As the version number suggests, this is the first major update following PowerShell 7, which arrived in March. PowerShell 7.1 is coming to all supporting platforms, including Windows 7, Windows 8.1, and Windows 10. Microsoft’s Windows Server 2008 R2, 2012, 2012 R2, 2016, and 2019 are also included. Users on macOS 10.13 and above, and several Linux distributions can also download the latest update. In its release noted, Microsoft discusses why it aims to achieve with this update: “For PowerShell 7.1, we decided to build on the foundation established in PowerShell 7.0 with a strong focus on community issues, especially where we could make additive changes and quality-of-life improvements without introducing instability or breaking changes. As a platform with over 115 million sessions per month, we’re absolutely committed to ensuring that PowerShell remains a stable and performant platform, even after significant version upgrades like 7.1.”
Focused Update
While there are no sweeping changes in PowerShell 7.1, it makes some tweaks and additions to version 7. For example, new modules and tooling are available on the build. However, while these are available in the preview, Microsoft says they may not be available for the version 7.1 general release. PowerShell 7.1 is available to download from GitHub, or alternatively you can get it from the Microsoft Store. Earlier this week, we reported on new PowerShell backdoors that are being used to attack Microsoft Exchange servers. Microsoft has yet to officially respond to these attacks.
