about_WS-Management_Cmdlets

Article
12/13/2022

SHORT DESCRIPTION

Provides an overview of Web Services for Management (WS-Management) as background for using the WS-Management cmdlets in Windows PowerShell.

LONG DESCRIPTION

This topic provides an overview of Web Services for Management (WS-Management) as background for using the WS-Management cmdlets in Windows PowerShell. This topic also provides links to more information about WS-Management. The Microsoft implementation of WS-Management is also known as Windows Remote Management (WinRM).

About WS-Management

Windows Remote Management is the Microsoft implementation of the WS-Management protocol, a standard SOAP-based, firewall-friendly protocol that allows hardware and operating systems from different vendors to interoperate. The WS-Management protocol specification provides a common way for systems to access and exchange management information across an information technology (IT) infrastructure. WS-Management and Intelligent Platform Management Interface (IPMI), along with the Event Collector, are components of the Windows Hardware Management features.

The WS-Management protocol is based on the following standard Web service specifications: HTTPS, SOAP over HTTP (WS-I profile), SOAP 1.2, WS-Addressing, WS-Transfer, WS-Enumeration, and WS-Eventing.

WS-Management and WMI

WS-Management can be used to retrieve data exposed by Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI). You can obtain WMI data with scripts or applications that use the WS-Management Scripting API or through the WinRM command-line tool. WS-Management supports most of the familiar WMI classes and operations, including embedded objects. WS-Management can leverage WMI to collect data about resources or to manage resources on a Windows-based computers. That means that you can obtain data about objects such as disks, network adapters, services, or processes in your enterprise through the existing set of WMI classes. You can also access the hardware data that is available from the standard WMI IPMI provider.

WS-Management Windows PowerShell Provider (WSMan)

The WSMan provider provides a hierarchical view into the available WS-Management configuration settings. The provider allows you to explore and set the various WS-Management configuration options.

WS-Management Configuration

If WS-Management is not installed and configured, Windows PowerShell remoting is not available, the WS-Management cmdlets do not run, WS-Management scripts do not run, and the WSMan provider cannot perform data operations. The WS-Management command-line tool, WinRM, and event forwarding also depend on the WS-Management configuration.

WS-Management Cmdlets

WS-Management functionality is implemented in Windows PowerShell through a module that contains a set of cmdlets and the WSMan provider. You can use these cmdlets to complete the end-to-end tasks necessary to manage WS-Management settings on local and remote computers.

The following WS-Management cmdlets are available.

Connection Cmdlets

Connect-WSMan: Connects the local computer to the WS-Management (WinRM) service on a remote computer.
Disconnect-WSMan: Disconnects the local computer from the WS-Management (WinRM) service on a remote computer.

Management-Data Cmdlets

Get-WSManInstance: Displays management information for a resource instance that is specified by a resource URI.
Invoke-WSManAction: Invokes an action on the target object that is specified by the resource URI and by the selectors.
New-WSManInstance: Creates a new management resource instance.
Remove-WSManInstance: Deletes a management resource instance.
Set-WSManInstance: Modifies the management information that is related to a resource.

Setup and Configuration Cmdlets

Set-WSManQuickConfig: Configures the local computer for remote management. You can use the Set-WSManQuickConfig cmdlet to configure WS-Management to allow remote connections to the WS-Management (WinRM) service. The Set-WSManQuickConfig cmdlet performs the following operations:
- It determines whether the WS-Management (WinRM) service is running. If the WinRM service is not running, the Set-WSManQuickConfig cmdlet starts the service.
- It sets the WS-Management (WinRM) service startup type to automatic.
- It creates a listener that accepts requests from any IP address. The default transport protocol is HTTP.
- It enables a firewall exception for WS-Management traffic.
Note: To run this cmdlet in Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, and later versions of Windows, you must start Windows PowerShell with the "Run as administrator" option.
Test-WSMan: Verifies that WS-Management is installed and configured. The Test-WSMan cmdlet tests whether the WS-Management (WinRM) service is running and configured on a local or remote computer.
Disable-WSManCredSSP: Disables CredSSP authentication on a client computer.
Enable-WSManCredSSP: Enables CredSSP authentication on a client computer.
Get-WSManCredSSP: Gets the CredSSP-related configuration for a client computer.