Describes how to use operators to assign values to variables. (about_Assignment_Operators)
TOPICabout_assignment_operatorsSHORT DESCRIPTIONDescribes how to use operators to assign values to variables.LONG DESCRIPTIONAssignment operators assign one or more values to a variable. They can perform numeric operations on the values before the assignment. Windows PowerShell supports the following assignment operators. Operator Description ------- ----------- = Sets the value of a variable to the specified value. += Increases the value of a variable by the specified value, or appends the specified value to the existing value. -= Decreases the value of a variable by the specified value. *= Multiplies the value of a variable by the specified value, or appends the specified value to the existing value. /= Divides the value of a variable by the specified value. %= Divides the value of a variable by the specified value and then assigns the remainder (modulus) to the variable. ++ Increases the value of a variable, assignable property, or array element by 1. -- Decreases the value of a variable, assignable property, or array element by 1. SYNTAX The syntax of the assignment operators is as follows: <assignable-expression> <assignment-operator> <value> Assignable expressions include variables and properties. The value can be a single value, an array of values, or a command, expression, or statement. The increment and decrement operators are unary operators. Each has prefix and postfix versions. <assignable-expression><operator> <operator><assignable-expression> The assignable expression must a number or it must be convertible to a number. ASSIGNING VALUES Variables are named memory spaces that store values. You store the values in variables by using the assignment operator (=). The new value can replace the existing value of the variable, or you can append a new value to the existing value. The basic assignment operator is the equal sign (=)(ASCII 61). For example, the following statement assigns the value Windows PowerShell to the $MyShell variable: $MyShell = "Windows PowerShell" When you assign a value to a variable in Windows PowerShell, the variable is created if it did not already exist. For example, the first of the following two assignement statements creates the $a variable and assigns a value of 6 to $a. The second assignment statement assigns a value of 12 to $a. The first statement creates a new variable. The second statement changes only its value: $a = 6 $a = 12 Variables in Windows PowerShell do not have a specific data type unless you cast them. When a variable contains only one object, the variable takes the data type of that object. When a variable contains a collection of objects, the variable has the System.Object data type. Therefore, you can assign any type of object to the collection. The following example shows that you can add process objects, service objects, strings, and integers to a variable without generating an error: $a = get-process $a += get-service $a += "string" $a += 12 Because the assignment operator (=) has a lower precedence than the pipeline operator (|), parentheses are not required to assign the result of a command pipeline to a variable. For example, the following command sorts the services on the computer and then assigns the sorted services to the $a variable: $a = get-service | sort name You can also assign the value created by a statement to a variable, as in the following example: $a = if ($b -lt 0) { 0 } else { $b } This example assigns 0 to the $a variable if the value of $b is less than 0. It assigns the value of $b to $a if the value of $b is not less than zero. THE ASSIGNMENT OPERATOR (=) The assignment operator (=) assigns values to variables. If the variable already has a value, the assignment operator (=) replaces the value without warning. The following statement assigns the integer value 6 to the $a variable: $a = 6 To assign a string value to a variable, enclose the string value in quotation marks, as follows: $a = "baseball" To assign an array (multiple values) to a variable, separate the values with commas, as follows: $a = "apple", "orange", "lemon", "grape" To assign a hash table to a variable, use the standard hash table notation in Windows PowerShell. Type an at sign (@) followed by key/value pairs that are separated by semicolons (;) and enclosed in braces ({ }). For example, to assign a hash table to the $a variable, type: $a = @{one=1; two=2; three=3} To assign hexadecimal values to a variable, precede the value with "0x". Windows PowerShell converts the hexadecimal value (0x10) to a decimal value (in this case, 16) and assigns that value to the $a variable. For example, to assign a value of 0x10 to the $a