Configuring Windows Run

Run local executables and/or download and run executables. Execute programs, scripts, or installers as part of the configuration process.

Overview

The windowsRun module executes local or remote executables with optional arguments. It handles running executables from local file paths or downloading and executing files from remote URLs. This is useful for running installers, configuration tools, or custom scripts as part of the deployment process.

The module supports two execution modes:

• Local execution - runs existing executables from specified file paths on the device.
• Remote execution - downloads an executable from a URL, then runs it.

For each configured executable, the module performs the following steps:

1. Validates OS build requirements (minOSbuild and maxOSbuild)
2. Expands Windows environment variables in file paths (e.g., %TEMP%, %ProgramFiles%)
3. Downloads the file if downloadUri is specified (via Invoke-WebRequest)
4. Verifies the file exists at the specified path
5. Retrieves file version and description information for logging
6. Executes the file with or without arguments using Start-Process
7. Waits for process completion before continuing

All executions use -NoNewWindow -Wait flags to run processes in the same window and wait for completion before proceeding.

Configuration

The following shows the windowsRun configuration structure with two example items - one for updating a local executable and one for downloading and running an installer.

{
  "windowsRun": {
    "enabled": true,
    "items": [
      {
        "name": "Microsoft Edge",
        "description": "Update Microsoft Edge",
        "informationURL": "https://learn.microsoft.com/deployedge/deploy-edge-with-windows-10-updates/",
        "minOSbuild": "",
        "maxOSbuild": "",
        "downloadUri": "",
        "filePath": "%ProgramFiles(x86)%\\Microsoft\\EdgeUpdate\\MicrosoftEdgeUpdate.exe",
        "ArgumentList": "/install appguid={56EB18F8-B008-4CBD-B6D2-8C97FE7E9062}&appname=Microsoft%20Edge&needsadmin=True /silent"
      },
      {
        "name": "Microsoft OneDrive",
        "description": "Download and install OneDriveSetup.exe for all users",
        "informationURL": "",
        "minOSbuild": "",
        "maxOSbuild": "22621",
        "downloadUri": "https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkID=2182910",
        "filePath": "%TEMP%\\OneDriveSetup.exe",
        "ArgumentList": "/allusers /silent"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Dataset properties

The following properties are supported in the windowsRun section.

Property	Description	Type	Required
windowsRun
enabled	Enable or disable the module	Boolean	No
items (array)
name	Operation name - used for logging and readability	String	Yes
description	Description of the executable operation - used for documentation purposes	String	No
informationURL	URL for more information about the executable or operation	String	No
minOSbuild	Minimum Windows build number required for this operation. Empty string means no restriction	String	No
maxOSbuild	Maximum Windows build number allowed for this operation. Empty string means no restriction	String	No
downloadUri	URL to download the executable before running. Empty string for local executables	String	No
filePath	Path to the executable on the device. Supports Windows environment variables (e.g., %TEMP%, %ProgramFiles%)	String	Yes
ArgumentList	Command-line arguments to pass to the executable	String	No

Reference

The commands below can be used to verify executables and inspect file properties.

Verify executable exists

Check whether an executable exists at the expected path.

Test-Path -Path "${env:ProgramFiles(x86)}\Microsoft\EdgeUpdate\MicrosoftEdgeUpdate.exe"

Get file version information

Retrieve the version and description of an executable.

(Get-Item -Path "${env:ProgramFiles(x86)}\Microsoft\EdgeUpdate\MicrosoftEdgeUpdate.exe").VersionInfo | Select-Object "FileVersion", "FileDescription", "ProductVersion"

Related resources

For more information, see the following resources.

• Start-Process - PowerShell reference for starting processes
• Invoke-WebRequest - PowerShell reference for downloading files

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Page revised: March 4, 2026