Get-Help
Displays information about PowerShell commands and concepts.
Syntax
Get-Help
[[-Name] <String>]
[-Path <String>]
[-Category <String[]>]
[-Full]
[-Component <String[]>]
[-Functionality <String[]>]
[-Role <String[]>]
[<CommonParameters>]
Get-Help
[[-Name] <String>]
[-Path <String>]
[-Category <String[]>]
-Detailed
[-Component <String[]>]
[-Functionality <String[]>]
[-Role <String[]>]
[<CommonParameters>]
Get-Help
[[-Name] <String>]
[-Path <String>]
[-Category <String[]>]
-Examples
[-Component <String[]>]
[-Functionality <String[]>]
[-Role <String[]>]
[<CommonParameters>]
Get-Help
[[-Name] <String>]
[-Path <String>]
[-Category <String[]>]
-Parameter <String[]>
[-Component <String[]>]
[-Functionality <String[]>]
[-Role <String[]>]
[<CommonParameters>]
Get-Help
[[-Name] <String>]
[-Path <String>]
[-Category <String[]>]
[-Component <String[]>]
[-Functionality <String[]>]
[-Role <String[]>]
-Online
[<CommonParameters>]
Get-Help
[[-Name] <String>]
[-Path <String>]
[-Category <String[]>]
[-Component <String[]>]
[-Functionality <String[]>]
[-Role <String[]>]
-ShowWindow
[<CommonParameters>]
Description
The Get-Help
cmdlet displays information about PowerShell concepts and commands, including
cmdlets, functions, Common Information Model (CIM) commands, workflows, providers, aliases, and
scripts.
To get help for a PowerShell cmdlet, type Get-Help
followed by the cmdlet name, such as:
Get-Help Get-Process
.
Conceptual help articles in PowerShell begin with about_, such as
about_Comparison_Operators. To see all about_ articles, type Get-Help about_*
. To see a
particular article, type Get-Help about_<article-name>
, such as
Get-Help about_Comparison_Operators
.
To get help for a PowerShell provider, type Get-Help
followed by the provider name. For example,
to get help for the Certificate provider, type Get-Help Certificate
.
You can also type help
or man
, which displays one screen of text at a time. Or,
<cmdlet-name> -?
, that's identical to Get-Help
, but only works for cmdlets.
Get-Help
gets the help content that it displays from help files on your computer. Without the help
files, Get-Help
displays only basic information about cmdlets. Some PowerShell modules include
help files. Beginning in PowerShell 3.0, the modules that come with the Windows operating system
don't include help files. To download or update the help files for a module in PowerShell 3.0, use
the Update-Help
cmdlet.
You can also view the PowerShell help documents online. To get the online version of a help file,
use the Online parameter, such as: Get-Help Get-Process -Online
.
If you type Get-Help
followed by the exact name of a help article, or by a word unique to a help
article, Get-Help
displays the article's content. If you specify the exact name of a command
alias, Get-Help
displays the help for the original command. If you enter a word or word pattern
that appears in several help article titles, Get-Help
displays a list of the matching titles. If
you enter any text that doesn't appear in any help article titles, Get-Help
displays a list of
articles that include that text in their contents.
Get-Help
can get help articles for all supported languages and locales. Get-Help
first looks for
help files in the locale set for Windows, then in the parent locale, such as pt for pt-BR,
and then in a fallback locale. Beginning in PowerShell 3.0, if Get-Help
doesn't find help in the
fallback locale, it looks for help articles in English, en-US, before it returns an error
message or displaying autogenerated help.
For information about the symbols that Get-Help
displays in the command syntax diagram, see
about_Command_Syntax. For information about parameter attributes,
such as Required and Position, see about_Parameters.
Note
In PowerShell 3.0 and PowerShell 4.0, Get-Help
can't find About articles in modules unless
the module is imported into the current session. To get About articles in a module, import the
module using the Import-Module
cmdlet or by running a cmdlet that's included in the module.
Beginning with PSReadLine v2.2.2, the module ships with two functions that provide quick access to help while you are typing a command on the command line. The help is displayed in the terminal in an alternate screen buffer with paging.
When you hit the F1 key, the PSReadLine ShowCommandHelp
function invokes
Get-Help -Full
for the cmdlet name closest to the left of the cursor. When the cursor is
immediately to the left of a parameter, the function jumps to that parameter's description in the
full help topic. When you hit Q to exit the help view, you are returned to the command
line at the same cursor position so you can continue typing the command.