variable, type: $a = 0x10 To assign an exponential value to a variable, type the root number, the letter "e", and a number that represents a multiple of 10. For example, to assign a value of 3.1415 to the power of 1,000 to the $a variable, type: $a = 3.1415e3 Windows PowerShell can also convert kilobytes (KB), megabytes (MB), and gigabytes (GB) into bytes. For example, to assign a value of 10 kilobytes to the $a variable, type: $a = 10kb THE ASSIGNMENT BY ADDITION OPERATOR (+=) The assignment by addition operator (+=) either increments the value of a variable or appends the specified value to the existing value. The action depends on whether the variable has a numeric or string type and whether the variable contains a single value (a scalar) or multiple values (a collection). The += operator combines two operations. First, it adds, and then it assigns. Therefore, the following statements are equivalent: $a += 2 $a = ($a + 2) When the variable contains a single numeric value, the += operator increments the existing value by the amount on the right side of the operator. Then, the operator assigns the resulting value to the variable. The following example shows how to use the += operator to increase the value of a variable: C:\PS> $a = 4 C:\PS> $a += 2 C:\PS> $a 6 When the value of the variable is a string, the value on the right side of the operator is appended to the string, as follows: C:\PS> $a = "Windows" C:\PS> $a +- " PowerShell" C:\PS> $a Windows PowerShell When the value of the variable is an array, the += operator appends the values on the right side of the operator to the array. Unless the array is explicitly typed by casting, you can append any type of value to the array, as follows: C:\PS> $a = 1,2,3 C:\PS> $a += 2 C:\PS> $a 1 2 3 2 C:\PS> $a += "String" C:\PS> $a 1 2 3 2 String When the value of a variable is a hash table, the += operator appends the value on the right side of the operator to the hash table. However, because the only type that you can add to a hash table is another hash table, all other assignments fail. For example, the following command assigns a hash table to the $a variable. Then, it uses the += operator to append another hash table to the existing hash table, effectively adding a new key/value pair to the existing hash table. This command succeeds, as shown in the output: C:\PS> $a = @{a = 1; b = 2; c = 3} C:\PS> $a += @{mode = "write"} C:\PS> $a Name Value ---- ----- a 1 b 2 mode write c 3 The following command attempts to append an integer (1) to the hash table in the $a variable. This command fails: C:\PS> $a = @{a = 1; b = 2; c = 3} C:\PS> $a += 1 You can add another hash table only to a hash table. At line:1 char:6 + $a += <<<< 1 THE ASSIGNMENT BY SUBTRACTION OPERATOR (-=) The assignment by subtraction operator (-=) decrements the value of a variable by the value that is specified on the right side of the operator. This operator cannot be used with string variables, and it cannot be used to remove an element from a collection. The -= operator combines two operations. First, it subtracts, and then it assigns. Therefore, the following statements are equivalent: $a -= 2 $a = ($a - 2) The following example shows how to use of the -= operator to decrease the value of a variable: C:\PS> $a = 8 C:\PS> $a -= 2 C:\PS> $a 6 You can also use the -= assignment operator to decrease the value of a member of a numeric array. To do this, specify the index of the array element that you want to change. In the following example, the value of the third element of an array (element 2) is decreased by 1: C:\PS> $a = 1,2,3 C:\PS> $a[2] -= 1. C:\PS> $a 1 2 2 You cannot use the -= operator to delete the values of a variable. To delete all the values that are assigned to a variable, use the Clear-Item or Clear-Variable cmdlets to assign a value of $null or "" to the variable. $a = $null To delete a particular value from an array, use array notation to assign a value of $null to the particular item. For example, the following statement deletes the second value (index position 1) from an array: C:\PS> $a = 1,2,3 C:\PS> $a 1 2 3 C:\PS> $a[1] = $null C:\PS> $a 1 3 To delete a variable, use the Remove-Variable cmdlet. This method is useful when the variable is explicitly cast to a particular data type, and you want an untyped variable. The following command deletes the $a variable: remove-variable a THE ASSIGNMENT BY MULTIPLICATION OPERATOR (*=) The assignment by multiplication operator (*=) multiplies a numeric value or appends the specified number of copies of the string value of a variable. When a variable contains a single numeric value, that value is multiplied by the value on the right side of the operator. For example, the following example shows how