PowerShell Pester Course Overview

PowerShell Pester Course Overview

The PowerShell Pester course is an in-depth training program designed to teach learners how to use Pester, the popular testing framework for PowerShell. It's ideal for developers, IT professionals, and automation engineers who want to ensure their scripts are reliable and maintainable. The course begins with an Introduction to Pester, setting the stage for its necessity and benefits.

Moving through the modules, students will learn hands-on skills, starting with Getting Started with Pester, where they'll install the framework and write their first tests. As they progress, they'll delve into Writing and Running Pester Tests, understand how to create effective Assertions in Pester, and learn the art of Mocking in Pester to isolate test cases.

Advanced topics like Parameterized Tests, Code Coverage, and implementing Test Driven Development (TDD) with Pester are covered, which are essential for high-quality code. The course also includes a critical look at using Pester in Continuous Integration and Delivery (CI/CD) pipelines, demonstrating its role in modern DevOps practices.

Modules on Advanced Pester Techniques, Best Practices for Using Pester, and Troubleshooting Pester Tests provide depth and troubleshooting strategies. Additionally, learners will discover how to Extend Pester and effectively use it in Production environments. The course culminates with a Conclusion and Next Steps module, empowering students to continue their Pester journey with confidence. This comprehensive course will help learners master Pester, leading to improved code quality, reduced bugs, and a more streamlined development process.

CoursePage_session_icon

Successfully delivered 1 sessions for over 1 professionals

Purchase This Course

1,000

  • Live Training (Duration : 16 Hours)
  • Per Participant
  • Guaranteed-to-Run (GTR)

Filter By:

♱ Excluding VAT/GST

Classroom Training price is on request

You can request classroom training in any city on any date by Requesting More Information

  • Live Training (Duration : 16 Hours)
  • Per Participant

♱ Excluding VAT/GST

Classroom Training price is on request

You can request classroom training in any city on any date by Requesting More Information

Request More Information

Email:  WhatsApp:

Koenig's Unique Offerings

Course Prerequisites

To ensure that you can successfully undertake our PowerShell Pester course, please consider the following minimum prerequisites:


  • Basic understanding of PowerShell scripting and command-line interface (CLI) usage.
  • Familiarity with fundamental PowerShell concepts such as cmdlets, variables, and loops.
  • Experience with scripting or programming in any language is beneficial but not mandatory.
  • Knowledge of software testing concepts is helpful but not required.
  • A willingness to learn and apply new testing methodologies within PowerShell scripts.

Remember, these prerequisites are intended to provide you with a foundation upon which the Pester training will build. Our course is designed to guide you through all the necessary concepts and practices, from the basics to more advanced techniques.


Target Audience for PowerShell Pester

The PowerShell Pester course by Koenig Solutions is designed for IT professionals aiming to master test automation and quality assurance in scripting.


  • Software Developers who use PowerShell in their development process
  • Quality Assurance Engineers focusing on automated testing
  • DevOps Engineers involved in continuous integration and delivery
  • System Administrators who want to validate infrastructure configurations
  • Test Automation Engineers looking to expand their toolset with Pester
  • IT Professionals interested in learning Test Driven Development (TDD)
  • Technical Leads and Managers overseeing PowerShell projects
  • PowerShell Script Writers seeking to ensure their scripts are error-free
  • Professionals working on Windows-based server environments
  • Cloud Engineers who utilize PowerShell for deployment and automation tasks
  • Security Professionals who use scripts for compliance and security checks
  • Anyone looking to integrate Pester into their CI/CD pipeline


Learning Objectives - What you will Learn in this PowerShell Pester?

Introduction to the Course's Mentioned Learning Outcomes and Concepts Covered:

The PowerShell Pester course equips students with comprehensive skills in automated testing, script validation, and continuous integration processes using Pester, PowerShell's testing framework.

Learning Objectives and Outcomes:

  • Understand the fundamentals of Pester and its role in PowerShell scripting.
  • Learn how to set up a testing environment and write basic Pester tests for code validation.
  • Gain proficiency in writing and executing Pester tests to ensure script functionality.
  • Master the use of assertions to check the behavior of PowerShell code within tests.
  • Acquire skills in mocking to isolate code for unit testing and manage dependencies.
  • Implement parameterized tests to run test cases with various input values efficiently.
  • Measure code coverage to identify untested parts of code and improve test suites.
  • Apply Test-Driven Development (TDD) principles using Pester for better code quality.
  • Integrate Pester tests into CI/CD pipelines to automate testing and deployment processes.
  • Explore advanced Pester techniques for complex testing scenarios and customizations.
  • Learn best practices for structuring and maintaining Pester tests for long-term efficiency.
  • Develop troubleshooting strategies for common issues encountered when writing Pester tests.
  • Discover ways to extend Pester's capabilities through customization and additional modules.
  • Understand the application of Pester in production environments for live testing and monitoring.
  • Conclude with actionable insights on how to continue improving PowerShell testing skills post-course.

