Windows Management Framework 3.0 CTP2 available (with Getting Started with PowerShell Workflows guide too)

Microsoft Downloads - Windows Management Framework 3.0 - Community Technology Preview (CTP) #2

Includes PowerShell 3.0, WMI & WinRM

Version: CTP2
Date Published: 12/22/2011

Language: English

Windows PowerShell ISE.pdf, 725 KB
WINDOWS6.1-KB2506143-x64.msu, 13.8 MB
WINDOWS6.1-KB2506143-x86.msu, 10.1 MB
WMF CTP2 Release Notes.docx, 95 KB
WMF3 CTP2 Windows PowerShell Workflow.pdf, 783 KB

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Windows PowerShell 3.0
Some of the new features in Windows PowerShell 3.0 include:

• Workflows
• Robust Sessions
• Scheduled Jobs
• Delegated Administration
• Simplified Language Syntax
• Cmdlet Discovery
• Show-Command

WMI
WMI in Windows Management Framework 3.0 introduces:

• A new provider development model
• A new MI Client API to perform standard CIM operations.
• The ability to write Windows PowerShell cmdlets in native code

WinRM
With Windows Management Framework 3.0:

• Connections are more robust
• Connections are more resilient

Windows PowerShell Web Service
Windows PowerShell Web Service enables an administrator to expose a set of PowerShell cmdlets as a RESTful web endpoint accessible via the (Open Data Protocol (OData). This provides remote access to invoke cmdlets from both Windows and non-Windows clients.

Overview of changes since WMF 3.0 CTP1

1. Customer Reported Bug Fixes
   Many customer reported bugs have been fixed since the WMF 3.0 CTP1. The release notes contains a list of bug titles, but please check Connect for full details.
2. Single Command Pane in Windows PowerShell ISE
   The Command and Output panes in Windows PowerShell ISE have been combined into a single Command pane that looks and behaves like the Windows PowerShell console.
3. Updatable Help
   The WMF 3.0 CTP1 release notes described a new Updatable Help system in Windows PowerShell 3.0 and included a copy of the help content. The Updatable Help system is now active on the Internet. To download and update help files, type: Update-Help.
4. Windows PowerShell Workflows
   A number of enhancements have been made in the scripting experience for Windows PowerShell Workflows, including new keywords: Parallel, Sequence & Inlinescript. A document describing these changes will be published to this page shortly.
5. Remote Get-Module
   The Get-Module cmdlet now supports implicit remoting. You can now use the new PSSession and CIMSession parameters of the Get-Module cmdlet to get the modules in any remote session or CIM session. A number of other module enhancements are listed in the release notes.

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With the Workflows being one of the coolest new features, it's good to see a Getting Started PDF;

Here's a snip from the PDF;

Windows PowerShell Workflow is a new set of functionality that ships as part of Windows PowerShell 3.0. Windows PowerShell Workflow lets IT pros and developers apply the benefits of workflows to the automation capabilities of Windows PowerShell.

IT professionals and developers often execute management tasks across multiple machines in their IT environment. In general, those multi-machine tasks are long running and need to be robust in the face of errors and reboots. PowerShell Workflows brings new features to PowerShell world, allowing users to automate sequences of tasks that run across multiple computers or devices, while keeping robustness, scalability and performance in mind.

Overview of Windows PowerShell Workflow

A workflow is a sequence of automated steps or activities that execute tasks on or retrieve data from one or more managed nodes (computers or devices). These activities can include individual commands or scripts. Windows PowerShell Workflow enables, IT pros and developers alike, to author sequences of multi-computer management activities — that are either long-running, repeatable, frequent, parallelizable, interruptible, stoppable, or restartable — as workflows. By design, workflows can be resumed from an intentional or accidental

...

Personally I'm encouraged that the PS Team took a dependency on Windows Workflow. Good to see this tech being used more...

(via PowerShell Magazine - Getting Started with Windows PowerShell Workflows)

 

Related Past Post XRef:
Win7 SP1/Win2008 R2 SP1 get some PowerShell 3 CTP love... Or PS gets WF