to use the *= operator to multiply the value of a variable: C:\PS> $a = 3 C:\PS> $a *= 4 C:\PS> $a 12 In this case, the *= operator combines two operations. First, it multiplies, and then it assigns. Therefore, the following statements are equivalent: $a *= 2 $a = ($a * 2) When a variable contains a string value, Windows PowerShell appends the specified number of strings to the value, as follows: C:\PS> $a = "file" C:\PS> $a *= 4 C:\PS> $a filefilefilefile To multiply an element of an array, use an index to identify the element that you want to multiply. For example, the following command multiplies the first element in the array (index position 0) by 2: $a[0] *= 2 THE ASSIGNMENT BY DIVISION OPERATOR (/=) The assignment by division operator (/=) divides a numeric value by the value that is specified on the right side of the operator. The operator cannot be used with string variables. The /= operator combines two operations. First, it divides, and then it assigns. Therefore, the following two statements are equivalent: $a /= 2 $a = ($a / 2) For example, the following command uses the /= operator to divide the value of a variable: C:\PS> $a = 8 C:\PS> $a /=2 C:\PS> $a 4 To divide an element of an array, use an index to identify the element that you want to change. For example, the following command divides the second element in the array (index position 1) by 2: $a[1] /= 2 THE ASSIGNMENT BY MODULUS OPERATOR (%=) The assignment by modulus operator (%=) divides the value of a variable by the value on the right side of the operator. Then, the %= operator assigns the remainder (known as the modulus) to the variable. You can use this operator only when a variable contains a single numeric value. You cannot use this operator when a variable contains a string variable or an array. The %= operator combines two operations. First, it divides and determines the remainder, and then it assigns the remainder to the variable. Therefore, the following statements are equivalent: $a %= 2 $a = ($a % 2) The following example shows how to use the %= operator to save the modulus of a quotient: C:\PS> $a = 7 C:\PS> $a %= 4 C:\PS> $a 3 THE INCREMENT AND DECREMENT OPERATORS The increment operator (++) increases the value of a variable by 1. When you use the increment operator in a simple statement, no value is returned. To view the result, display the value of the variable, as follows: C:\PS> $a = 7 C:\PS> ++$a C:\PS> $a 8 To force a value to be returned, enclose the variable and the operator in parentheses, as follows: C:\PS> $a = 7 C:\PS> (++$a) 8 The increment operator can be placed before (prefix) or after (postfix) a variable. The prefix version of the operator increments a variable before its value is used in the statement, as follows: C:\PS> $a = 7 C:\PS> $c = ++$a C:\PS> $a 8 C:\PS> $c 8 The postfix version of the operator increments a variable after its value is used in the statement. In the following example, the $c and $a variables have different values because the value is assigned to $c before $a changes: C:\PS> $a = 7 C:\PS> $c = $a++ C:\PS> $a 8 C:\PS> $c 7 The decrement operator (--) decreases the value of a variable by 1. As with the increment operator, no value is returned when you use the operator in a simple statement. Use parentheses to return a value, as follows: C:\PS> $a = 7 C:\PS> --$a C:\PS> $a 6 C:\PS> (--$a) 5 The prefix version of the operator decrements a variable before its value is used in the statement, as follows: C:\PS> $a = 7 C:\PS> $c = --$a C:\PS> $a 6 C:\PS> $c 6 The postfix version of the operator decrements a variable after its value is used in the statement. In the following example, the $d and $a variables have different values because the value is assigned to $d before $a changes: C:\PS> $a = 7 C:\PS> $d = $a-- C:\PS> $a 6 C:\PS> $d 7 MICROSOFT .NET FRAMEWORK TYPES By default, when a variable has only one value, the value that is assigned to the variable determines the data type of the variable. For example, the following command creates a variable that has the Integer (System.Int32) type: $a = 6 To find the .NET Framework type of a variable, use the GetType method and its FullName property, as follows. Be sure to include the parentheses after the GetType method name, even though the method call has no arguments: C:\PS> $a = 6 C:\PS> $a.gettype().fullname System.Int32 To create a variable that contains a string, assign a string value to the variable. To indicate that the value is a string, enclose it in quotation marks, as follows: C:\PS> $a = "6" C:\PS> $a.gettype().fullname System.String If the first value that is assigned to the variable is a string, Windows PowerShell treats all operations as string operations and casts new values to strings. This