Deep Dive into Get-RunspaceDebug: An Essential Tool for Understanding PowerShell Runspaces

Welcome back to Wahman’s PowerShell Blog! Today, we’re delving into a powerful cmdlet that often flies under the radar but is crucial when you’re working with PowerShell runspaces—Get-RunspaceDebug.

According to the official Microsoft documentation, Get-RunspaceDebug “Shows runspace debugging options.” But what does that mean in practical terms, and how can you use it effectively in your scripts? Let’s explore what runspace debugging is all about and walk through some examples from beginner to advanced usage.

Understanding Get-RunspaceDebug

Runspaces are the underlying execution environment for PowerShell commands. Whether you’re working in a simple PowerShell session or orchestrating multiple tasks concurrently with jobs or workflows, runspaces are the core context in which these commands run. Get-RunspaceDebug helps you inspect the debugging settings that affect how breakpoints and stepping function in these runspaces.

Example 1: Basic Usage in a Local Session

If you’re just curious about what the debugging options look like for your current session, this basic example will help you get started.

Get-RunspaceDebug

This will return debugging settings for the current runspace, such as whether breakpoints apply and if command invocation tracing is enabled. It’s a straightforward way to see if debugging is active.

Example 2: Working with Remote Sessions (PSSession)

If you’ve created remote sessions using New-PSSession, then you may want to inspect debug settings in those runspaces. Here’s how:

$session = New-PSSession -ComputerName "RemoteServer"
Invoke-Command -Session $session -ScriptBlock {
    Get-RunspaceDebug
}

This displays the debug settings on the remote server within the specific runspace created for the session.

Example 3: Using Workflow and Checking Debug Settings

PowerShell workflows create implicit runspaces under the hood. You can check runspace debugging options within a workflow execution context.

workflow Test-Workflow {
    InlineScript {
        Get-RunspaceDebug
    }
}

Test-Workflow

The output will reveal how debugging is configured within the workflow’s runspace.

Example 4: Advanced Scenario – Debugging a Background Job Runspace

PowerShell jobs utilize separate runspaces. Here’s how to introspect those runspaces using Get-RunspaceDebug.

$job = Start-Job -ScriptBlock {
    Import-Module Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility
    Get-RunspaceDebug
}

Receive-Job -Job $job -Wait -AutoRemoveJob

This retrieves and displays the runspace debugging settings used while the job was running. Great for ensuring diagnostics are consistent across different execution modes!

Conclusion

Get-RunspaceDebug is a powerful cmdlet to keep in your toolbox—especially when you’re working with multiple runspaces such as jobs, workflows, or remote sessions. Knowing how your runspaces are configured for debugging can save you precious time when troubleshooting or optimizing your PowerShell scripts.

Happy scripting, and I will see you in the next post!