https://DevOpsCloud.io -- Cloud Monk Losang Jinpa, Ph.D., MCSE/MCT, GitOps DevOps Engineer

Install-Module is a command in PowerShell that allows you to install modules from the PowerShell Gallery or another repository. Modules are packages that contain PowerShell cmdlets, providers, functions, workflows, variables, and aliases. The Install-Module cmdlet downloads one or more modules from a repository and installs them on your local machine.

The ActiveDirectory module is a specific PowerShell module that provides cmdlets for managing Active Directory domains, such as creating, modifying, deleting, and querying Active Directory objects like users, groups, computers, and organizational units.

Here’s a step-by-step explanation of how to use Install-Module to install the ActiveDirectory module:

1. **Open PowerShell as an Administrator**:

  - Search for [[PowerShell]] in the Start menu.
  - Right-click on [[Windows PowerShell]] or [[PowerShell]] and select "Run as administrator."

2. **Check PowerShell Version**:

  - Ensure that you have a compatible version of [[PowerShell]] by running the following command:
    ```powershell
    $PSVersionTable.PSVersion
    ```

3. **Install the ActiveDirectory Module**:

  - Use the [[Install-Module]] cmdlet to install the [[ActiveDirectory]] module from the [[PowerShell Gallery]]:
    ```powershell
    Install-Module -Name ActiveDirectory
    ```

4. **Confirm Installation**:

  - You may be prompted to confirm the installation and trust the repository. Respond with `Y` or `A` to proceed.

5. **Import the Module**:

  - After installation, import the [[ActiveDirectory]] module into your current session to use its cmdlets:
    ```powershell
    Import-Module ActiveDirectory
    ```

6. **Verify Installation**:

  - Confirm that the module is installed and loaded by listing the available cmdlets:
    ```powershell
    Get-Command -Module ActiveDirectory
    ```

Once installed, you can use the cmdlets provided by the ActiveDirectory module to manage your Active Directory environment. For example, to get a list of all users in a specific organizational unit, you can use the following command: ```powershell Get-ADUser -Filter * -SearchBase “OU=Users,DC=example,DC=com” ```

This process simplifies the management of Active Directory objects and tasks, allowing administrators to script and automate many aspects of their directory services.