occurs in the following example: C:\PS> $a = "file" C:\PS> $a += 3 C:\PS> $a file3 If the first value is an integer, Windows PowerShell treats all operations as integer operations and casts new values to integers. This occurs in the following example: C:\PS> $a = 6 C:\PS> $a += "3" C:\PS> $a 9 You can cast a new scalar variable as any .NET Framework type by placing the type name in brackets that precede either the variable name or the first assignment value. When you cast a variable, you can determine the types of data that can be stored in the variable. And, you can determine how the variable behaves when you manipulate it. For example, the following command casts the variable as a string type: C:\PS> [string]$a = 27 C:\PS> $a += 3 C:\PS> $a 273 The following example casts the first value, instead of casting the variable: $a = [string]27 When you cast a variable to a specific type, the common convention is to cast the variable, not the value. However, you cannot recast the data type of an existing variable if its value cannot be converted to the new data type. To change the data type, you must replace its value, as follows: C:\PS> $a = "string" C:\PS> [int]$a Cannot convert value "string" to type "System.Int32". Error: "Input string was not in a correct format." At line:1 char:8 + [int]$a <<<< C:\PS> [int]$a =3 In addition, when you precede a variable name with a data type, the type of that variable is locked unless you explicitly override the type by specifying another data type. If you try to assign a value that is incompatible with the existing type, and you do not explicitly override the type, Windows PowerShell displays an error, as shown in the following example: C:\PS> $a = 3 C:\PS> $a = "string" C:\PS> [int]$a = 3 C:\PS> $a = "string" Cannot convert value "string" to type "System.Int32". Error: "Input string was not in a correct format." At line:1 char:3 + $a <<<< = "string" C:\PS> [string]$a = "string" In Windows PowerShell, the data types of variables that contain multiple items in an array are handled differently from the data types of variables that contain a single item. Unless a data type is specifically assigned to an array variable, the data type is always System.Object []. This data type is specific to arrays. Sometimes, you can override the default type by specifying another type. For example, the following command casts the variable as a string [] array type: [string []] $a = "one", "two", "three" Windows PowerShell variables can be any .NET Framework data type. In addition, you can assign any fully qualified .NET Framework data type that is available in the current process. For example, the following command specifies a System.DateTime data type: [system.datetime]$a = "5/31/2005" The variable will be assigned a value that conforms to the System.DateTime data type. The value of the $a variable would be the following: Tuesday, May 31, 2005 12:00:00 AM ASSIGNING MULTIPLE VARIABLES In Windows PowerShell, you can assign values to multiple variables by using a single command. The first element of the assignment value is assigned to the first variable, the second element is assigned to the second variable, the third element to the third variable, and so on. For example, the following command assigns the value 1 to the $a variable, the value 2 to the $b variable, and the value 3 to the $c variable: C:\PS> $a, $b, $c = 1, 2, 3 If the assignment value contains more elements than variables, all the remaining values are assigned to the last variable. For example, the following command contains three variables and five values: $a, $b, $c = 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Therefore, Windows PowerShell assigns the value 1 to the $a variable and the value 2 to the $b variable. It assigns the values 3, 4, and 5 to the $c variable. To assign the values in the $c variable to three other variables, use the following format: $d, $e, $f = $c This command assigns the value 3 to the $d variable, the value 4 to the $e variable, and the value 5 to the $f variable. You can also assign a single value to multiple variables by chaining the variables. For example, the following command assigns a value of "three" to all four variables: $a = $b = $c = $d = "three" VARIABLE-RELATED CMDLETS In addition to using an assignment operation to set a variable value, you can also use the Set-Variable cmdlet. For example, the following command uses Set-Variable to assign an array of 1, 2, 3 to the $a variable. Set-Variable -name a -value 1, 2, 3 SEE ALSO about_Arrays about_Hash_Tables about_Variables Clear-Variable Remove-Variable Set-Variable C:\Windows>powershell get-help about_Automatic_Variables -full
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