6 ways PowerShell is better than Command Prompt

The Command Prompt (CMD) has been around since the days of Windows NT, and almost everyone who uses Windows is familiar with it. It is a powerful CLI tool that allows you to interact with your computer using text commands instead of a GUI. CMD was introduced in the 1980s, and in 2006 Microsoft announced PowerShell, another CLI tool that is not only cross-platform, but also powerful enough to programmatically control all modern versions of Windows, as well as many other platforms. We discuss 6 advantages of PowerShell over CMD.

6

Cross-platform compatibility

It runs on Mac, Linux, Windows and other platforms.

One of the outstanding features of PowerShell is its cross-platform compatibility. Unlike Command Prompt, which is only available on Windows, PowerShell works on multiple platforms.

The first releases of PowerShell were for Windows only. However, as of version 6, PowerShell also supports macOS and Linux. Cross-platform compatibility is not intended to replace the built-in macOS and Linux shell, but to facilitate collaboration among teams working in mixed environments.

It’s worth noting that while PowerShell is available on different platforms, it doesn’t offer the same functionality everywhere. Some features behave differently or are not available due to differences in .NET Core and platform-specific limitations. Microsoft has made many other changes to improve PowerShell compatibility on non-Windows platforms.

5

Advanced language features

PowerShell uses a more advanced language

PowerShell uses a more advanced language than CMD. While the Command Prompt uses basic commands with limited capabilities, PowerShell allows you to work with variables, loops, conditions, and functions, allowing you to create more complex scripts. PowerShell commands, called cmdlets, have a verb-noun format, which makes it easier to understand what each one does. For example, to list the files in a folder:

• PowerShell Cmdlet: Get-ChildItem C:\Users\Documents

• CMD command: directory C:\Users\Documents.

You can run each cmdlet separately, but the real magic happens when you combine them to achieve a goal. By using pipes in PowerShell, you can pipe the output of one cmdlet directly into another, allowing you to combine them together to perform more complex tasks.

4

Advanced redirection options

It allows you to pass the output of one command to another.

CMD supports basic output redirection such as reading and writing to a file, but it lacks the advanced redirection options that most modern shell interpreters offer. PowerShell, on the other hand, has much more powerful redirection capabilities. One of the key features is the ability to pipe the output of one command to another. For example, if you wanted to list all the services that are currently running on your system using PowerShell, you could type:

Get-Service | Where-Object {$_.Status -eq "Running"}

This command will only show services that are actively running, making it easy to filter the output in a way that CMD can’t.

3

Object-oriented inference

PowerShell displays objects that can be arranged in different ways.

One of the key differences between PowerShell and the Command Prompt is how they process output. CMD outputs plain text, while PowerShell outputs objects that can be organized in a variety of ways—tables, lists, and CSV files. This means that instead of working with text strings, you can easily interact with and manipulate object properties directly.

For example, to list processes in PowerShell as a table:

Get-Process | Format-Table -Property Name, Id, CPU

This command formats the output into a table showing the process name, ID, and CPU load.

Another example: exporting a list of services to a CSV file:

Get-Service | Export-Csv -Path C:\services.csv -NoTypeInformation

This command exports a list of services to a CSV file, making it easier to analyze and share data.

2

Seamless integration with Microsoft services

It integrates with services like Azure, Active Directory, and more.

PowerShell integrates seamlessly with Microsoft services such as Azure, Active Directory, and Office 365, making it an essential tool for system administrators managing large-scale environments or cloud infrastructure. CMD does not have built-in support for online services or Microsoft cloud tools. Since it doesn’t support modules, you’ll have to rely on third-party scripts or tools to connect to these services.

1

Full access to .NET libraries.

Powershell can even support advanced scripting scripts.

Unlike the Command Prompt, which offers limited access to system functions, PowerShell has full access to .NET libraries. It allows you to connect to and manage databases, work with web applications and APIs, perform complex file operations, and parse or manipulate data formats such as JSON and XML. This integration also allows PowerShell to support advanced scripting scenarios such as automating cloud services, creating custom tools, and even creating GUIs for scripting.

PowerShell is the way to go

Everything CMD can do, PowerShell can do, and much more. PowerShell includes cmdlets for almost every administrative task you might need. If you’re just starting out, it may seem a little tedious, but once you get the hang of the scripting language, it will save you a ton of time. We also collected list of other PowerShell commands And scenarios worth checking out. If you’re using a Mac, spend some time learning how to use terminal on macOS.