
AZ-040: Automate Administration with PowerShell
Course Information

Course Name
AZ-040: Automate Administration with PowerShell

Duration
5 Days
Overview
This course provides students with the fundamental knowledge and skills to use PowerShell for administering and automating administration of Windows servers. This course provides students the skills to identify and build the command they require to perform a specific task. In addition, students learn how to build scripts to accomplish advanced tasks such as automating repetitive tasks and generating reports. This course provides prerequisite skills supporting a broad range of Microsoft products, including Windows Server, Windows Client, Microsoft Azure, and Microsoft 365. In keeping with that goal, this course will not focus on any one of those products, although Windows Server, which is the common platform for all of those products, will serve as the example for the techniques this course teaches.
Audience Profile
This course is intended for IT Professionals who are already experienced in general Windows Server, Windows client, Azure, and Microsoft 365 administration, and who want to learn more about using Windows PowerShell for administration. No prior experience with any version of PowerShell or any scripting language is assumed. This course is also suitable for IT Professionals already experienced in server administration, including Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft SharePoint Server, and Microsoft SQL Server.
Prerequisites
This learning path assumes you have skills and experience with the following technologies and concepts:
- Windows Server administration, maintenance, and troubleshooting.
- Windows Client administration, maintenance, and troubleshooting.
- Basic security best practices.
- Windows networking technologies and implementation.
- Core networking technologies such as IP addressing, name resolution, and Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP).
Course Outline
This learning path introduces you to Windows PowerShell and provides an overview of the product’s functionality. It explains how to open and configure Windows PowerShell, run commands, and use its built-in Help system.
Lessons
- Review Windows PowerShell
- Understand the command syntax in Windows PowerShell
- Find commands and get help in Windows PowerShell
This learning path covers cmdlets that are commonly used for system administration tasks related to Active Directory, network configuration, server administration, and Windows 10 device administration.
Lessons
- Manage Active Directory Domain Services using PowerShell cmdlets
- Manage Windows Server settings using PowerShell cmdlets
- Manage settings for a local Windows machine using PowerShell cmdlets
This learning path explains the purpose and use of the PowerShell pipeline and use the pipeline to sort, filter, enumerate and display output data for PowerShell cmdlets. It also explains how to pass pipeline objects.
Lessons
- Understand the Windows PowerShell pipeline
- Select, sort, and measure objects using the pipeline
- Filter objects out of the pipeline
- Enumerate objects in the pipeline
- Send and pass pipeline data as output
- Pass pipeline objects
This module introduces the PSProviders and PSDrives adapters. A PSProvider is basically a Windows PowerShell adapter makes some form of storage resemble a hard drive. A PSDrive is an actual connection to a form of storage. You can use these two technologies to work with various forms of storage by using the same commands and techniques that you use to manage the file system.
Lessons
- Connect with data stores using PowerShell providers
- Use PowerShell drives in PowerShell
This module introduces you to two parallel technologies: Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) and Common Information Model (CIM). Both these technologies provide local and remote access to a repository of management information including access to robust information available from the operating system, computer hardware, and installed software.
Lessons
- Review CIM and WMI
- Query configuration information by using CIM and WMI
- Query and manipulate repository objects by using CIM and WMI methods
Variables are an essential component of scripts. You can use variables to accomplish complex tasks that you can’t complete by using a single command. This module explains how to work with variables, arrays, and hash tables as steps in learning how to create Windows PowerShell scripts.
Lessons
- Manage variables in Windows PowerShell scripts
- Work with arrays and hash tables in Windows PowerShell scripts
This learning path explains how to create and modify scripts. It covers useful scripting techniques that include importing data from a file, accepting user input, and error handling.
Lessons
- Create and run scripts by using Windows PowerShell
- Work with scripting constructs in Windows PowerShell
- Import data in different formats for use in scripts by using Windows PowerShell cmdlets
- Use methods to accept user inputs in Windows PowerShell scripts
- Troubleshoot scripts and handle errors in Windows PowerShell
- Use functions and modules in Windows PowerShell scripts
This learning path covers remoting mainly in its default configuration, using HTTP on port 5985. It describes how to configure remoting to allow for—or require—encryption based on Secure Sockets Layer (SSL).
Lessons
- Manage single and multiple computers by using Windows PowerShell remoting
- Use advanced Windows PowerShell remoting techniques
- Manage persistent connections to remote computers by using Windows PowerShell sessions
This module provides information about installing the necessary modules for cloud services management. It explains how to use PowerShell commands to perform some simple administrative tasks on cloud resources such as Azure virtual machines (VMs), Azure storage accounts, and Azure subscriptions. This module also describes how to use the Azure Cloud Shell environment to perform PowerShell-based or Bash-based administration directly from the Azure portal.
Lessons
- Review Azure PowerShell module
- Review the features and tools for Azure Cloud Shell
- Manage Azure resources with Windows PowerShell
This module describes how to use PowerShell to manage Microsoft 365 user accounts, licenses, and groups, Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, and Microsoft Teams.
Lessons
- Manage users, groups, and licenses in Microsoft Entra ID by using Windows PowerShell
- Manage Exchange Online by using Windows PowerShell
- Manage SharePoint Online with PowerShell
- Manage Microsoft Teams with PowerShell
This learning path explains the jobs feature of Windows PowerShell. Jobs are an extension point in Windows PowerShell, and there are several types of jobs. Each type works slightly differently and has distinct capabilities.
