Format-Wide

Format-Wide [[-Property] <Object>] [-AutoSize] [-Column <Int32>] [-DisplayError] [-Expand {CoreOnly | EnumOnly |Both}] [-Force] [-GroupBy <Object>] [-InputObject <PSObject>] [-ShowError] [-View <String>] [<CommonParameters>]

The Format-Wide cmdlet formats objects as a wide table that displays only one property of each object. You can use the Property parameter to determine which property is displayed.

Parameters

-AutoSize [<SwitchParameter>]

Default value is False
Accepts pipeline input False

Indicates that this cmdlet adjusts the column size and number of columns based on the width of the data. By default, the column size and number are determined by the view. You cannot use the AutoSize and Column parameters in the same command.

-Column <Int32>

Default value is None
Accepts pipeline input False

Specifies the number of columns in the display. You cannot use the AutoSize and Column parameters in the same command.

-DisplayError [<SwitchParameter>]

Default value is False
Accepts pipeline input False

Indicates that this cmdlet displays errors at the command line. This parameter is rarely used, but can be used as a debugging aid when you are formatting expressions in a Format-Wide command, and the expressions do not appear to be working. The following shows an example of the results of adding the DisplayError parameter with an expression.

PS > Get-Date | Format-Wide DayOfWeek,{ $_ / $null } -ShowError DayOfWeek $_ / $null --------- ------------ Wednesday #ERR

-Expand <String>

Default value is None
Accepts pipeline input False

Specifies the format of the collection object, as well as the objects in the collection. This parameter is designed to format objects that support the ICollection (System.Collections) interface. The default value is EnumOnly. The acceptable values for this parameter are:

- EnumOnly. Displays the properties of the objects in the collection. - CoreOnly. Displays the properties of the collection object. - Both. Displays the properties of the collection object and the properties of objects in the collection.

-Force [<SwitchParameter>]

Default value is False
Accepts pipeline input False

Indicates that this cmdlet overrides restrictions that prevent the command from succeeding, just so the changes do not compromise security. For instance, Force will override the read-only attribute or create directories to complete a file path, but it will not attempt to change file permissions.

-GroupBy <Object>

Default value is None
Accepts pipeline input False

Specifies the format of the output in groups based on a shared property or value. Enter an expression or a property of the output.

The value of the GroupBy parameter can be a new calculated property. To create a calculated, property, use a hash table. The acceptable values for this parameter are:

- Name (or Label) <string>

- Expression <string> or <script block>

- FormatString <string>

-InputObject <PSObject>

Default value is None
Accepts pipeline input ByValue

Specifies the objects to format. Enter a variable that contains the objects, or type a command or expression that gets the objects.

-Property <Object>

Default value is None
Accepts pipeline input False

Specifies the object properties that appear in the display and the order in which they appear. Wildcards are permitted.

If you omit this parameter, the properties that appear in the display depend on the object being displayed. The parameter name ( Property ) is optional. You cannot use the Property and View parameters in the same command.

The value of the Property parameter can be a new calculated property. To create a calculated property, use a hash table. Valid keys are:

- Expression <string> or <script block>

- Depth <int32>

-ShowError [<SwitchParameter>]

Default value is False
Accepts pipeline input False

Indicates that the cmdlet sends errors through the pipeline. This parameter is rarely used, but can be used as a debugging aid when you are formatting expressions in a Format-Wide command, and the expressions do not appear to be working. The following shows an example of the results of adding the ShowError parameter with an expression.

PS > Get-Date | Format-Wide DayOfWeek,{ $_ / $null } -ShowError DayOfWeek $_ / $null --------- ------------ Wednesday

Failed to evaluate expression " $_ / $null ". + CategoryInfo : InvalidArgument: (10/30/2013 2:28:07 PM:PSObject) [], RuntimeException + FullyQualifiedErrorId : mshExpressionError

-View <String>

Default value is None
Accepts pipeline input False

Specifies the name of an alternate table format or view. You cannot use the Property and View parameters in the same command.

<CommonParameters>

This cmdlet supports the common parameters: Verbose, Debug,ErrorAction, ErrorVariable, WarningAction, WarningVariable,OutBuffer, PipelineVariable, and OutVariable.

Inputs

System.Management.Automation.PSObject

You can pipe any object to Format-Wide .

Outputs

Microsoft.PowerShell.Commands.Internal.Format

Format-Wide returns format objects that represent the table.

Examples

Format names of files in the current directory:
```
PS C:\> Get-ChildItem | Format-Wide -Column 3
```
This command displays the names of files in the current directory in three columns across the screen. The Get-ChildItem cmdlet gets objects representing each file in the directory. The pipeline operator (|) passes the file objects through the pipeline to Format-Wide , which formats them for output. The Column parameter specifies the number of columns.
Format names of registry keys:
```
PS C:\> Get-ChildItem HKCU:\software\microsoft | Format-Wide -Property pschildname -AutoSize
```
This command displays the names of registry keys in the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft key. The Get-ChildItem cmdlet gets objects representing the keys. The path is specified as HKCU:, one of the drives exposed by the Windows PowerShell Registry provider, followed by the key path. The pipeline operator (|) passes the registry key objects through the pipeline to Format-Wide , which formats them for output. The Property parameter specifies the name of the property, and the AutoSize parameter adjusts the columns for readability.

Additional Notes

 You can also refer to Format-Wide * by its built-in alias, fw. For more information, see about_Aliases.

 The GroupBy parameter assumes that the objects are sorted. Before using Format-Custom to group the objects, 
 use Sort-Object to sort them.

 The View parameter lets you specify an alternate format for the table. You can use the views defined in the 
 *.format.PS1XML files in the Windows PowerShell directory or you can create your own views in new PS1XML files 
 and use the Update-FormatData cmdlet to include them in Windows PowerShell.

 The alternate view for the View parameter must use table format; if it does not, the command fails. If the 
 alternate view is a list, use Format-List. If the alternate view is neither a list nor a table, use 
 Format-Custom.

 *

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International. It is attributed to Microsoft Corporation and can be found here.

PowerShell Commands