Windows PowerShell 7.3 Preview 3 has been recently released that brings new features and improvements to the command-line tool. PowerShell can be used by professionals to run scripts, automate tasks, or perform administrative tasks.
Since it is a preview version, it is only meant for testing, so that the public is ready for any changes that may impact their work before the final version is released. That being said, we strongly recommend you do not install it in any live/production environment.
You can download and install PowerShell 7.3 Preview 3 using the given guide below.
If you already have a stable version of Windows PowerShell running on your machine, installing the preview version will not affect it, and both could run simultaneously. However, if an older preview version of PowerShell is installed, it will automatically be overwritten with the newer preview version.
Before we begin, let us briefly discuss the new features and changes in this release.
Changes and Improvements
We have highlighted significant improvements in this preview release:
- [Engine]
- The parsing code for .NET method generic arguments has been fixed.
- The
PSGetMemberBinderto get the value ofByRefproperty has been allowed. - A collection that contains
Automation.Nullelements to be piped to pipeline has been allowed.
- [General Cmdlet Fixes]
- The module CompatPowerShellGet to the allow-list of telemetry modules has been added.
- Enter-PSHostProcess and Get-PSHostProcessInfo cmdlets with handling processes that have exited have been fixed.
- Hashtable completion in multiple scenarios has been improved.
- [Code Cleanup]
- A typo has been fixed in
CommandHelpProvider.cs.
- A typo has been fixed in
- [Tests]
- A few tests have been updated to make them more stable in CI.
- Roll back Windows images used in testing to Windows Server 2019.
However, with these, there also are a few known issues with this release.
Known Issues
- The cmdlet
Test-Connectionis broken due to an intentional breaking change in .NET 7. ReadyToRunis disabled for all v7.3.0-preview.3 packages due to a regression in .NET 7.AssemblyName.FullNamehas unexpected behavior due to a regression in .NET 7.
To learn more about these issues, fixes, and improvements, read our Release Notes.
Download PowerShell 7.3 Preview 3
You can download PowerShell 7.3 Preview 3 from the direct download links below.
For Windows 11, 10, 8.1, and 7
PowerShell-7.3.0 Preview 3 for Windows 64-bit.msi [82.5 MB]
PowerShell-7.3.0 Preview 3 for Windows 32-bit.msi [77.4 MB]
For MacOS
PowerShell-7.3.0 Preview 3 for MacOS 64-bit.pkg [45.2 MB]
PowerShell-7.3.0 Preview 3 for MacOS ARM64.pkg [43.5 MB]
For Linux
PowerShell-7.3.0 Preview 3 for RedHat Linux.rpm [65.8 MB]
PowerShell-7.3.0 Preview 3 for Debian.deb [66.4 MB]
For more download options, please check out this download page.
How to Install PowerShell 7.3 Preview 3
Here is how you can install Windows PowerShell 7.3 Preview 3 on Windows 11, 10, 8.1, and Windows 7:
- Download and execute the respective MSI files from the links above.
- The installation wizard will now run. Click Next on the first screen.
- Now select the destination folder for the installation and click Next.
- Select the optional features you want to install, such as adding PowerShell to environment variables, enable PowerShell remoting, add PowerShell to the context menu, etc. Click Next when selected.
- Leave the default settings on the next page and click Next.
- On the next screen, click Install to begin the installation.
- Once installed, click Finish.
- Now confirm that PowerShell has been installed successfully. Type in pwsh in the Run Command box and you shall see the installed version at the top.
Learn more about PowerShell and PowerShell Core. You can also download and install PowerShell over the network.
Closing Words
It seems that this release was more focused on fixing the issues, rather than introducing new features and modules to PowerShell.
It is still another step closer to the stable release of PowerShell 7.3, of which Microsoft still has not disclosed an anticipated date.
