Script Works in Powershell ISE But not In PowerShell Console?

Question

Script giving me response in Powers shell ISE but getting Error message that HelpList is not recognized as the name of a cmdlet' Below is script.

param($param1 = '')
if($param1 -eq '' )
{
    HelpList
}
function HelpList() 
{ 
   Write-Host "DevelopmentBuild.ps1 help"
}
function clean()
{
    Write-Host "Cleaning solution"
}

Below is Error when running from Powershell console.

PS C:\WorkSpace\Dev> .\deploymentScript.ps1
HelpList : The term 'HelpList' is not recognized as the name of a cmdlet, function, script file, or operable program.
Check the spelling of the name, or if a path was included, verify that the path is correct and try again.
At C:\WorkSpace\Dev\deploymentScript.ps1:17 char:13
+     default{HelpList}
+             ~~~~~~~~
+ CategoryInfo          : ObjectNotFound: (HelpList:String) [], CommandNotFoundException
+ FullyQualifiedErrorId : CommandNotFoundException

PowerShell runs logically in the order of the commands received. You're trying to call the function before it's actually declared. This is why testing in the ISE is a bad practice because the scopes are polluted. — Maximilian Burszley
– Maximilian Burszley, Commented Mar 29, 2018 at 17:49
There are some subtle differences in the way scopes are handled by the ISE vs. the console. The console rules are stricter, and does not retain definitions that the ISE does. — Jeff Zeitlin
– Jeff Zeitlin, Commented Mar 29, 2018 at 18:07

Jeff Zeitlin · Accepted Answer · 2018-03-29 17:53:48Z

3

PowerShell's scope rules are based on what is called "lexical scoping". Any variable or function that is not built in must be defined or imported before being used. In your script above, you have not defined HelpList at the point that you call it. Rearrange your code:

param($param1 = '')

function HelpList() 
{ 
   Write-Host "DevelopmentBuild.ps1 help"
}

function clean()
{
    Write-Host "Cleaning solution"
}

if($param1 -eq '' )
{
    HelpList
}

This way, HelpList will be defined when the script reaches the point you call it, and will not throw the undefined-cmdlet error.

answered Mar 29, 2018 at 17:53

Jeff Zeitlin

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1 Comment

Vivek Kumar Singh Over a year ago

@nitiparikh: If Jeff's solution addressed your issue successfully, you might want to accept that as a solution. It helps other users in the future who would encounter similar issues!

Tripp Kinetics · Accepted Answer · 2018-03-29 17:52:53Z

0

Try defining the functions before the code:

function HelpList() 
{ 
    Write-Host "DevelopmentBuild.ps1 help"
}
function clean()
{
    Write-Host "Cleaning solution"
}

param($param1 = '')
if($param1 -eq '' )
{
    HelpList
}

answered Mar 29, 2018 at 17:52

Tripp Kinetics

5,4892 gold badges25 silver badges40 bronze badges

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