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PowerShell code is packaged as modules.
Note: I'm talking about packages for PowerShell itself opposed to packages for Windows. Windows packages might come from the Microsoft Store, Chocolatey, WinGet, MSIX or other sources.
Managing modules is confusing because the cmdlets were developed incrementally before Microsoft contemplated online repositories.
So, there is a historical set of cmdlets which were designed to manage local modules.
There is a set of cmdlets to manage repositories. For example, there are cmdlets to add or remove repositories. Repositories are places from which you can download modules.
And there is a set of cmdlets to manage modules downloaded from those repositories.
Each of these collections is technically an assembly. (But, Microsoft will often refer to them as modules.) If the cmdlet you're looking for does not exist in one assembly then you will have to look in the others.
I've never mastered managing modules in PowerShell.
My goal for this gemlog is to provide instructions for common tasks and to add new instructions over time.
A basic skill is to list the cmdlets available for managing modules.
If there is some issue that I don't address, you can use this to begin looking for a solution.
Use the example below to list the module cmdlets. Make sure to type or copy the leading ampersand &. Here, I include the output from my system.
& { Get-Command -Module Microsoft.PowerShell.Core -Noun Module ;
Get-Command -Module PackageManagement ;
Get-Command -Module PowerShellGet -Noun Module, PSRepository, InstalledModule ;
} | Format-Table -AutoSize
CommandType Name Version Source
----------- ---- ------- ------
Cmdlet Get-Module 7.2.6.500 Microsoft.PowerShell.Core
Cmdlet Import-Module 7.2.6.500 Microsoft.PowerShell.Core
Cmdlet New-Module 7.2.6.500 Microsoft.PowerShell.Core
Cmdlet Remove-Module 7.2.6.500 Microsoft.PowerShell.Core
Cmdlet Find-Package 1.4.7 PackageManagement
Cmdlet Find-PackageProvider 1.4.7 PackageManagement
Cmdlet Get-Package 1.4.7 PackageManagement
Cmdlet Get-PackageProvider 1.4.7 PackageManagement
Cmdlet Get-PackageSource 1.4.7 PackageManagement
Cmdlet Import-PackageProvider 1.4.7 PackageManagement
Cmdlet Install-Package 1.4.7 PackageManagement
Cmdlet Install-PackageProvider 1.4.7 PackageManagement
Cmdlet Register-PackageSource 1.4.7 PackageManagement
Cmdlet Save-Package 1.4.7 PackageManagement
Cmdlet Set-PackageSource 1.4.7 PackageManagement
Cmdlet Uninstall-Package 1.4.7 PackageManagement
Cmdlet Unregister-PackageSource 1.4.7 PackageManagement
Function Find-Module 2.2.5 PowerShellGet
Function Get-InstalledModule 2.2.5 PowerShellGet
Function Get-PSRepository 2.2.5 PowerShellGet
Function Install-Module 2.2.5 PowerShellGet
Function Publish-Module 2.2.5 PowerShellGet
Function Register-PSRepository 2.2.5 PowerShellGet
Function Save-Module 2.2.5 PowerShellGet
Function Set-PSRepository 2.2.5 PowerShellGet
Function Uninstall-Module 2.2.5 PowerShellGet
Function Unregister-PSRepository 2.2.5 PowerShellGet
Function Update-Module 2.2.5 PowerShellGet
You can browse the available cmdlets online.
Below, you can find the home page for each assembly.
Note that some of the cmdlets shown are not related to managing PowerShell modules. Some of the assemblies have multiple roles.
Microsoft.PowerShell.Core | Microsoft Docs
On this page, look for "*-Module" cmdlets where the asterisk * can stand for any PowerShell verb like Get (Get-Module) or Import (Import-Module).
PackageManagement | Microsoft Docs
All the cmdlets in PackageManagement are relevant.
PowerShellGet | Microsoft Docs
Look for "*-Module", "*-PSRepository", and "*-InstalledModule" cmdlets here.
If you want to list modules that you've installed from online repositories, use the Get-InstalledModule cmdlet:
Get-InstalledModule | Format-Table -AutoSize Version Name Repository Description ------- ---- ---------- ----------- 7.8.0 ImportExcel PSGallery PowerShell module to i… 0.7.2 Microsoft.PowerShell.ConsoleGuiTools PSGallery Cross-platform Console…
To update the modules you've installed, use Update-Module.
A progress bar will show while the cmdlet is working.
Modules that are updated will be output. If all modules are up-to-date then there is no output.
Update-Module ...
If you've downloaded a module from a repository, Uninstall-Package appears to be the correct cmdlet to uninstall the module.
# List Installed Modules Get-InstalledModule | Format-Table -AutoSize Version Name Repository Description ------- ---- ---------- ----------- 7.8.1 ImportExcel PSGallery PowerShell mod… 1.1.0-Preview01 Microsoft.PowerShell.Crescendo PSGallery Module that im… 0.4.0 Microsoft.PowerShell.WhatsNew PSGallery The Get-WhatsN… 0.7.2 Microsoft.PowerShell.ConsoleGuiTools PSGallery Cross-platform… # Uninstall WhatsNew using the full assembly name. Uninstall-Package Microsoft.PowerShell.WhatsNew Name Version Source Summary ---- ------- ------ ------- Microsoft.PowerShell.WhatsNew 0.4.0 https://www.pow… The Get-Whats… # List Installed Modules Get-InstalledModule | Format-Table -AutoSize Version Name Repository Description ------- ---- ---------- ----------- 7.8.1 ImportExcel PSGallery PowerShell mod… 1.1.0-Preview01 Microsoft.PowerShell.Crescendo PSGallery Module that im… 0.7.2 Microsoft.PowerShell.ConsoleGuiTools PSGallery Cross-platform…
See the "Browse Cmdlets Online" section above for more information.
Update-Module | Microsoft Docs
Get-InstalledModule | Microsoft Docs
Chocolatey: The package manager for Windows
What is MSIX? | Microsoft Docs
GraphicalTools Module | GitHub
dfinke/ImportExcel: PowerShell module to import/export Excel spreadsheets, without Excel | GitHub
PowerShell Verbs | Microsoft Docs
Created: Thursday, September 8, 2022
Updated: Tuesday, December 6, 2022