Best PowerShell resources for beginners and IT pros

The best PowerShell resources for beginners and IT pros include setup tools, training videos, essential modules, and active community hubs.

If you're new to PowerShell — or you've been dabbling for a while and want to get more serious — this list is for you. I'm a Microsoft MVP for PowerShell, I host The PowerShell Podcast every Monday, and every Wednesday, I do a live stream called PowerShell Wednesday on the PDQ YouTube channel, where we dig into real scripts, real tools, and real community stuff.

This is the list I'd hand someone who walked up to me and said, "Where do I even start?" It covers the tools, modules, videos, and communities that have stood the test of time — plus a few that are pushing what PowerShell can do right now.

What is the best PowerShell setup for beginners?

The best PowerShell setup includes PowerShell 7.6 LTS, Windows Terminal, and VS Code with the PowerShell extension. This combination provides a modern, supported, and efficient environment for scripting and automation.

PowerShell 7.6 LTS — If you're still on Windows PowerShell 5.1, this is the upgrade. Version 7.6 is the current Long Term Support release, built on .NET 10, and it's what the community has moved to. It's cross platform and actively maintained, and everything on this list targets it. LTS means Microsoft is committed to stability for the long haul — that's a big deal if you're building anything that needs to be reliable in production.

Windows Terminal — Tabs, split panes, custom profiles, and proper rendering. The old console host that came with Windows is a relic. Install this and set it as your default.

VS Code + PowerShell extension — The standard editor for writing and debugging PowerShell. IntelliSense, integrated terminal, Git support, and the PowerShell extension is maintained by Microsoft. If you're still writing scripts in Notepad, this will change your life.

What are the best PowerShell training videos?

The best PowerShell training videos include foundational series, live community streams, and conference sessions that teach real-world scripting skills. These are the classic videos that the PowerShell community keeps coming back to, and for good reason. They're older, but the core concepts are the same — and there's something valuable about learning from the people who actually built PowerShell.

Getting Started with PowerShell — Jump Start Series — Jeffrey Snover (the inventor of PowerShell) and Jason Helmick teaching the fundamentals. Yes, it's a few years old. No, that doesn't matter. The pipeline, objects, Get-Help, Get-Command, Get-Member — this is the foundation and none of it has changed. If you want to understand why PowerShell works the way it does, this is the place to start.

PowerShell Wednesday — Every Wednesday, live on the PDQ YouTube channel. Real-time demos, community Q&A, and guests from the PowerShell world. If you want to watch PowerShell being used in the wild — with real people asking real questions in the chat — this is it. Archives are free on YouTube.

PSConfEU on YouTube — The PowerShell Conference Europe sessions are free on YouTube. Hundreds of talks from community experts covering everything from beginner fundamentals to deep technical deep dives. This is one of the best free resources in the ecosystem, and most people don't know it exists.

PowerShell.org YouTube Channel — Community sessions, user group recordings, and Summit content. Another underused archive of solid PowerShell content.

What PowerShell modules should you install first?

Modules are where PowerShell really opens up. Here are some of the ones that come up constantly when you ask experienced PowerShell people what they actually use.

Utility & productivity

PSReadLine — This ships with PowerShell, but most people never update it or configure it properly. The latest version adds predictive IntelliSense — it learns from your history and suggests completions as you type. It also adds proper syntax highlighting in the console, smarter history search, and multi-line editing. Updating and configuring PSReadLine is one of the highest-return-on-investment things a new PowerShell user can do. Start here.

Oh My Posh — Custom prompt engine that works across PowerShell, bash, zsh, and more. Shows Git status, current directory, time, battery — whatever you want, styled however you want. Hundreds of community themes. Once you set it up, you never touch it again, and your terminal looks like something you actually want to work in.

posh-git — Git integration for your PowerShell prompt. Shows your branch, ahead/behind status, and uncommitted changes right in the prompt. It also adds tab completion for Git commands and branch names. If you're using source control (and you should be), install this.

ImportExcel — Create and manipulate Excel files from PowerShell with no Excel installation required. Charts, pivot tables, conditional formatting — all from the command line. This is one of the most downloaded modules in the PowerShell Gallery and one of the best examples of what a community module can be. If you work with data in any capacity, you'll use this.

PSWriteHTML — Generate HTML reports, dashboards, and documentation directly from PowerShell output. Tables, charts, tabs, diagrams — all without knowing HTML. Great for turning PowerShell data into something you can share with people who don't live in a terminal.

pwshSpectreConsole — Rich terminal output: color tables, live progress bars with spinners, tree views, formatted panels. If you're building tools that other people use, this is the difference between a script and something that feels like a real product.

Module builders

PSFramework — If you're building your own PowerShell modules and want to do it properly, PSFramework is the toolkit. It handles logging, configuration management, input processing, tab completion, and a lot of the boilerplate that makes module development tedious. Built by Fred Weinmann, a Cloud Solution Architect at Microsoft, and it's what the dbatools team uses internally. If your modules are getting serious, this is the next step.

What PowerShell security tools should IT teams use?

IT teams should use PowerShell security tools that audit configurations, enforce least privilege, and detect risky activity across Active Directory and Microsoft 365. These tools help identify vulnerabilities early, reduce attack surface, and automate security checks before issues turn into full compromises.

