Windows

For system administrators, creating a standardized desktop environment often involves customizing the Windows taskbar. While pinning items is easy for a user, automating the process of listing or unpinning applications can be surprisingly difficult. Windows intentionally does not provide a simple, built-in command to manage pinned items to prevent applications from pinning themselves without user consent. However, with a bit of PowerShell scripting, you can gain control over the taskbar. This guide will walk you through the most effective methods to list, unpin, and manage taskbar items programmatically. ...

Leaving and rejoining a Windows computer to an Active Directory (AD) domain is a common troubleshooting step, but it can lead to major headaches if not done correctly, especially in a modern hybrid environment. A common pitfall is being locked out of the machine, unable to log in with a local account because the device is still partially tied to a cloud identity like Azure AD (Microsoft Entra ID). This guide will walk you through the proper way to leave and rejoin a domain, and how to recover if you find yourself locked out. ...

When installing Windows 11 on a VMware virtual machine (Workstation, Player, or ESXi), it’s common to run into a frustrating roadblock: “This PC can’t run Windows 11” or “TPM 2.0 requirement not met.” This error occurs because Windows 11 has stricter security requirements than its predecessors, mandating features that are not enabled by default on most virtual machines. Fortunately, this is easy to fix. This guide will walk you through the best ways to resolve the TPM error, from the official VMware method to simple bypasses. ...

If you’re a user of the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL), you might have noticed that when you plug in a USB flash drive, it doesn’t automatically appear in your Linux environment. Unlike your C: drive, which is typically mounted at /mnt/c, WSL does not automatically mount removable drives. Fortunately, accessing your USB drive from within WSL is a straightforward process. This guide will walk you through the two primary methods for mounting a USB drive in WSL2, from a simple drive letter mount to accessing the raw physical disk. ...

For decades, the Command Prompt (cmd.exe) was the undisputed command-line interface for Windows. It was simple, reliable, and got the job done. However, with the introduction of PowerShell (pwsh), the game has changed. PowerShell is not just an upgrade; it’s a complete paradigm shift in how we interact with the Windows operating system. So, which one should you be using? This guide will put PowerShell and CMD in a head-to-head battle, comparing their core philosophies, commands, and scripting capabilities to show why PowerShell is the clear winner for any modern administrative or automation task. ...

In any Windows environment, you’ll inevitably encounter a mix of modern PowerShell scripts and legacy Command Prompt (cmd.exe) batch files. Instead of treating them as separate worlds, you can make them work together. Understanding how PowerShell and CMD can call each other is a crucial skill for any system administrator, allowing you to integrate legacy tools into modern automation workflows. This guide will walk you through the techniques for calling CMD from PowerShell and PowerShell from CMD, enabling you to build powerful, hybrid scripts that leverage the best of both shells. ...

Querying Active Directory (AD) is a fundamental task for any Windows administrator. Whether you need to generate a report, audit user accounts, or automate a task, PowerShell’s Get-ADUser cmdlet is the most powerful and flexible tool for the job. This guide will walk you through everything you need to know to get started with Get-ADUser, from basic queries to advanced filtering and exporting your results to a CSV file. Prerequisites Before you can use Get-ADUser, you need to have the Active Directory module for PowerShell installed. This is part of the Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT). ...

The Windows Package Manager, better known as winget, is a powerful command-line tool that dramatically simplifies the process of managing software on Windows. Instead of manually downloading installers from websites, you can use winget to find, install, upgrade, and uninstall applications directly from your terminal. This guide explains what winget is, how to check if you already have it, and how to install or update it. What is winget? winget is a free and open-source package manager developed by Microsoft. It brings the convenience of Linux package managers (like apt or yum) to the Windows ecosystem. With winget, you can automate the setup of a new machine or keep your existing software up-to-date with a single command. ...

PowerShell is an essential tool for any Windows administrator or power user. However, it’s important to understand that there are two main versions of PowerShell: Windows PowerShell 5.1: The legacy version that comes pre-installed with Windows 10 and 11. It is no longer receiving new features. PowerShell 7 (and newer): The modern, open-source, and cross-platform version (often referred to as pwsh). It is actively developed, faster, and packed with new features. To take advantage of the latest capabilities, you should install the newest version of PowerShell. This guide will walk you through the best ways to do it. ...