Updating from System.Data.SqlClient to Microsoft.Data.SqlClient
Over the past couple days I’ve been updating a .NET 8 solution from using System.Data.SqlClient to Microsoft.Data.SqlClient. The reason for this, besides the...
Recent Posts
Type less by using PowerShell type accelerators
I had heard the PowerShell term “type accelerators” a few times, but never really knew what that meant. I finally decided to check out the about_Type_Acceler...
Visual Studio has a built-in EditorConfig editor
Somehow I missed it, but for years Visual Studio has had a built-in EditorConfig editor. I would typically edit my .editorconfig file in VS Code using just t...
A PowerShell function to easily retry any code
Performing retries to make your code more resilient is a common pattern. By leveraging a PowerShell ScriptBlock, we can create a function to avoid constantly...
Common Run commands to access various Windows settings and apps
There are a lot of different windows for configuring various settings in Windows. Unfortunately, finding the right window is not always easy. The Windows Set...
Why I switched to OTBS for PowerShell brace styling
Code formatting can be a very personal choice. Some languages are very strict and enforce specific indentation and brace styles, while many others allow for ...
A simple PowerShell script template I use when creating new scripts
I spin up new PowerShell scripts all the time, whether just for quickly experimenting and testing things out, or for projects that I know will be around for ...
PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2024 reflections
I’m sitting in the airport waiting for my return flight after what has been an awesome week at the PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit 2024, North American edi...
Easily format all files in your VS Code workspace
I recently discovered the awesome Format Files VS Code extension that allows you to format all files in your workspace. Typically you would need to open each...
Find your Azure resources nearing end-of-life with the Service Retirement Workbook
The Azure portal has a Service Retirement Workbook that shows all of the services you are using which are being retired within the next few years. This could...
Several ways to explore your Azure resources
Here I present a few ways to explore your Azure resources, for when the portal’s search and filter functionality is not enough.
I was the guest for the 100th episode of The PowerShell Podcast!
I was recently invited to be a guest on The PowerShell Podcast (Podbean) (YouTube playlist) (Apple Podcasts). I had a great time talking with Andrew Pla, and...
Multiple ways to setup your CI/CD pipelines in GitHub Actions
In this post I’ll show different approaches to setting up your build and deployment workflows with GitHub Actions, as well as some pros and cons of each.
First, Single, and SingleOrDefault in .NET are harmful
I’ve wasted countless hours troubleshooting exceptions thrown by the .NET First, Single, and SingleOrDefault methods. In this post we’ll look at why these me...
Resolve PowerShell paths that do not exist
In this post we’ll see how to resolve a file or directory path, even if it does not exist.
PowerShell class definition pros, cons, and performance comparison
There are 3 different approaches that can be used to define classes and enums in PowerShell. This article will compare the pros, cons, and performance of eac...
Get PowerShell tips automatically in your terminal with the tiPS module
There are a lot of great PowerShell tips out there, but we often don’t proactively look for them. It’s hard to know what you don’t know, and easy to miss out...
Easily profile your PowerShell code with the Profiler module
Premature optimization may be the root of all evil, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t optimize your code where it matters. Rather than guessing which code ...
Automatically create new sessions to improve PowerShell development with classes in VS Code
Developing PowerShell scripts and modules that reference classes and binary modules can be a bit painful, as in order to load a new version of the class or m...
How and where to properly define classes and enums in your PowerShell modules
I recently created a PowerShell script module that defines classes and enums. Everything worked fine locally, but broke when I tested the module on a build s...