Technical Topic Explanation

Parameterized Tests

Parameterized tests allow you to run the same test with different inputs, which can save time and make your tests more comprehensive. In essence, you define a test once and provide multiple sets of data, so the test repeats for each set. This approach ensures that your function behaves correctly across a range of values without writing multiple test cases manually. It streamlines testing processes and enhances the reliability of software by comprehensively validating functionality under various scenarios.

Advanced Pester Techniques

Advanced Pester Techniques in PowerShell involve using the Pester testing framework to test code and infrastructure more effectively. These techniques include parameterized testing, where you pass different sets of parameters to the same test script to cover multiple scenarios. Mocking, which involves isolating the code under test by replacing its dependencies with mock objects that simulate real components' behavior without the complexity. Also, code coverage analysis helps identify untested parts of the codebase, ensuring thorough testing. Using these advanced methods enhances the robustness and reliability of PowerShell scripts, promoting better software development practices.

Continuous Integration and Delivery (CI/CD)

Continuous Integration (CI) and Continuous Delivery (CD) are practices in software development where developers frequently merge their code changes into a central repository, followed by automatic builds and tests. The main aims are to identify and address bugs quicker, improve software quality, and reduce the time it takes to validate and release new software updates. CI/CD enables a more streamlined, automated, and efficient lifecycle for project development, ensuring that any code update made to the application is production-ready and can be deployed to the end-user without disruption.

Code Coverage

Code coverage is a measurement used in software testing to determine how much of the source code of a program is tested by the tests you've run. It shows which parts of your codebase have been executed by your tests and which haven't. This data helps developers identify areas of their code that may need more comprehensive testing to ensure quality and reliability. The goal is to cover as much of the code as possible with tests to catch and fix bugs early, improve code quality, and maintain software efficiently over time.

PowerShell Pester

PowerShell Pester is a testing framework designed for PowerShell, the task automation and configuration management framework. Pester enables developers to write and run tests for their scripts and code in a simple, structured way. It helps in ensuring that the code behaves as expected and makes it easy to identify and fix bugs. PowerShell Pester uses a describing language that lets you define what each piece of your code should do, and then checks if the actual outcomes match these expectations, facilitating improved code quality and reliability.

Introduction to Pester

Pester is a testing framework specifically designed for PowerShell, the scripting and automation platform extensively used in system management and other administrative tasks. It enables developers and IT professionals to write and run tests for their scripts and code, ensuring that they perform as intended before deployment. Pester supports automated testing practices, which help improve the quality and reliability of PowerShell scripts, making it an essential tool for continuous integration environments. By using Pester, teams can catch bugs early, streamline workflow, and maintain code efficiency effectively.

Getting Started with Pester

Pester is a testing framework for PowerShell, designed to help you run unit tests on your scripts and modules. Getting started with Pester involves installing the module, usually via PowerShell's package manager. Once installed, you write tests that define expected behaviors for your PowerShell code. You then invoke Pester to run these tests, which helps you identify and fix errors early. Pester's use of 'describe' and 'it' blocks helps to organize tests clearly, making it easier to understand what each test is checking and why it’s necessary for ensuring code quality.

Writing and Running Pester Tests

Writing and running Pester tests involves using the PowerShell Pester framework to create and execute tests on your PowerShell code. Pester allows you to validate that your code performs as expected by writing test scripts that automatically check the functionality of your scripts. You script conditions or "tests" that your code should meet, write PowerShell code, run these tests using Pester, and receive immediate feedback. This process helps in identifying bugs early and ensures your code is robust and reliable. Pester is essential for anyone using PowerShell to automate and streamline coding processes, ensuring quality and efficiency.

Assertions in Pester

Assertions in Pester are checks embedded within a PowerShell Pester testing script to verify the accuracy of test conditions against expected outcomes. They function as validation tools that either confirm or deny the correctness of a PowerShell function's results during test execution. Each assertion can test for specific conditions like equality, null values, or patterns, and will return detailed feedback when a test fails, helping developers quickly locate and rectify issues within the code. Assertions ensure that the PowerShell code behaves as intended before deployment, enhancing reliability and functionality.

