PowerShell Windows - Scripting Rules

Essential rules for correct PowerShell usage on Windows. Follow these rules to avoid common errors when executing shell commands.

Core Principles

1. Command Separation

• Wrong: cd "path" && command (bash syntax)
• Correct: cd "path"; command (PowerShell syntax)

2. Path Quoting

• Always use double quotes for paths with spaces:

cd "D:\My Projects\MyApp"

3. Script Execution

• For .bat/.cmd files:

./gradlew clean build
.\gradlew.bat clean build

4. Docker Commands

• Specify full path to docker-compose files:

docker-compose -f "D:\My Projects\app\docker-compose.yml" up -d

5. HTTP Requests

• Wrong: curl -s http://localhost:9090/status
• Correct:

Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "http://localhost:9090/status" -UseBasicParsing

6. Waiting/Delays

• Wrong: timeout 10
• Correct:

Start-Sleep -Seconds 10

7. JSON Handling

• JSON parsing:

$response = Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "http://localhost:9090/status" -UseBasicParsing
$json = $response.Content | ConvertFrom-Json
$json | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 3

8. Process Checking

• Process search:

Get-Process -Name "java" -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

9. Docker Operations

• Stop containers:

docker-compose -f "path\to\file.yml" down

• Build images:

docker-compose -f "path\to\file.yml" build --no-cache

10. Error Handling

• Ignore errors:

Get-Process -Name "java" -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

Common Errors and Fixes

Error	Cause	Fix
&& is not recognized	Using bash syntax	Replace && with ;
curl not found	curl not installed on Windows	Use Invoke-WebRequest
timeout not found	timeout not supported	Use Start-Sleep
Path not found	Missing quotes on spaced path	Wrap path in double quotes

Correct Command Examples

# Change directory and execute command
cd "D:\My Projects\MyApp"; ./gradlew clean build -x test

# Wait and make HTTP request
Start-Sleep -Seconds 10; Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "http://localhost:9090/status" -UseBasicParsing

# Docker operations
docker-compose -f "D:\My Projects\MyApp\docker-compose.yml" down
docker-compose -f "D:\My Projects\MyApp\docker-compose.yml" build --no-cache
docker-compose -f "D:\My Projects\MyApp\docker-compose.yml" up -d

# Check server status
$response = Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "http://localhost:9090/status" -UseBasicParsing
$json = $response.Content | ConvertFrom-Json
Write-Host "Transport: $($json.mcp.transport)"

These rules are critically important for proper operation in Windows PowerShell environment.