Microsoft Releases PowerShell Update With New Commands and Security Upgrades

Microsoft has released PowerShell 7.7, introducing new commands, security enhancements, and several breaking changes that could affect existing scripts and automation workflows.

The latest version runs on .NET 11 and arrives as a Standard Term Support (STS) release. It includes improvements to command-line functionality, remoting security, and reliability.

PowerShell 7.7 adds new commands and features

According to Microsoft’s release notes, PowerShell 7.7 includes the Microsoft.PowerShell.PSResourceGet and Microsoft.PowerShell.Archive modules.

Microsoft has also introduced several command improvements:

• New-TemporaryDirectory creates temporary directories.
• Join-Path gains a new -Extension parameter.
• Format-Table, Format-List, and Format-Custom now support the -ExcludeProperty parameter.
• Get-AuthenticodeSignature returns a new SubjectAlternativeName property.
• WildcardPattern introduces a ToRegex() method.
• New-Guid now generates version 7 UUIDs by default, allowing time-based sorting.

These additions give administrators more flexibility when managing files, formatting output, and developing automation scripts.

Microsoft strengthens PowerShell security

PowerShell 7.7 introduces several security improvements designed to reduce vulnerabilities and strengthen enterprise environments.

Microsoft has improved protections for Constrained Language Mode, which restricts potentially unsafe PowerShell operations.

The update also strengthens argument and frame validation in PowerShell remoting, helping prevent unexpected behavior during remote command execution.

Additionally, PowerShell now applies stricter validation when extracting updatable help content.

The Test-Json command also changes how it handles external schema references. It no longer resolves them automatically unless users explicitly request that behavior.

PowerShell 7.7 introduces breaking changes

The release includes several behavioral changes that could affect existing scripts.

One notable change involves New-Guid, which now generates version 7 UUIDs instead of version 4. Administrators who need random GUIDs can continue using [guid]::NewGuid().

The formatting commands also introduce stricter validation. The -Property parameter no longer accepts null or empty values.

PowerShell now throws System.ArgumentException when certain arguments contain null or empty values.

Microsoft has also corrected how Where-Object processes explicitly false operator switches, including -EQ:$false.

These changes could cause compatibility issues with older scripts, particularly in environments that rely heavily on automated PowerShell tasks.

Administrators should test existing scripts before deploying PowerShell 7.7 across production systems.

How to download PowerShell 7.7

PowerShell 7.7 is available for download, and users can follow Microsoft’s installation instructions to install the latest version.

The release continues Microsoft’s efforts to improve PowerShell through open-source development, security updates, and community contributions.

In other news, Microsoft unveiled Classroom, a new education platform with Copilot AI, while the company also extended Visual Studio 2026 LTSC 18.11 support to November 2028. Meanwhile, the November 2026 Windows Server Patch Tuesday updates address Exchange Server sign-in and email delivery problems.

Via Neowin