PowerShell has become one of the most important skills for an Exchange administrator to learn. If you’re not already starting to learn PowerShell, then you’re falling behind the industry.
It isn’t difficult to learn PowerShell. In fact, if you’ve ever run commands in a cmd prompt then you’ll be able to start using PowerShell straight away.
And Exchange Server administrators have an advantage of other IT pros, because the Exchange Management Console tells you the equivalent PowerShell commands to perform the same tasks in the shell that you just performed in the console.
Also, Exchange Server 2007 and 2010 are the two best products from Microsoft as far as the opportunities to use PowerShell on a daily basis.
Getting Started with PowerShell for Microsoft Exchange Server
The best way to get started with PowerShell is to begin by taking some of your daily, routine tasks and performing them within the shell instead of the management console.
You can do this by simply taking notes as you perform a GUI administration task, copying the PowerShell commands that Exchange Server shows you, and then using the shell next time you complete that same task.
If you’re for a little more direction on using PowerShell for daily administration tasks check out the Exchange Server 2010 PowerShell Cookbook.
Download Free Exchange PowerShell Scripts
In your daily routine there are bound to be multiple opportunities to streamline and automate some of your repetitive tasks into PowerShell scripts.
Developing a toolbox of your own PowerShell scripts can really improve your efficiency and value to your employer.
If you’re looking for a place to start check out this four part series on sending SMTP email from PowerShell scripts.
You can also check out some of these free PowerShell scripts, download them, read through the code and comments, and modify them for your own use:
- Get-MailboxReport.ps1 – PowerShell Script to Generate Mailbox Reports (22780 downloads)
- Test-ExchangeServerHealth – PowerShell Script to Generate a Health Check Report for Exchange Server 2010 (10470 downloads)
- Get-DAGHealth.ps1 – PowerShell Script to Generate a DAG Health Check Report (2202 downloads)
- Test-MailboxServer.ps1 – How to Health Check an Exchange 2010 Mailbox Server (4887 downloads)
- Get-DailyBackupAlerts.ps1 – Check database backups and email if they have not run (2097 downloads)
- Start-MailGen.ps1 – Test lab email traffic generator (1237 downloads)
- MailFlowHeatMap.ps1 – Creates a mail flow latency heat map (1053 downloads)
Get More PowerShell Tips for Exchange Administrators
The Exchange 2010 Boot Camp PLUS membership includes a PowerShell Fundamentals module designed to get you comfortable with the basics so that you can use PowerShell in more of your administrative tasks.
You might also want to read my guest article at PowerShell Magazine on the 5 Essential PowerShell Skills for Exchange Server Administrators.
Make sure you subscribe to Exchange Server Pro to get regular PowerShell tips and scripts to help you manage your Exchange Server environment.
