PowerShell: Automating Administrative Tasks

Michael Shepard has been working with computers since the early 1980s, starting with an Apple II at school and a Commodore 64 at home. He first worked in IT in 1989 and has been a full-time professional in this field since 1997. He has been working at Jack Henry and Associates since 2000. Mike's focus has changed over the years from being a database application developer to a DBA (an application administrator), and he is now a solutions architect. In his years as a DBA, he found PowerShell to be a critical component in creating the automation required to keep up with a growing set of servers and applications. He is active in the PowerShell community on StackOverflow and in the projects on CodePlex. He has been blogging about PowerShell since 2009 and is the author of the PowerShell Troubleshooting Guide by Packt. Chendrayan Venkatesan (Chen V) is a SharePoint IT Professional who has worked for the Information, Computer, and Technology industry since 2005. Chen V started his career as a Windows XP technical support engineer and became a SharePoint IT Pro in the year 2007. He mainly focuses on automating Microsoft Technologies such as SharePoint, LYNC, and Exchange. He was awarded the Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP) in 2014. He speaks on Windows PowerShell, SharePoint Servers, Content Management, and IT Process Automations. He is a blogger and mentors three IT professionals in PowerShell. He is a TechNet Wiki addict and has introduced Windows PowerShell as a category in the TechNet Wiki Guru award competition. Sherif Talaat is a young computer science addict. He holds many technology certificates and has been working in the ICT industry since 2005. He has worked on Microsoft's core infrastructure platforms and solutions with a focus on the cloud and data center management, IT Process Automation (ITPA), and scripting techniques. Sherif was one of the early adopters of Windows PowerShell in the Middle East and Africa. He speaks about Windows PowerShell at technical events and user group gatherings. He is also the founder of the Egypt PowerShell User Group and the author of the first and only Arabic PowerShell blog. He has been awarded the Egyptian MCIT Shield and has won the Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP) award for PowerShell seven times in a row since 2009. He is also the author of three different Windows PowerShell titles for IT professionals and developers. Last but not least, he is also a TED conference speaker. Brenton J.W. Blawat is an entrepreneur, strategic technical advisor, author, and senior consultant with a passion for the procurement of technology in profit-based organizations. He is business-centric and technology-minded. Brenton has many years of experience in bridging the gap between technical staff and decision-makers in several organizations. He takes pride in his ability to effectively communicate with a diverse audience and provide strategic direction for large and small organizations alike. In 2013, Brenton authored his first book, Instant Windows PowerShell 3.0 WMI Starter, for Packt. This book was designed to be a starter for those interested in manipulating Windows Management Instrumentation through the use of PowerShell 3.0. Brenton currently works at CDW as a senior consulting engineer in strategic solutions and services. CDW is a leading multibrand technology solutions provider in the fields of business, government, education, and healthcare. A Fortune 500 company, it was founded in 1984 and employs approximately 7,200 coworkers. In 2014, the company generated net sales of more than $12.0 billion.