Mocking in Pester

Mocking in Pester is a technique used in the PowerShell testing framework, Pester, to isolate tests by replacing real elements with substitutes, or mocks. These mock functions or commands simulate the behavior of real components, ensuring that tests can run in a controlled environment. This approach helps verify the functionality of a specific piece of a larger system without relying on external dependencies. By using mocking, developers can ensure their tests are focused, faster, and more reliable, as they mimic the interactions with external systems while controlling the outputs and behaviors.

Best Practices for Using Pester

Pester is a testing framework for PowerShell, enabling developers to verify that their scripts function as intended. Best practices for using Pester include writing clear, purposeful tests that are easy to understand and maintain. Start by defining what each test should check and ensure they run independently to avoid cross-contamination of results. Aim to cover all potential input scenarios and edge cases in your tests to ensure robustness. Use descriptive test names and maintain a logical structure within your test suites. Regularly run your tests during development to catch issues early, which makes debugging easier and improves code quality.

Troubleshooting Pester Tests

Troubleshooting Pester tests in PowerShell involves identifying and fixing issues in your test scripts. Start by checking if each test is correctly isolated, ensuring one test's results don't impact another. Verify the setup and teardown processes are correctly implemented. For failing assertions, review the conditions and expected outcomes to match the actual behavior of the code being tested. If errors occur, use detailed error messages and logging to understand the failure context. Lastly, updating Pester and PowerShell to the latest versions can resolve issues due to outdated functionalities.

Extend Pester

Extend Pester in PowerShell is about enhancing the default capabilities of Pester, a testing framework for PowerShell scripts and modules. It allows developers to write tests for their code, ensuring it behaves as expected before deployment. By extending Pester, professionals can integrate custom assertions, add more detailed test results reporting, and interface with other tools. This makes Pester an even more powerful tool in creating robust, maintainable PowerShell solutions, facilitating continuous improvement and integration practices vital in professional environments.

Target Audience for PowerShell Pester

The PowerShell Pester course by Koenig Solutions is designed for IT professionals aiming to master test automation and quality assurance in scripting.


  • Software Developers who use PowerShell in their development process
  • Quality Assurance Engineers focusing on automated testing
  • DevOps Engineers involved in continuous integration and delivery
  • System Administrators who want to validate infrastructure configurations
  • Test Automation Engineers looking to expand their toolset with Pester
  • IT Professionals interested in learning Test Driven Development (TDD)
  • Technical Leads and Managers overseeing PowerShell projects
  • PowerShell Script Writers seeking to ensure their scripts are error-free
  • Professionals working on Windows-based server environments
  • Cloud Engineers who utilize PowerShell for deployment and automation tasks
  • Security Professionals who use scripts for compliance and security checks
  • Anyone looking to integrate Pester into their CI/CD pipeline


Learning Objectives - What you will Learn in this PowerShell Pester?

Introduction to the Course's Mentioned Learning Outcomes and Concepts Covered:

The PowerShell Pester course equips students with comprehensive skills in automated testing, script validation, and continuous integration processes using Pester, PowerShell's testing framework.

Learning Objectives and Outcomes:

  • Understand the fundamentals of Pester and its role in PowerShell scripting.
  • Learn how to set up a testing environment and write basic Pester tests for code validation.
  • Gain proficiency in writing and executing Pester tests to ensure script functionality.
  • Master the use of assertions to check the behavior of PowerShell code within tests.
  • Acquire skills in mocking to isolate code for unit testing and manage dependencies.
  • Implement parameterized tests to run test cases with various input values efficiently.
  • Measure code coverage to identify untested parts of code and improve test suites.
  • Apply Test-Driven Development (TDD) principles using Pester for better code quality.
  • Integrate Pester tests into CI/CD pipelines to automate testing and deployment processes.
  • Explore advanced Pester techniques for complex testing scenarios and customizations.
  • Learn best practices for structuring and maintaining Pester tests for long-term efficiency.
  • Develop troubleshooting strategies for common issues encountered when writing Pester tests.
  • Discover ways to extend Pester's capabilities through customization and additional modules.
  • Understand the application of Pester in production environments for live testing and monitoring.
  • Conclude with actionable insights on how to continue improving PowerShell testing skills post-course.