Command desk

PowerShell · Bash · CMD

53 original reference entries · Updated 14 September 2026

Find a command by the job. Use the reference to understand a command before running it. PowerShell, Bash and CMD differ in syntax and in what passes through a pipeline.

How to use this

Choose the shell
Match the page to the terminal you are actually using. A Linux Bash example is not automatically valid in Windows CMD.
Read the example and caveats
Replace placeholders deliberately. Understand the target path and permissions before using a command that changes files or configuration.
Practise on a disposable target
Create a scratch directory, run the smallest example, inspect the result, then adapt it to your task.

Try this: Look up a listing command in two shells. Compare a text listing with PowerShell objects and inspect the page’s cross-shell links.

You should get: You understand the task in both shells without assuming the switches or pipeline behavior are interchangeable.

Know the limit: The desk is a curated reference, not a complete manual or a terminal that executes commands for you.

Follow the Linux guide

Find a command or taskShell

53 command entries

catBash

Write file contents to standard output.

cdBash

Change the shell’s directory.

cdCMD

Show or change the current directory.

copyCMD

Copy a file.

Copy-ItemPowerShell

Copy a file.

cpBash

Copy files.

delCMD

Delete named files.

dirCMD

List files and directories.

duBash

Measure a directory's allocated file space before blaming free-disk totals.

findBash

Find filesystem entries by criteria.

findstrCMD

Search text with literals or limited regex.

forBash

Repeat commands over words.

forCMD

Repeat a command.

ForEach-ObjectPowerShell

Process each pipeline object.

Get-ChildItemPowerShell

List files and directories.

Get-CommandPowerShell

Discover available commands.

Get-ContentPowerShell

Read text from a file.

Get-HelpPowerShell

Read command help.

Get-LocationPowerShell

Show the current location.

Get-NetTCPConnectionPowerShell

Inspect local TCP endpoints and their owning process IDs.

Get-ProcessPowerShell

Inspect running processes.

Get-ServicePowerShell

Inspect Windows service state without starting or stopping anything.

grepBash

Print lines matching a pattern.

helpBash

Read Bash builtin help.

helpCMD

Read CMD command help.

ifCMD

Run a command conditionally.

ipconfigCMD

Inspect Windows network configuration.

lsBash

List directory contents.

mkdirBash

Create a directory.

mkdirCMD

Create a directory.

moveCMD

Move or rename a file.

Move-ItemPowerShell

Move or rename an item.

mvBash

Move or rename a file.

netstatCMD

Inspect Windows TCP listeners, connections and owning PIDs.

New-ItemPowerShell

Create a file or directory.

printfBash

Print formatted text predictably.

psBash

Take a process snapshot with explicitly selected fields.

pwdBash

Print the working directory.

readBash

Read input into a variable.

Remove-ItemPowerShell

Delete an item.

rmBash

Remove a file.

sc.exe queryCMD

Query Windows Service Control Manager state by service name.

Select-StringPowerShell

Find matching text.

setCMD

Set or display environment variables.

Set-LocationPowerShell

Change the current location.

ssBash

List TCP listeners without triggering hostname lookups.

tasklistCMD

List running processes.

testBash

Evaluate a file or value condition.

Test-NetConnectionPowerShell

Test a specific TCP destination and distinguish it from an application test.

Test-PathPowerShell

Check whether a path exists.

typeCMD

Print a text file.

whereCMD

Locate executable files.

Where-ObjectPowerShell

Keep objects meeting a condition.

Before your first command

A terminal hosts a shell; the shell interprets your command. Open PowerShell or Command Prompt by name on Windows. On Linux, check which shell you are using before applying Bash syntax. Examples that read files assume those files already exist in your current directory.

PowerShell

Pipelines between cmdlets carry objects. Use Get-Member to inspect properties; format only at the end. Examples target modern PowerShell unless noted. Windows-only modules and Windows PowerShell 5.1 can differ.

Bash

Common pipelines carry text or byte streams. Quote "$variable" to keep its value together. This desk assumes Bash with GNU utilities on Linux; macOS BSD utility flags can differ.

CMD

CMD has its own builtins, percent-variable expansion, and batch syntax. %V at an interactive prompt becomes %%V inside a batch file. Similar command names across shells do not imply the same options.

Quick comparison

Task	PowerShell	Bash	CMD
List files	Get-ChildItem	ls	dir
Read a file	Get-Content	cat	type
Find text	Select-String	grep	findstr
Variable value	$name	$name	%name%

Inspired by SS64’s command-reference approach. These entries and examples are written for AUWEN; the index is a growing foundation, not an exhaustive shell manual.