Lessons
- Create and manage background jobs using Windows PowerShell
- Create and manage scheduled jobs using Windows PowerShell
Overview
Overview
This course provides students with the fundamental knowledge and skills to use PowerShell for administering and automating administration of Windows servers. This course provides students the skills to identify and build the command they require to perform a specific task. In addition, students learn how to build scripts to accomplish advanced tasks such as automating repetitive tasks and generating reports. This course provides prerequisite skills supporting a broad range of Microsoft products, including Windows Server, Windows Client, Microsoft Azure, and Microsoft 365. In keeping with that goal, this course will not focus on any one of those products, although Windows Server, which is the common platform for all of those products, will serve as the example for the techniques this course teaches.
Audience Profile
Audience Profile
This course is intended for IT Professionals who are already experienced in general Windows Server, Windows client, Azure, and Microsoft 365 administration, and who want to learn more about using Windows PowerShell for administration. No prior experience with any version of PowerShell or any scripting language is assumed. This course is also suitable for IT Professionals already experienced in server administration, including Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft SharePoint Server, and Microsoft SQL Server.
Prerequisities
Prerequisites
This learning path assumes you have skills and experience with the following technologies and concepts:
- Windows Server administration, maintenance, and troubleshooting.
- Windows Client administration, maintenance, and troubleshooting.
- Basic security best practices.
- Windows networking technologies and implementation.
- Core networking technologies such as IP addressing, name resolution, and Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP).
At Course Completion
Course Outline
Course Outline
This learning path introduces you to Windows PowerShell and provides an overview of the product’s functionality. It explains how to open and configure Windows PowerShell, run commands, and use its built-in Help system.
Lessons
- Review Windows PowerShell
- Understand the command syntax in Windows PowerShell
- Find commands and get help in Windows PowerShell
This learning path covers cmdlets that are commonly used for system administration tasks related to Active Directory, network configuration, server administration, and Windows 10 device administration.
Lessons
- Manage Active Directory Domain Services using PowerShell cmdlets
- Manage Windows Server settings using PowerShell cmdlets
- Manage settings for a local Windows machine using PowerShell cmdlets
This learning path explains the purpose and use of the PowerShell pipeline and use the pipeline to sort, filter, enumerate and display output data for PowerShell cmdlets. It also explains how to pass pipeline objects.
Lessons
- Understand the Windows PowerShell pipeline
- Select, sort, and measure objects using the pipeline
- Filter objects out of the pipeline
- Enumerate objects in the pipeline
- Send and pass pipeline data as output
- Pass pipeline objects
This module introduces the PSProviders and PSDrives adapters. A PSProvider is basically a Windows PowerShell adapter makes some form of storage resemble a hard drive. A PSDrive is an actual connection to a form of storage. You can use these two technologies to work with various forms of storage by using the same commands and techniques that you use to manage the file system.
Lessons
- Connect with data stores using PowerShell providers
- Use PowerShell drives in PowerShell
This module introduces you to two parallel technologies: Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) and Common Information Model (CIM). Both these technologies provide local and remote access to a repository of management information including access to robust information available from the operating system, computer hardware, and installed software.
Lessons
- Review CIM and WMI
- Query configuration information by using CIM and WMI
- Query and manipulate repository objects by using CIM and WMI methods
Variables are an essential component of scripts. You can use variables to accomplish complex tasks that you can’t complete by using a single command. This module explains how to work with variables, arrays, and hash tables as steps in learning how to create Windows PowerShell scripts.
Lessons
- Manage variables in Windows PowerShell scripts
- Work with arrays and hash tables in Windows PowerShell scripts
This learning path explains how to create and modify scripts. It covers useful scripting techniques that include importing data from a file, accepting user input, and error handling.
Lessons
- Create and run scripts by using Windows PowerShell
- Work with scripting constructs in Windows PowerShell
- Import data in different formats for use in scripts by using Windows PowerShell cmdlets
- Use methods to accept user inputs in Windows PowerShell scripts
- Troubleshoot scripts and handle errors in Windows PowerShell
- Use functions and modules in Windows PowerShell scripts
This learning path covers remoting mainly in its default configuration, using HTTP on port 5985. It describes how to configure remoting to allow for—or require—encryption based on Secure Sockets Layer (SSL).
Lessons
- Manage single and multiple computers by using Windows PowerShell remoting
- Use advanced Windows PowerShell remoting techniques
- Manage persistent connections to remote computers by using Windows PowerShell sessions
This module provides information about installing the necessary modules for cloud services management. It explains how to use PowerShell commands to perform some simple administrative tasks on cloud resources such as Azure virtual machines (VMs), Azure storage accounts, and Azure subscriptions. This module also describes how to use the Azure Cloud Shell environment to perform PowerShell-based or Bash-based administration directly from the Azure portal.
Lessons
- Review Azure PowerShell module
- Review the features and tools for Azure Cloud Shell
- Manage Azure resources with Windows PowerShell
This module describes how to use PowerShell to manage Microsoft 365 user accounts, licenses, and groups, Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, and Microsoft Teams.
Lessons
- Manage users, groups, and licenses in Microsoft Entra ID by using Windows PowerShell
- Manage Exchange Online by using Windows PowerShell
- Manage SharePoint Online with PowerShell
- Manage Microsoft Teams with PowerShell
This learning path explains the jobs feature of Windows PowerShell. Jobs are an extension point in Windows PowerShell, and there are several types of jobs. Each type works slightly differently and has distinct capabilities.
Lessons
- Create and manage background jobs using Windows PowerShell
- Create and manage scheduled jobs using Windows PowerShell
