Windows PowerShell is a powerful scripting language developed by Microsoft. It provides a wide range of commands that can be used to automate tasks and manage Windows operating systems. One of the most useful commands is the Get-Alias command, which allows users to quickly view and manage aliases in Windows PowerShell.
An alias is a short name that is used to refer to a longer command or script. Aliases are used to make commands easier to remember and type. For example, the command Get-ChildItem can be shortened to gci. Aliases can also be used to create shortcuts for commonly used commands.
Syntax of the Get-Alias Command
The syntax of the Get-Alias command is as follows:
Get-Alias [-Name] <String[]> [-Exclude <String[]>] [-Definition <String[]>] [-Description <String[]>] [-Scope <String>] [-EA <ActionPreference>] [-ErrorAction <ActionPreference>] [-WarningAction <ActionPreference>] [-InformationAction <ActionPreference>] [-Verbose] [-Debug] [-ErrorVariable <String>] [-OutVariable <String>] [-OutBuffer <Int32>] [-PipelineVariable <String>] [-CommandName <String[]>] [-ReferencedCommand <String[]>] [-TotalCount <Int32>] [-Force] [<CommonParameters>]
Parameters of the Get-Alias Command
The Get-Alias command has several parameters that can be used to customize the output of the command. These parameters are as follows:
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
| -Name | Specifies the name of the alias to be retrieved. |
| -Exclude | Specifies the names of the aliases to be excluded from the output. |
| -Definition | Specifies the definition of the alias to be retrieved. |
| -Description | Specifies the description of the alias to be retrieved. |
| -Scope | Specifies the scope of the alias to be retrieved. |
| -EA | Specifies the action to take when an error is encountered. |
| -ErrorAction | Specifies the action to take when an error is encountered. |
| -WarningAction | Specifies the action to take when a warning is encountered. |
| -InformationAction | Specifies the action to take when an information is encountered. |
| -Verbose | Specifies that verbose output should be displayed. |
| -Debug | Specifies that debug output should be displayed. |
| -ErrorVariable | Specifies the name of the variable to store errors. |
| -OutVariable | Specifies the name of the variable to store output. |
| -OutBuffer | Specifies the size of the output buffer. |
| -PipelineVariable | Specifies the name of the variable to store the pipeline object. |
| -CommandName | Specifies the name of the command to be retrieved. |
| -ReferencedCommand | Specifies the name of the referenced command to be retrieved. |
| -TotalCount | Specifies the total number of aliases to be retrieved. |
| -Force | Specifies that the command should be executed even if errors are encountered. |
Inputs of the Get-Alias Command
The Get-Alias command accepts the following inputs:
- Name of the alias to be retrieved.
- Names of the aliases to be excluded from the output.
- Definition of the alias to be retrieved.
- Description of the alias to be retrieved.
- Scope of the alias to be retrieved.
- Action to take when an error is encountered.
- Action to take when a warning is encountered.
- Action to take when an information is encountered.
- Verbose output.
- Debug output.
- Name of the variable to store errors.
- Name of the variable to store output.
- Size of the output buffer.
- Name of the variable to store the pipeline object.
- Name of the command to be retrieved.
- Name of the referenced command to be retrieved.
- Total number of aliases to be retrieved.
- Force the command to be executed even if errors are encountered.
Outputs of the Get-Alias Command
The Get-Alias command produces the following outputs:
- A list of aliases.
- A list of errors.
- A list of warnings.
- A list of informational messages.
- A list of verbose messages.
- A list of debug messages.
- A list of pipeline objects.
Examples of the Get-Alias Command
The following are some examples of how the Get-Alias command can be used:
- To view all aliases in the current scope, use the command Get-Alias.
- To view all aliases that start with the letter “g”, use the command Get-Alias -Name g*.
- To view all aliases that have the definition “Get-ChildItem”, use the command Get-Alias -Definition Get-ChildItem.
- To view all aliases that have the description “Get the child items of a specified item”, use the command Get-Alias -Description “Get the child items of a specified item”.
- To view all aliases in the global