When you use the key combination Alt+h, the PSReadLine ShowParameterHelp
function
displays help information for the parameter immediately to the left of the cursor. The help text is
displayed below the command line. This allows you to see the description of the parameter and
continue typing your command.
For more information, see Using dynamic help.
Examples
Example 1: Display basic help information about a cmdlet
These examples display basic help information about the Format-Table
cmdlet.
Get-Help Format-Table
Get-Help -Name Format-Table
Format-Table -?
Get-Help <cmdlet-name>
is the simplest and default syntax of Get-Help
cmdlet. You can omit the
Name parameter.
The syntax <cmdlet-name> -?
works only for cmdlets.
Example 2: Display basic information one page at a time
These examples display basic help information about the Format-Table
cmdlet one page at a time.
help Format-Table
man Format-Table
Get-Help Format-Table | Out-Host -Paging
help
is a function that runs Get-Help
cmdlet internally and displays the result one page at a
time.
man
is an alias for the help
function.
Get-Help Format-Table
sends the object down the pipeline. Out-Host -Paging
receives the output
from the pipeline and displays it one page at a time. For more information, see
Out-Host.
Example 3: Display more information for a cmdlet
These examples display more detailed help information about the Format-Table
cmdlet.
Get-Help Format-Table -Detailed
Get-Help Format-Table -Full
The Detailed parameter displays the help article's detailed view that includes parameter descriptions and examples.
The Full parameter displays the help article's full view that includes parameter descriptions, examples, input and output object types, and additional notes.
The Detailed and Full parameters are effective only for the commands that have help files installed on the computer. The parameters aren't effective for the conceptual (about_) help articles.
Example 4: Display selected parts of a cmdlet by using parameters
These examples display selected portions of the Format-Table
cmdlet help.
Get-Help Format-Table -Examples
Get-Help Format-Table -Parameter *
Get-Help Format-Table -Parameter GroupBy
The Examples parameter displays the help file's NAME and SYNOPSIS sections, and all the Examples. You can't specify an Example number because the Examples parameter is a switch parameter.
The Parameter parameter displays only the descriptions of the specified parameters. If you
specify only the asterisk (*
) wildcard character, it displays the descriptions of all parameters.
When Parameter specifies a parameter name such as GroupBy, information about that parameter
is shown.
These parameters aren't effective for the conceptual (about_) help articles.
Example 5: Display online version of help
This example displays the online version of the help article for the Format-Table
cmdlet in your
default web browser.
Get-Help Format-Table -Online
Example 6: Display help about the help system
The Get-Help
cmdlet without parameters displays information about the PowerShell help system.
Get-Help
Example 7: Display available help articles
This example displays a list of all help articles available on your computer.
Get-Help *
Example 8: Display a list of conceptual articles
This example displays a list of the conceptual articles included in PowerShell help. All these
articles begin with the characters about_. To display a particular help file, type
Get-Help \<about_article-name\>
, for example, Get-Help about_Signing
.
Only the conceptual articles that have help files installed on your computer are displayed. For information about downloading and installing help files in PowerShell 3.0, see Update-Help.
Get-Help about_*
Example 9: Search for a word in cmdlet help
This example shows how to search for a word in a cmdlet help article.
Get-Help Add-Member -Full | Out-String -Stream | Select-String -Pattern Clixml
the Export-Clixml cmdlet to save the instance of the object, including the additional members...
can use the Import-Clixml cmdlet to re-create the instance of the object from the information...
Export-Clixml
Import-Clixml
Get-Help
uses the Full parameter to get help information for Add-Member
. The
MamlCommandHelpInfo object is sent down the pipeline. Out-String
uses the Stream parameter
to convert the object into a string. Select-String
uses the Pattern parameter to search the
string for Clixml.
Example 10: Display a list of articles that include a word
This example displays a list of articles that include the word remoting.
When you enter a word that doesn't appear in any article title, Get-Help
displays a list of
articles that include that word.
Get-Help -Name remoting
Name Category Module Synopsis
---- -------- ------ --------
Install-PowerShellRemoting.ps1 External Install-PowerShellRemoting.ps1
Disable-PSRemoting Cmdlet Microsoft.PowerShell.Core Prevents remote users...
Enable-PSRemoting Cmdlet Microsoft.PowerShell.Core Configures the computer...
Example 11: Display provider-specific help
This example shows two ways of getting the provider-specific help for Get-Item
. These commands get
help that explains how to use the Get-Item
cmdlet in the PowerShell SQL Server provider's
DataCollection node.
The first example uses the Get-Help
Path parameter to specify the SQL Server provider's path.
Because the provider's path is specified, you can run the command from any path location.
