As part of the November 2014 Update Rollup (KB3000850) for Windows RT 8.1, Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2, we substantially improved stability, diagnosability, and reliability of PowerShell Desired State Configuration (DSC). We also enhanced PowerShell auditing functionality, and added Software Inventory Logging (SIL). Around Q4 of 2015, we expect to make these improvements available on Windows 7 SP1, Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1, and Windows Server 2012.
PowerShell DSC improvements were based on your direct feedback. With your help, we fixed scenario blocking issues, and made DSC more usable in real-world production environments. You can learn more about these enhancements in TechNet documentation and this PowerShell Magazine article.
We also improved PowerShell transcription and logging to enable more stringent auditing. PowerShell transcription has been improved to apply to all hosting applications (such as Windows PowerShell ISE) rather than just the console host (powershell.exe). While PowerShell already has the ability to log the invocation of cmdlets, PowerShell’s scripting language has plenty of features that you might want to log and/or audit. The new, detailed script tracing feature lets you enable detailed tracking and analysis of PowerShell scripting use on a system.
The Software Inventory Logging (SIL) feature that was introduced in Windows Server 2012 R2 is intended to help datacenter administrators reduce their operational costs by easily logging Microsoft software asset management data for their deployments over time. For more information, please refer to TechNet documentation.
‘WMF 4.0 Update’ will make existing versions of Desired State Configuration and PowerShell auditing better in PowerShell 4.0, along with adding Software Inventory Logging. We will continue to introduce new functionalities in WMF 5.0 Previews that are being released on a regular basis.
Hemant Mahawar [MSFT]
Senior Program Manager
Windows PowerShell