A build automation tool written in PowerShell that leverages your existing command-line knowledge.

psake is a build automation tool written in PowerShell. It avoids the angle-bracket tax associated with executable XML by leveraging the PowerShell syntax in your build scripts. psake has a syntax inspired by rake (aka make in Ruby) and bake (aka make in Boo), but is easier to script because it leverages your existing command-line knowledge.

Note: psake is pronounced "sake" – as in Japanese rice wine. It does NOT rhyme with make, bake, or rake.

psake can be installed in several ways:

Install-Module -Name psake -Scope CurrentUser

choco install psake

1. Download and extract the project from the releases page

2. Unblock the zip file before extracting (right-click → Properties → Unblock)

3. Import the module:

   Import-Module .\psake.psm1

• PowerShell 5.1 or later

• Execution policy set to allow script execution:

  Set-ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Scope CurrentUser

We highly recommend reading the psake docs for a more thorough walk through.

1. Create a build script file (e.g., psakefile.ps1):

   Task Default -Depends Test, Package
   
   Task Test {
       Write-Host "Running tests..."
   }
   
   Task Package {
       Write-Host "Creating package..."
   }

2. Run the build:

   Invoke-psake

Navigate to the examples directory and try out the sample build scripts:

cd .\examples
Invoke-psake                    # Runs the default task
Invoke-psake .\psakefile.ps1 Clean  # Runs the Clean task

Get detailed help and examples:

Get-Help Invoke-psake -Full

When using PSScriptAnalyzer with psake build scripts, you may encounter warnings like:

PSUseDeclaredVarsMoreThanAssignments: The variable 'build_dir' is assigned but never used.

This is a known limitation - PSScriptAnalyzer's static analysis cannot detect that psake dot-sources Properties blocks into task scope at runtime. The variables ARE actually used, but the analyzer can't see it.

Solution: Use script-scoped variables in your Properties blocks:

Properties {
    $script:build_dir = "c:\build"
    $script:connection_string = "datasource=localhost;..."
}

Task Compile {
    "Building to: $build_dir"  # Works identically at runtime
}

The $script: prefix has no functional difference at runtime but satisfies PSScriptAnalyzer's static analysis requirements.

For more details, see Get-Help Properties -Full or visit our troubleshooting documentation.

For Visual Studio 2017 and later, psake can automatically locate MSBuild. If you encounter issues, you may need to install the VSSetup PowerShell module:

Install-Module -Name VSSetup -Scope CurrentUser

You can find information about each release of psake in the releases section and the Changelog.

We welcome contributions! Here's how you can get involved:

• GitHub Discussions - Ask questions and share ideas
• PowerShell Discord - Join the #psake channel
• PowerShell Slack - Join the #psake channel

• Fork the main repository and submit pull requests
• Check out the psake docs for documentation
• Browse the issues list for bugs and feature requests
• Explore psake-contrib for additional scripts and modules

psake is released under the MIT license.