The second example uses Set-Location
to navigate to the SQL Server provider's path. From that
location, the Path parameter isn't needed for Get-Help
to get the provider-specific help.
Get-Help Get-Item -Path SQLSERVER:\DataCollection
NAME
Get-Item
SYNOPSIS
Gets a collection of Server objects for the local computer and any computers
to which you have made a SQL Server PowerShell connection.
...
Set-Location SQLSERVER:\DataCollection
SQLSERVER:\DataCollection> Get-Help Get-Item
NAME
Get-Item
SYNOPSIS
Gets a collection of Server objects for the local computer and any computers
to which you have made a SQL Server PowerShell connection.
...
Example 12: Display help for a script
This example gets help for the MyScript.ps1 script
. For information about how to write help for
your functions and scripts, see about_Comment_Based_Help.
Get-Help -Name C:\PS-Test\MyScript.ps1
Parameters
-Category
Displays help only for items in the specified category and their aliases. Conceptual articles are in the HelpFile category.
The acceptable values for this parameter are as follows:
- Alias
- Cmdlet
- Provider
- General
- FAQ
- Glossary
- HelpFile
- ScriptCommand
- Function
- Filter
- ExternalScript
- All
- DefaultHelp
- Workflow
- DscResource
- Class
- Configuration
Type: | String[] |
Accepted values: | Alias, Cmdlet, Provider, General, FAQ, Glossary, HelpFile, ScriptCommand, Function, Filter, ExternalScript, All, DefaultHelp, Workflow, DscResource, Class, Configuration |
Position: | Named |
Default value: | None |
Required: | False |
Accept pipeline input: | False |
Accept wildcard characters: | False |
-Component
Displays commands with the specified component value, such as Exchange. Enter a component name. Wildcard characters are permitted. This parameter has no effect on displays of conceptual (About_) help.
Type: | String[] |
Position: | Named |
Default value: | None |
Required: | False |
Accept pipeline input: | False |
Accept wildcard characters: | True |
-Detailed
Adds parameter descriptions and examples to the basic help display. This parameter is effective only when the help files are installed on the computer. It has no effect on displays of conceptual (About_) help.
Type: | SwitchParameter |
Position: | Named |
Default value: | False |
Required: | True |
Accept pipeline input: | False |
Accept wildcard characters: | False |
-Examples
Displays only the name, synopsis, and examples. This parameter is effective only when the help files are installed on the computer. It has no effect on displays of conceptual (About_) help.
Type: | SwitchParameter |
Position: | Named |
Default value: | False |
Required: | True |
Accept pipeline input: | False |
Accept wildcard characters: | False |
-Full
Displays the entire help article for a cmdlet. Full includes parameter descriptions and attributes, examples, input and output object types, and additional notes.
This parameter is effective only when the help files are installed on the computer. It has no effect on displays of conceptual (About_) help.
Type: | SwitchParameter |
Position: | Named |
Default value: | False |
Required: | False |
Accept pipeline input: | False |
Accept wildcard characters: | False |
-Functionality
Displays help for items with the specified functionality. Enter the functionality. Wildcard characters are permitted. This parameter has no effect on displays of conceptual (About_) help.
Type: | String[] |
Position: | Named |
Default value: | None |
Required: | False |
Accept pipeline input: | False |
Accept wildcard characters: | True |
-Name
Gets help about the specified command or concept. Enter the name of a cmdlet, function, provider,
script, or workflow, such as Get-Member
, a conceptual article name, such as about_Objects
, or an
alias, such as ls
. Wildcard characters are permitted in cmdlet and provider names, but you can't
use wildcard characters to find the names of function help and script help articles.
To get help for a script that isn't located in a path that's listed in the $env:Path
environment
variable, type the script's path and file name.
If you enter the exact name of a help article, Get-Help
displays the article contents.
If you enter a word or word pattern that appears in several help article titles, Get-Help
displays
a list of the matching titles.
If you enter any text that doesn't match any help article titles, Get-Help
displays a list of
articles that include that text in their contents.
The names of conceptual articles, such as about_Objects
, must be entered in English, even in
non-English versions of PowerShell.
Type: | String |
Position: | 0 |
Default value: | None |
Required: | False |
Accept pipeline input: | True |
Accept wildcard characters: | True |
-Online
Displays the online version of a help article in the default browser. This parameter is valid only
for cmdlet, function, workflow, and script help articles. You can't use the Online parameter
with Get-Help
in a remote session.
For information about supporting this feature in help articles that you write, see about_Comment_Based_Help, and Supporting Online Help, and Writing Help for PowerShell Cmdlets.