Locksmith — Auditing tool for Active Directory Certificate Services. Point it at your environment, and it surfaces dangerous certificate template misconfigurations that can lead to full domain compromise. Most organizations have no idea these exist until something goes wrong. If you're responsible for AD, run this.

Maester — Security test automation framework for Microsoft 365 tenants. Runs 40+ tests against your tenant configuration and measures them against MITRE ATT&CK, CISA SCuBA baselines, and Entra ID security benchmarks. Outputs a clean HTML report with remediation steps. Can be scheduled in GitHub Actions for continuous monitoring. Built by Merill Fernando and team.

Ghost — Zero trust endpoint hardening module from Jim Tyler, a K-12 IT director and Microsoft MVP. Restricts protocols, limits lateral movement, and reduces your attack surface before something bad happens rather than after.

EventList — Maps Windows event logs to the MITRE ATT&CK framework so you know which logs to actually enable and what to look for in them. From Miriam Wiesner, a senior security researcher at Microsoft and author of PowerShell Automation and Scripting for Cybersecurity.

LeastPrivilegedMSGraph — Tells you the minimum Microsoft Graph permissions needed to accomplish a specific task. If you're automating anything in M365 and you're not thinking carefully about permissions, this should be part of your workflow.

What advanced PowerShell projects are worth exploring?

These are projects that show what's possible when you really push PowerShell. They're not beginner resources — but they're worth knowing about.

PowerShell Universal — Turn your PowerShell scripts into web apps, REST APIs, and scheduled automation jobs — all through a browser-based admin console. You can build internal tools that your whole team can use without handing out elevated credentials or having people run scripts directly. It's one of those tools where, once you see a demo, you immediately start thinking about what you'd build with it. Now part of the Devolutions family.

PSFramework — Already mentioned above, but worth highlighting again here. This isn't just a module — it's a whole framework for thinking about how PowerShell code should be structured. If you're building tools for other people, the patterns it enforces will make your life significantly easier.

Pode — A web framework written entirely in PowerShell. Build REST APIs, websites, and TCP/SMTP servers using PowerShell scripts. Great for internal tooling, webhook receivers, or just understanding what PowerShell is capable of as a runtime.

What are the best PowerShell books for learning?

The best PowerShell books for learning combine clear fundamentals with real-world scripting and automation examples. These resources help IT professionals progress from basic command usage to building reliable tools, improving efficiency and confidence with PowerShell in production environments.

Learn PowerShell in a Month of Lunches — Start here. Short chapters you can knock out at lunch. Covers the fundamentals without overwhelming you. This is the book the community keeps pointing people to when they ask where to begin.

Practical Automation with PowerShell — Matthew Dowst — The next step after the basics. Real-world enterprise scripting: scheduling, cloud automation, SQL, testing, and sharing scripts with a team.

The PowerShell Scripting and Toolmaking Book — Don Jones & Jeff Hicks — The advanced book. Teaches you how to build tools that look and behave like native PowerShell commands. This is the one that makes people go back and rewrite everything they've done.

PowerShell Automation and Scripting for Cybersecurity — Miriam Wiesner — Red team and blue team from a Microsoft security researcher. Covers AMSI, Constrained Language Mode, JEA, AD attacks, and incident response. If security is your focus, this is the book.

AI for Everyday IT — Chrissy LeMaire & Brandon Abshire — How to actually use AI tools for real IT work: scripting help, root cause analysis, documentation, disaster recovery planning. Practical and grounded, not hype.

Where can you learn PowerShell from the community?

This is what makes PowerShell different from most technologies. The people are genuinely helpful.

PDQ Discord — Where the PowerShell Wednesday community lives between streams. Sysadmins, IT pros, PowerShell folks — active daily.

PowerShell Discord — The official PowerShell community discord. Channels for help, scripts, and special interest groups. Also mirrored on Slack.

PowerShell.org — Forums, the On-Ramp scholarship program, and Summit organization. Been around since the beginning. Good for longer-form questions and keeping up with community events.

r/PowerShell — 190,000+ subscribers. Active every day. Ranges from total beginner questions to pretty deep technical content.

PowerShell on GitHub — The official PowerShell repository. Follow it to stay current on releases, report bugs, or just watch what the team is working on. This is where the conversation between the community and the PowerShell team actually happens.

What PowerShell conferences and user groups should you follow?

If you get the chance to attend any of these IT conferences in person, do it. The conversations that happen outside the sessions are worth as much as the sessions themselves.

PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit — April, Bellevue, WA. The big one. Sessions from beginner to advanced, including the On-Ramp track specifically for people new to PowerShell. The community here is the best in the business.

PSConfEU — June, Wiesbaden, Germany. 2026 is the 10th anniversary. Sessions are recorded and posted free online after the event, so even if you can't make it to Germany, the content is accessible.

RTPSUG — Research Triangle PowerShell User Group. One of the largest in the U.S. Meets twice a month (in person and remote), and some sessions are recorded on YouTube. Open to all skill levels.

Find your local group — PowerShell.org keeps a list of active user groups worldwide. If there's one in your city, it's worth showing up.

I release a new episode of The PowerShell Podcast every Monday and go live every Wednesday on PowerShell Wednesday. Come hang out. The community is the best part. Join our Discord and do fun things. Yippee!