Recent updates to DSC Resource Kit

We would like to share with you a summary of changes which happened in DSC Resource Kit over last few weeks.

Since we’ve posted about the updates here last time, we’ve accepted 38 pull requests, closed 33 issues, updated 7 modules and added 4 new resources! Two resources were added to xNetworking module (xDNSConnectionSuffix and xNetConnectionProfile), one to xActiveDirectory (xADGroup), and yet another one to xCertificate module (xPfxImport). These new additions bring us to the total of 229 DSC resources!

This would not be possible without the great help and support we are receiving from our community, from YOU guys! Thank you! We are extremely happy to have such dedicated contributors.

For details about the updates and bug fixes available in the recent releases, please scroll to the “What has been recently released?” section below.

We strongly encourage you to update to the newest versions of the modules using the PowerShell Gallery, start using them and don’t forget to let us know your feedback in the comments below, on GitHub or Twitter (#PSDSC)!

Where can I find all released DSC modules?

To see a list of all released DSC Resource Kit modules, go to the PowerShell Gallery and display all modules tagged as DSCResourceKit. You can also type a module’s name in the search box on the upper right side of the PowerShell Gallery to find specific module.

Another way is to go directly to a specific module by typing it’s URL:

http://www.powershellgallery.com/packages/<Module_Name>

e.g.:

http://www.powershellgallery.com/packages/xWebAdministration

Of course, you can always use PowerShellGet (available in WMF 5.0) as well:

Find-DscResource 

How can I install DSC resources from the PowerShell Gallery?

We recommend that you use PowerShellGet to install DSC resource modules:

Install-Module –Name <Module_Name>

 e.g.

Install-Module –Name xWebAdministration

If you have previous versions of modules installed, you can update them by calling (from an elevated PowerShell prompt):

Update-Module

If there is an issue you are particularly concerned about, watch the version number in the PowerShell Gallery for updates to that particular resource. You can also file an Issue against the module on GitHub to help get it fixed.

After installing the modules, you can discover all of the resources available to your local system by running:

Get-DscResource

As with the previous Resource Kits, all the resources are experimental. The “x” prefix in the names stands for experimental – which means these resources are provided AS IS and are not supported through any Microsoft support program or service.

How can I find DSC modules on GitHub?

As we mentioned in April, we’ve open sourced development of DSC resources on GitHub. You can see the most recent state of all resources by going to their GitHub pages at https://github.com/PowerShell/<Module_Name>, e.g. for xCertificate module, go to: https://github.com/PowerShell/xCertificate.

All DSC modules are also listed as submodules of the DscResources repository, so that you can see them in one place (click the xDscResources folder).

How can I contribute?

You are more than welcome to contribute to development of DSC resource modules and there’s many ways to do it. You can create new DSC resources or modules, add test automation, improve documentation, fix existing issues or open new ones. Most of the information you need to get started can be found in our contributing guide.

If you are not sure what can you do, but would like to help anyway, please take a look at list of open issues for DscResources repository. You can also check issues opened for specific modules by going to https://github.com/PowerShell/<Module_Name>/issues , e.g. https://github.com/PowerShell/xPSDesiredStateConfiguration/issues.

Your help in developing DSC is much appreciated!

What has been recently released?

You can see a detailed summary of all recent changes in the table below.

If you want to see a change log for previous versions, go to the GitHub repository page for a given module (see section “How can I find DSC modules on GitHub?” for details).

Questions, comments?

If you're looking into using PowerShell DSC, but have questions, are blocked by issues with current resources, or a lack of resources, let us know in the comments or create an issue on GitHub.

Karol Kaczmarek          

Software Engineer

PowerShell Team