1 Why automate with PowerShell

 

This chapter covers:

  • How to conceptualize your automation needs.
  • Why you should automate with PowerShell.
  • How to know when PowerShell is the right tool for the job.
  • How you can get started automating your workloads today.

Every day across all industries, IT professionals are tasked to do more with less, and the best way to achieve that is through automation. However, many companies do not see IT automation as an asset. More often than not, automations are cobbled together by some sysadmin in his or her spare time. This often leads to situations where the automation becomes less efficient than doing the task manually.

I am sure at some point you have tried using one of the codeless automation platforms like IFTTT, Flow, Zapier, or any other of the ones out there. If you are like me, I am sure you found the features a little too basic. They are great for personal “one-off” type automations, but to really get what you need out of them, they require customization beyond what their simple GUI can provide.

1.1    What you’ll learn in the book

1.1.1   Building Blocks

1.2    The Anatomy of Automation

1.2.1   Automation Goal

1.2.2   Triggers

1.2.3   Actions

1.2.4   The Future

1.3    Why PowerShell for Automation

1.3.1   Easy

1.3.2   Power of .Net Framework

1.3.3   Portable

1.3.4   Secure

1.3.5   Extensible

1.3.6   Microsoft’s commitment

1.4    What PowerShell isn’t

1.4.1   Job Scheduler

1.4.2   Front-End

1.5    Choosing the right tool for the job

1.5.1   Automation Decision Tree

1.5.2   No need to reinvent the wheel

1.6    What you need to get started today

1.7    Summary