Get-Help for documentation in PowerShell

Introduction

Get-Help shows you how to use PowerShell commands. It helps you understand what a command does and how to use it.

You want to learn what a new PowerShell command does.

You need examples on how to use a command.

You want to see the parameters a command accepts.

You want to find commands related to a task.

You want to check the syntax of a command before running it.

Syntax

PowerShell

Get-Help [-Name] <string> [-Full] [-Examples] [-Detailed] [-Online] [-Parameter <string>] [-Category <string>] [-ShowWindow] [-Component <string>] [-Functionality <string>] [-Role <string>] [-Syntax] [-Path <string>] [-Force] [-?] [<CommonParameters>]

-Name is the command you want help for.

You can add -Examples to see usage examples.

Examples

Shows basic help about the Get-Process command.

PowerShell

Get-Help Get-Process

Shows only examples for the Get-Service command.

PowerShell

Get-Help Get-Service -Examples

Shows detailed help including syntax, parameters, and examples for Get-Item.

PowerShell

Get-Help Get-Item -Full

Opens the online help page for Get-Content in your web browser.

PowerShell

Get-Help Get-Content -Online

Sample Program

This command shows examples of how to use Get-Date, which gets the current date and time.

PowerShell

Get-Help Get-Date -Examples

Important Notes

If help is missing or outdated, run Update-Help to download the latest help files.

You can use Get-Help *keyword* to find commands related to a topic.

Use Get-Help -ShowWindow to open help in a separate window for easier reading.

Summary

Get-Help shows you how to use PowerShell commands.

Use options like -Examples or -Full to see more details.

Keep your help updated with Update-Help for the best information.