Creating GUIs in PowerShell

PowerShell provides a wide array of features, and one of its fantastic functionalities is the ability to create Graphical User Interfaces (GUI) inside your PowerShell scripts. In this tutorial, we’ll dive into the process of coding GUI using PowerShell, focusing on Windows Forms (WinForms).

Windows Forms is a Graphical User Interface (GUI) class library included with Microsoft Windows, which gives us the ability to create desktop applications in PowerShell. We’re going to be utilizing the .NET Framework's System.Windows.Forms namespace to leverage this capability.

Getting started, let’s create a simple GUI window. Below is the basic code to create a basic window:

Add-Type -AssemblyName System.Windows.Forms
$form = New-Object System.Windows.Forms.Form 
$form.ShowDialog()

In this script, we first load the necessary assembly, System.Windows.Forms, using the 'Add-Type' command. Then, we create a new object for the form and display it using ShowDialog(). The result is a basic and empty window.

Now, let's take it a step further to create a GUI that provides a functionality - perhaps a tool inspired by Star Wars that greets the user by saying "Hello, Jedi!"

Add-Type -AssemblyName System.Windows.Forms

$form = New-Object System.Windows.Forms.Form 

$button = New-Object System.Windows.Forms.Button
$button.Location = New-Object System.Drawing.Point(75, 50)
$button.Size = New-Object System.Drawing.Size(100, 20)
$button.Text = "Click Me!"
$button.Add_Click({
    [System.Windows.Forms.MessageBox]::Show('Hello, Jedi!', 'Greeting')
})

$form.Controls.Add($button)

$form.ShowDialog()

In this code, we created a new object for a button, set its location size, and label text. We then define an on-click event by using 'Add_Click' attribute of the button object, which will display a message box saying 'Hello, Jedi!' upon click.

For more interaction, let's create a form that requests the user's name and then uses it to display a personalized message. Let's call it "Enter Your Jedi Name" tool.

Add-Type -AssemblyName System.Windows.Forms

$form = New-Object System.Windows.Forms.Form 

$label = New-Object System.Windows.Forms.Label
$label.Location = New-Object System.Drawing.Point(10, 
20)
$label.Size = New-Object System.Drawing.Size(280, 20)
$label.Text = "Please enter your Jedi name:"
$form.Controls.Add($label)

$textBox = New-Object System.Windows.Forms.TextBox
$textBox.Location = New-Object System.Drawing.Point(10, 40)
$textBox.Size = New-Object System.Drawing.Size(260, 20)
$form.Controls.Add($textBox)

$button = New-Object System.Windows.Forms.Button
$button.Location = New-Object System.Drawing.Point(10, 70)
$button.Size = New-Object System.Drawing.Size(260, 20)
$button.Text = "Submit"
$button.Add_Click({
    [System.Windows.Forms.MessageBox]::Show("You have been recognized as " + $textBox.Text, 'Greetings, Jedi!')
})

$form.Controls.Add($button)

$form.ShowDialog()

In the above code, besides the button, we're creating a label and textbox. The label informs the user about the expected activity to perform. The textbox is where the user will enter their Jedi name. The greeting is displayed when the 'Submit' button is clicked.

To add more to our user interface, taking the example of "Choose Your Weapon", let's add some radio buttons for users to select a weapon of their choice:

Add-Type -AssemblyName System.Windows.Forms

$form = New-Object System.Windows.Forms.Form 

$label = New-Object System.Windows.Forms.Label
$label.Location = New-Object System.Drawing.Point(10, 10)
$label.Size = New-Object System.Drawing.Size(280, 20)
$label.Text = "Choose your weapon:"
$form.Controls.Add($label)

$lightsaber = New-Object System.Windows.Forms.RadioButton
$lightsaber.Location = New-Object System.Drawing.Point(10, 40)
$lightsaber.Size = New-Object System.Drawing.Size(104, 24)
$lightsaber.Text = "Lightsaber"
$lightsaber.Name = "Lightsaber"
$form.Controls.Add($lightsaber)

$blaster = New-Object System.Windows.Forms.RadioButton
$blaster.Location = New-Object System.Drawing.Point(10, 70)
$blaster.Size = New-Object System.Drawing.Size(104, 24)
$blaster.Text = "Blaster"
$blaster.Name = "Blaster"
$form.Controls.Add($blaster)

$form.ShowDialog()

With the above code, we create two radio buttons representing two weapons - Lightsaber and Blaster. Users can choose one from these options.

This tutorial has introduced you to the basic components of creating a GUI using PowerShell. We've gone through creating windows, buttons, labels, textboxes, and radio buttons. The possibilities are endless once you know the fundamentals. You can create comprehensive forms with various controls, like checkboxes, drop-down lists, date pickers, and file dialogs. Follow the previously outlined methodology to experiment with these other controls, and may the Force be with you.