What is IEX in PowerShell?

What is IEX in PowerShell?

IEX (short for "Invoke-Expression") is a PowerShell cmdlet that allows you to run a string as PowerShell code.

This can be useful in situations where you want to dynamically generate and run PowerShell code, such as when working with scripts that accept user input or when working with data that contains PowerShell commands.

Example

Here is an example of how IEX can be used:

# Define a string containing PowerShell code
$string = "Write-Output 'Hello, World!'"

# Use IEX to run the string as PowerShell code
IEX $string

In this example, we define a string containing a simple PowerShell command that outputs the message "Hello, World!". Then, we use the IEX cmdlet to run the string as PowerShell code. As a result, the string is executed and the message is output to the PowerShell console.

You can also use the IEX cmdlet to run strings that contain multiple PowerShell commands or more complex code. For example:

# Define a string containing PowerShell code
$string = @"
$numbers = 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
$total = 0

foreach ($number in $numbers) {
    $total += $number
}

Write-Output "The total is: $total"
"@

# Use IEX to run the string as PowerShell code
IEX $string

In this example, we define a string containing a PowerShell script that calculates the sum of a list of numbers.

Then, we use the IEX cmdlet to run the string as PowerShell code. As a result, the script is executed and the sum of the numbers is output to the PowerShell console.

Conclusion

IEX is a useful cmdlet for running PowerShell code that is stored in a string, and can be used to dynamically generate and execute PowerShell scripts and commands.