Type: | SwitchParameter |
Position: | Named |
Default value: | False |
Required: | True |
Accept pipeline input: | False |
Accept wildcard characters: | False |
-Parameter
Displays only the detailed descriptions of the specified parameters. Wildcards are permitted. This parameter has no effect on displays of conceptual (About_) help.
Type: | String[] |
Position: | Named |
Default value: | None |
Required: | True |
Accept pipeline input: | False |
Accept wildcard characters: | True |
-Path
Gets help that explains how the cmdlet works in the specified provider path. Enter a PowerShell provider path.
This parameter gets a customized version of a cmdlet help article that explains how the cmdlet works in the specified PowerShell provider path. This parameter is effective only for help about a provider cmdlet and only when the provider includes a custom version of the provider cmdlet help article in its help file. To use this parameter, install the help file for the module that includes the provider.
To see the custom cmdlet help for a provider path, go to the provider path location and enter a
Get-Help
command or, from any path location, use the Path parameter of Get-Help
to specify
the provider path. You can also find custom cmdlet help online in the provider help section of the
help articles.
For more information about PowerShell providers, see about_Providers.
Note
The provider for the path specified must have a PowerShell provider help file installed. If no provider help file is available, no help information is returned. There are no provider help files available for the providers included with this version of PowerShell.
Type: | String |
Position: | Named |
Default value: | None |
Required: | False |
Accept pipeline input: | False |
Accept wildcard characters: | True |
-Role
Displays help customized for the specified user role. Enter a role. Wildcard characters are permitted.
Enter the role that the user plays in an organization. Some cmdlets display different text in their help files based on the value of this parameter. This parameter has no effect on help for the core cmdlets.
Type: | String[] |
Position: | Named |
Default value: | None |
Required: | False |
Accept pipeline input: | False |
Accept wildcard characters: | True |
-ShowWindow
Displays the help topic in a window for easier reading. The window includes a Find search feature and a Settings box that lets you set options for the display, including options to display only selected sections of a help topic.
The ShowWindow parameter supports help topics for commands (cmdlets, functions, CIM commands, scripts) and conceptual About articles. It doesn't support provider help.
This parameter was reintroduced in PowerShell 7.0. This parameter is only available on Windows.
Type: | SwitchParameter |
Position: | Named |
Default value: | False |
Required: | True |
Accept pipeline input: | False |
Accept wildcard characters: | False |
Inputs
None
You can't pipe objects to this cmdlet.
Outputs
ExtendedCmdletHelpInfo
If you run Get-Help
on a command that doesn't have a help file, Get-Help
returns an
ExtendedCmdletHelpInfo object that represents autogenerated help.
If you get a conceptual help article, Get-Help
returns it as a string.
MamlCommandHelpInfo
If you get a command that has a help file, Get-Help
returns a MamlCommandHelpInfo object.
Notes
PowerShell 3.0 doesn't include help files. To download and install the help files that Get-Help
reads, use the Update-Help
cmdlet. You can use the Update-Help
cmdlet to download and install
help files for the core commands that come with PowerShell and for any modules that you install. You
can also use it to update the help files so that the help on your computer is never outdated.
You can also read the help articles about the commands that come with PowerShell online starting at Getting Started with Windows PowerShell.
Get-Help
displays help in the locale set for the Windows operating system or in the fallback
language for that locale. If you don't have help files for the primary or fallback locale,
Get-Help
behaves as if there are no help files on the computer. To get help for a different
locale, use Region and Language in Control Panel to change the settings. On Windows 10 or
higher, Settings, Time & Language.
The full view of help includes a table of information about the parameters. The table includes the following fields:
Required. Indicates whether the parameter is required (true) or optional (false).
Position. Indicates whether the parameter is named or positional (numeric). Positional parameters must appear in a specified place in the command.
Named indicates that the parameter name is required, but that the parameter can appear anywhere in the command.
Numeric indicates that the parameter name is optional, but when the name is omitted, the parameter must be in the place specified by the number. For example,
2
indicates that when the parameter name is omitted, the parameter must be the second or only unnamed parameter in the command. When the parameter name is used, the parameter can appear anywhere in the command.Default value. The parameter value or default behavior that PowerShell uses if you don't include the parameter in the command.
Accepts pipeline input. Indicates whether you can (true) or can't (false) send objects to the parameter through a pipeline. By Property Name means that the pipelined object must have a property that has the same name as the parameter name.
Accepts wildcard characters. Indicates whether the value of a parameter can include wildcard characters, such as an asterisk (
*
) or question mark (?
).
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