WinContextDeploy

Interactive PowerShell tool for post-image configuration of Windows 11 machines.

A technician runs it once on a freshly imaged machine. It applies OS settings that depend on the machine's context, opens the applications that need to be checked by eye, and prints a checklist of what was done, what was skipped, and what still has to be done by hand.

It does not install software. Applications are expected to arrive through your imaging pipeline; this tool verifies they are there and puts them in front of the technician.

Running this changes system settings (taskbar, regional separators, power plan, keyboard/language). Read WinContextDeploy.psd1 and adjust the paths to your environment before first use.

Requirements

• Windows 10/11, PowerShell 5.1 or later
• Administrator rights for the power-plan steps. The tool offers the UAC prompt itself; declining is fine, and those steps then report as needing elevation instead of failing. -NonInteractive never prompts — start the process elevated if an unattended run has to apply them.
• Pester 5.x, only if you want to run the tests

Usage

Double-click WinContextDeploy.cmd, then answer the prompts. Use the left/right arrow keys to change a choice and Enter to confirm.

Option	Effect
(none)	Run in place. Nothing is copied, nothing is deleted.
-Usb	Copy the project to %TEMP%, run there, append the history log back next to the launcher, then remove the copy.
-FR / -EN	Force the UI language. Defaults from the system locale.

-Usb is for running off a USB key: PowerShell off removable media is slow and the key can be pulled mid-run. The copy goes to a uniquely named folder under %TEMP%, so concurrent runs cannot collide and no existing folder is ever wiped.

Prompt	Choices	Default
Windows system language	fr-CA / en-US	fr-CA
Form factor	Laptop / Desktop	Laptop
Environment	Workstation (local) / Vdi (Citrix)	Workstation
Open configuration applications	Yes / No	Yes
Engineer workstation	Yes / No	No

The last prompt appears only when the manifest declares at least one Prompt entry.

Form factor selects the power profile — battery and lid-close settings apply to laptops only. Environment selects which applications are relevant: a Vdi endpoint skips the locally installed line-of-business checks, since those live in the remote session.

Prompts are shown in the UI language (-ScriptUI FR|EN, defaulting from the system locale), so a French run offers Portable / Bureau and Principal / Secondaire with their usual shortcut keys, while the values above are what the code and logs use.

Or run it directly:

powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File .\src\Invoke-WcdConfiguration.ps1
powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File .\src\Invoke-WcdConfiguration.ps1 `
    -Language en-US -FormFactor Desktop -Environment Workstation -NonInteractive

Configuration

Everything environment-specific lives in WinContextDeploy.psd1. Adding, removing or reordering an application is a manifest edit — no code changes.

Each entry in Applications declares what to do and what to do it to:

@{
    Step        = 'AppErpClient'      # stable id, used in logs and reports
    Name        = 'ERP client'        # what the technician sees
    Action      = 'OpenFolder'        # see table below
    Target      = 'C:\ProgramData\...\SAP Front End'
    Environment = 'Workstation'       # optional: 'Workstation' or 'Vdi'
    FormFactor  = 'Laptop'            # optional: 'Laptop' or 'Desktop'
    Optional    = $true               # absent -> note, not a warning
    Prompt      = $true               # offer in the optional tools menu
}

Action	Effect
Launch	Starts an application (.lnk, .exe, or a command on PATH)
OpenFolder	Opens a folder in Explorer
OpenUrl	Opens a URL in the default browser
CheckProcess	Verifies a process is running; Target is an array of names
CheckPath	Verifies a path exists; launches nothing

Environment and FormFactor filter an entry to matching machines. A filtered-out target is reported Not Applicable in the checklist rather than omitted, so the technician can see it was considered.

Prompt = $true keeps an entry out of the automatic run and offers it in the optional-tools menu instead — for the extras an engineering or CAD workstation needs that a standard desk does not.

Printers lists shared print-server queues to connect with the built-in Add-Printer cmdlet. Each entry needs a Name (as the print server publishes it) and a Connection:

Printers = @(
    @{ Name = 'Floor-4-Colour'; Connection = '\\printserver\Floor-4-Colour' }
)

Connecting is idempotent, so a second run is a no-op, and an unreachable print server is reported as a warning rather than failing the run. Leave the array empty and printers stay a manual checklist row. Shared queues only — a direct-IP printer needs Add-PrinterPort and a driver in the driver store.

Network.PingTarget is what the connectivity test pings. It defaults to 8.8.8.8; point it at your gateway or an internal host if your network drops ICMP to the internet.

Branding

The startup logo is read from banner.txt at the project root. To use your own, generate ASCII art at patorjk.com/software/taag and paste it into that file. If the file is missing, or the art is wider than the console window, a plain text title is shown instead.

Logs and reports

• A timestamped log is written during the run (src/log.txt by default; override with -LogPath). It keeps the raw exception text of any failure; the checklist on screen shows the remediation instead.
• With -HistoryLogPath, a summary block is appended to a second file at the end of the run — useful for keeping one running record across every machine you configure.
• With -ReportPath, a machine-readable JSON summary is also written, for collecting results across a fleet. Console output and the text log are unchanged, and a report that cannot be written warns without failing the run.

{
  "schemaVersion": 1,
  "timestamp": "2026-08-29T14:31:00-04:00",
  "computerName": "WKS-01",
  "context": { "formFactor": "Laptop", "environment": "Workstation", "elevated": true, "language": "fr-CA" },
  "summary": { "ok": 14, "warning": 1, "error": 0, "manual": 7, "notApplicable": 1 },
  "steps": [
    { "step": "AppErpClient", "name": "ERP client", "kind": "warning", "detail": "Not found at C:\\ProgramData\\... -> Update Applications['ERP client'].Target in WinContextDeploy.psd1, or remove the entry." }
  ]
}

schemaVersion is there from the first release so a collector can version against it.

Tests

Invoke-Pester .\tests\*.Tests.ps1 -Output Detailed

Or double-click Lancer-Tests-Pester.cmd.

Structure

banner.txt                        <- startup logo (editable)
WinContextDeploy.psd1             <- paths, printers, URLs (edit this)
WinContextDeploy.cmd              <- entry point (-Usb, -FR, -EN)
docs/
  manual.typ / manual.pdf         <- the manual
src/
  Invoke-WcdConfiguration.ps1     <- orchestrator
  WcdHelpers.ps1                  <- shared functions
  Config-*.ps1                    <- configuration modules
tests/
  *.Tests.ps1                     <- Pester tests

Documentation

• docs/manual.pdf — the full manual: what the tool does, how to add a module, and how to read the diagnostic. Source in docs/manual.typ, built with Typst (typst compile docs/manual.typ).
• Get-Help <function> works on every function in src/.

License

MIT.