a cmdlet in the Commands window
This example display the Invoke-Command cmdlet in the Command window. You can use this display
to run Invoke-Command commands.
Show-Command -Name "Invoke-Command"Example 3: Open a cmdlet with specified parameters
This command opens a Show-Command window for theConnect-PSSessioncmdlet.
Show-Command -Name "Connect-PSSession" -Height 700 -Width 1000 -ErrorPopupThe Height and Width parameters specify the dimension of the command window. The ErrorPopup parameter displays the error command window.
When you click Run, the Connect-PSSession command runs, just as would if you typed the
Connect-PSSession command at the command line.
Example 4: Specify new default parameter values for a cmdlet
This example uses the $PSDefaultParameterValues automatic variable to set new default values for
the Height, Width, and ErrorPopup parameters of the Show-Command cmdlet.
$PSDefaultParameterValues = @{
"Show-Command:Height" = 700
"Show-Command:Width" = 1000
"Show-Command:ErrorPopup" = $True
}Now when you run a Show-Command command, the new defaults are applied automatically. To use these
default values in every PowerShell session, add the $PSDefaultParameterValues variable to your
PowerShell profile. For more information, see about_Profiles
and about_Parameters_Default_Values.
Example 5: Send output to a grid view
This command shows how to use the Show-Command and Out-GridView cmdlets together.
Show-Command Get-ChildItem | Out-GridViewThe command uses the Show-Command cmdlet to open a command window for theGet-ChildItemcmdlet.
When you click the Run button, the Get-ChildItem command runs and generates output. The
pipeline operator ( | ) sends the output of the Get-ChildItem command to the Out-GridView
cmdlet, which displays the Get-ChildItem output in an interactive window.
Example 6: Display a command that you create in the Commands window
This example shows the command that you created in the Show-Command window. The command uses the
PassThru parameter, which returns the Show-Command results in a string.
Show-Command -PassThru
Get-EventLog -LogName "Windows PowerShell" -Newest 5For example, if you use the Show-Command window to create a Get-EventLog command that gets the
five newest events in the Windows PowerShell event log, and then click OK, the command returns
the output shown above. Viewing the command string helps you learn PowerShell.
Example 7: Save a command to a variable
This example shows how to run the command string that you get when you use the PassThru
parameter of the Show-Command cmdlet. This strategy lets you see the command and use it.
$C = Show-Command -PassThru
$C
Invoke-Expression $C
Get-EventLog -LogName "PowerShell" -Newest 5
Index Time EntryType Source InstanceID Message
----- ---- --------- ------ ---------- -------
11520 Dec 16 16:37 Information Windows PowerShell 400 Engine state is changed from None to Available...
11519 Dec 16 16:37 Information Windows PowerShell 600 Provider "Variable" is Started. ...
11518 Dec 16 16:37 Information Windows PowerShell 600 Provider "Registry" is Started. ...
11517 Dec 16 16:37 Information Windows PowerShell 600 Provider "Function" is Started. ...
11516 Dec 16 16:37 Information Windows PowerShell 600 Provider "FileSystem" is Started. ...The first command uses the PassThru parameter of the Show-Command cmdlet and saves the results
of the command in the $C variable. In this case, we use the Show-Command window to create a
Get-EventLog command that gets the five newest events in the Windows PowerShell event log. When
you click OK, Show-Command returns the command string, which is saved in the $C variable.
Example 8: Save the output of a command to a variable
This example uses the ErrorPopup parameter to save the output of a command in a variable.
$P = Show-Command Get-Process -ErrorPopup
$P
Handles NPM(K) PM(K) WS(K) VM(M) CPU(s) Id ProcessName
------- ------ ----- ----- ----- ------ -- -----------
473 33 94096 112532 709 2.06 4492 powershellIn addition to displaying errors in a window, ErrorPopup returns command output to the current
command, instead of creating a new command. When you run this command, the Show-Command window
opens. You can use the window features to set parameter values. To run the command, click the
Run button in the Show-Command window.
Parameters
-ErrorPopup
Indicates that the cmdlet displays errors in a pop-up window, in addition to displaying them at the
command line. By default, when a command that is run in a Show-Command window generates an error,
the error is displayed only at the command line.
Also, when you run the command (by using the Run button in the Show-Command window), the
ErrorPopup parameter returns the command results to the current command, instead of running the
command and returning its output to a new command. You can use this feature to save the command
results in a variable.
| Type: | SwitchParameter |
| Position: | Named |
| Default value: | False |
| Required: | False |
| Accept pipeline input: | False |
| Accept wildcard characters: | False |
-Height
Specifies the height of the Show-Command window in pixels. Enter a value between 300 and the
number of pixels in the screen resolution. If the value is too large to display the command window
on the screen, Show-Command generates an error. The default height is 600 pixels. For a
Show-Command command that includes the Name parameter, the default height is 300 pixels.
| Type: | Double |
| Position: | Named |
| Default value: | None |
| Required: | False |
| Accept pipeline input: | False |
| Accept wildcard characters: | False |
-Name
Displays a command window for the specified command. Enter the name of one command, such as the name
of a cmdlet, function, or CIM command. If you omit this parameter, Show-Command displays a command
window that lists all of the PowerShell commands in all modules installed on the computer.
| Type: | String |
| Aliases: | CommandName |
| Position: | 0 |
| Default value: | None |
| Required: | False |
| Accept pipeline input: | False |
| Accept wildcard characters: | False |
-NoCommonParameter
Indicates that this cmdlet omits the Common Parameters section of the command display. By default, the Common Parameters appear in an expandable section at the bottom of the command window.
| Type: | SwitchParameter |
| Position: | Named |
| Default value: | False |
| Required: | False |
| Accept pipeline input: | False |
| Accept wildcard characters: | False |
-PassThru
Returns an object representing the item with which you are working. By default, this cmdlet does not
generate any output. To run the command string, copy and paste it at the command prompt or save it
in a variable and use the Invoke-Expression cmdlet to run the string in the variable.
| Type: | SwitchParameter |
| Position: | Named |
| Default value: | False |
| Required: | False |
| Accept pipeline input: | False |
| Accept wildcard characters: | False |
-Width
Specifies the width of the Show-Command window in pixels. Enter a value between 300 and the number
of pixels in the screen resolution. If the value is too large to display the command window on the
screen, Show-Command generates an error. The default width is 300 pixels.
| Type: | Double |
| Position: | Named |
| Default value: | None |
| Required: | False |
| Accept pipeline input: | False |
| Accept wildcard characters: | False |
Inputs
None
You can't pipe objects to this cmdlet.
Outputs
None
By default, this cmdlet returns no output.
When you use the PassThru parameter, this cmdlet returns a command string.
When you use the ErrorPopup parameter, this cmdlet returns the command output (any object).
Notes
PowerShell includes the following aliases for Show-Command:
- Windows:
shcm
This cmdlet is only available on Windows platforms.
Show-Command does not work in remote sessions.
