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Investigate: Lightweight PowerShell tool for Intune script development

IMPLEMENTATION RULES: Before implementing this plan, read and follow:

Status: Backlog​

Goal: Determine the best approach for a standalone lightweight PowerShell install script.

GitHub Issue: #47

Last Updated: 2026-02-16

Questions to Answer​

  1. Can we reuse the existing PowerShell installation logic from install-tool-azure-ops.sh?
  2. What's the right category for this script?
  3. What minimal set of packages is needed?
  4. Should PSScriptAnalyzer move from tool-azure-ops to this new script?

Current State​

PowerShell (pwsh) is only available via install-tool-azure-ops.sh, which bundles:

  • Azure CLI (az)
  • PowerShell 7 with heavy modules: Az, Microsoft.Graph, ExchangeOnlineManagement, PSScriptAnalyzer
  • 7 VS Code extensions (Azure Account, Resources, Storage, Functions, Databases, Pipelines, Terraform)

This is too heavy when only pwsh + linting is needed (e.g., for Intune script development).

Existing infrastructure​

ComponentLocationPurpose
Install templateaddition-templates/_template-install-script.shTemplate for new install scripts
PowerShell core librarylib/core-install-pwsh.shModule install/uninstall/update functions
Azure ops scriptinstall-tool-azure-ops.shFull Azure + PowerShell stack
CREATING-SCRIPTS.mdwebsite/docs/ai-developer/CREATING-SCRIPTS.mdScript conventions and metadata

How PowerShell is currently installed​

install-tool-azure-ops.sh installs PowerShell via pre_installation_setup() which calls the Microsoft APT repository setup. The PACKAGES_PWSH array is then processed by lib/core-install-pwsh.sh which handles Install-Module for each module.

The core-install-pwsh.sh library:

  • Checks if pwsh is available
  • Sets PSGallery as trusted
  • Installs/updates/uninstalls modules via process_pwsh_modules()
  • Handles version checking and reporting

This library is already sourced by the template (source "${SCRIPT_DIR}/lib/core-install-pwsh.sh") so a new script using PACKAGES_PWSH gets module management for free.

PowerShell installation itself​

PowerShell 7 is installed from Microsoft's APT repository. The pre_installation_setup() in install-tool-azure-ops.sh handles this via custom code (not a standard PACKAGES_SYSTEM entry). A new script would need similar APT repo setup logic.

Options​

Option A: New standalone script based on template​

Create install-tool-powershell.sh using _template-install-script.sh:

  • pre_installation_setup() — install PowerShell 7 from Microsoft APT repo
  • PACKAGES_PWSH=("PSScriptAnalyzer") — just the linter
  • EXTENSIONS=("ms-vscode.powershell") — just the VS Code extension
  • Category: LANGUAGE_DEV

Pros:

  • Clean, follows existing patterns
  • Template handles all boilerplate (auto-enable, help, uninstall, etc.)
  • core-install-pwsh.sh already handles module management
  • Lightweight — no Azure CLI, no heavy modules

Cons:

  • Duplicates PowerShell APT repo setup from install-tool-azure-ops.sh
  • If both are installed, PowerShell is set up twice (idempotent, but wasteful)

Option B: Extract shared PowerShell install function​

Same as Option A, but extract the PowerShell binary installation into a shared function in lib/ that both scripts can call.

Pros:

  • No code duplication
  • Both scripts use the same install path

Cons:

  • More refactoring work
  • install-tool-azure-ops.sh needs to be modified
  • Risk of breaking existing script

Recommendation​

Option A — New standalone script based on the template. Keep it simple.

  • Code duplication of the APT repo setup is minimal (~10 lines)
  • The scripts are idempotent so installing both is harmless
  • Avoids modifying the working install-tool-azure-ops.sh
  • Can always extract the shared function later if a third script needs PowerShell

Proposed metadata​

SCRIPT_ID="tool-powershell"
SCRIPT_VER="1.0.0"
SCRIPT_NAME="PowerShell"
SCRIPT_DESCRIPTION="Installs PowerShell 7 with PSScriptAnalyzer for script development and linting"
SCRIPT_CATEGORY="LANGUAGE_DEV"
SCRIPT_CHECK_COMMAND="command -v pwsh >/dev/null 2>&1 || [ -f /usr/bin/pwsh ]"

SCRIPT_TAGS="powershell pwsh intune linting scripting"
SCRIPT_ABSTRACT="PowerShell 7 with PSScriptAnalyzer for script development and linting."
SCRIPT_WEBSITE="https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/powershell/"
SCRIPT_RELATED="tool-azure-ops"

Proposed packages​

PACKAGES_SYSTEM=()  # PowerShell installed via pre_installation_setup (APT repo)

PACKAGES_PWSH=(
    "PSScriptAnalyzer"  # PowerShell linter
)

EXTENSIONS=(
    "PowerShell (ms-vscode.powershell) - PowerShell language support and debugging"
)

Note on PSScriptAnalyzer​

Currently PSScriptAnalyzer is in both tool-azure-ops and the proposed tool-powershell. This is fine — the install library is idempotent and will skip if already installed. No need to remove it from tool-azure-ops.

Next Steps​

  • Create PLAN-lightweight-powershell.md with the chosen approach