With the release of Windows 11 version 24H2 in September 2024, Microsoft introduced Sudo for Windows, adding Linux-like functionality for managing system privileges.

Having Sudo on Windows allows us to execute commands with administrative rights directly from a non-elevated console session, making it easier to run administrative tasks without needing to manually switch to an elevated prompt. I’ll try help explain more in this post.

Note, Sudo for Windows is not available on Windows Server editions. I’ll explain more on that too!

Contents:
1. How to Install Sudo for Windows.
2. How to Use Sudo on Windows.
3. Security Considerations.
4. Sudo is not Available on Windows Server.
5. More Sudo, More!

---

1. How to Install Sudo for Windows

To use Sudo on Windows, ensure your computer is fully patched with the latest Windows 11 build. If you’re still on Windows 10, consider upgrading!

Once you’re on a supported version, go to Settings > System (Sidebar) > For Developers and toggle on the “Enable Sudo” option.

Alternatively, you can enable Sudo for Windows by running the following command in an elevated console session (run PowerShell as Admin):

# Enable sudo (Windows 11 build 26052+)
# Run within Administrator Windows PowerShell Session
sudo config --enable enable

---

2. How to Use Sudo on Windows 11

To use sudo on Windows, simply run sudo <command> in the command prompt to elevate the command as an administrator. It will trigger a UAC prompt for permission.

Windows Sudo: Example 1

1. Open PowerShell (not as Admin).
2. Run a command that would normally require elevated permissions:

# Example; start SQL Server service on Windows
net start MSSQLSERVER

The above command fails: Access Denied.

3. Re-run the command with Sudo:

# Example; start SQL Server service on Windows
net start MSSQLSERVER

4. Accept the UAC Prompt.

After accepting the UAC prompt, the command will execute successfully, my SQL Server service started without issues in this case.

Windows Sudo: Example 2

We can also promote our current non-admin PowerShell Terminal session to an Administrator PowerShell session. This is done simply by running sudo pwsh:

Other Tests

Here’s a list of single sudo commands that have worked for me in testing:

# Working sudo single command examples
sudo net stop MSSQLSERVER
sudo net start MSSQLSERVER
sudo net use
sudo regedit
sudo ipconfig
sudo netstat
sudo mkdir
sudo diskpart
sudo fsutil
sudo powercfg
sudo icacls

Note that sudo on Windows currently doesn’t allow running commands as other users, unlike the runas command. It also doesn’t have full functionality, so try not to expect all your familiar Linux compatible commands work with it.

---

3. Security Considerations

While Sudo for Windows offers great convenience, be mindful of Security Implications:
– DisableInput and Normal configurations may allow non-elevated processes to interact with the elevated process, which could expose your system to risks.
– The forceNewWindow configuration is the safest option for most users, as it isolates elevated commands in a separate window, minimizing security concerns.

---

4. Sudo is not Available on Windows Server

Sudo for Windows will not be available on Windows Server editions, one place this was mentioned by Microsoft was on the Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26052 post, where it states the following:

NOTE: The setting for enabling Sudo may incorrectly be showing on Windows Server Insider Preview builds – this feature will not be available on Windows Server and the setting will be disabled in a future Server Insider Preview build.

---

5. More Sudo, More!

If you’re looking for additional features beyond what Sudo for Windows offers, consider exploring gsudo, a third-party utility that provides more configuration options and functionality. Gsudo is a useful tool if you need more control over elevated commands.

I hope this overview helps you get started with Sudo for Windows! If you have any questions or need further clarification, feel free to add a comment below with your experience of it.

In the Linux world, the tail command is a go-to tool for monitoring logs in real-time. While Windows doesn’t have a direct equivalent, PowerShell’s Get-Content -Tail command provides similar functionality for log monitoring.

To help bridge the gap for Linux users and improve log tracking in Windows, this post introduces a custom Tail function for PowerShell. This function enhances the built-in capabilities of Windows tail command PowerShell by adding real-time monitoring and color-coded highlights. You can customize the script to your own needs if it’s useful for you.

Viewing the Last Lines of a Log File in PowerShell

PowerShell’s built-in Get-Content cmdlet allows you to view the last few lines of a log file easily. Just pass in the number of lines of the log file you want to view with the -Last parameter:

# Return the last 10 lines of a log file
Get-Item -Path .\appLog0001-0500.txt | Get-Content -Tail 10

# Alternative syntax; get last lines of a log file in PowerShell
Get-Content <filepath\filename> | Select-Object -Last 10

This command is particularly useful for debugging issues, allowing you to avoid scrolling through large log files to find the most recent events.

Creating a Tail-Log Function

To improve usability, let’s define a custom function called Tail that mimics the Linux tail command in Windows. This function enhances readability by adding color-coded highlights to differentiate log levels.

function Tail {
    param (
        [string]$LogFile,
        [int]$Lines = 10
    )

    # Define colors for different log levels
    $ColorMap = @{
        "INFO"       = "Green"
        "WARNING"    = "Yellow"
        "ERROR"      = "Red"
        "CRITICAL"   = "Magenta"
        "IMPORTANT"  = "Cyan"
        "SECURITY"   = "DarkRed"
        "AUDIT"      = "DarkCyan"
        "SYSTEM"     = "DarkMagenta"
    }

    Write-Host "`nShowing last $Lines lines of: $LogFile`n" -ForegroundColor Cyan

    # Read last N lines of the file and process them
    Get-Content $LogFile | Select-Object -Last $Lines | ForEach-Object {
        $LogEntry = $_

        # Extract log level (ignoring square brackets)
        if ($LogEntry -match "\b(INFO|WARNING|ERROR|CRITICAL|IMPORTANT|SECURITY|AUDIT|SYSTEM)\b") {
            $LogLevel = $matches[1]
            $Color = $ColorMap[$LogLevel]
        } else {
            $Color = "White"  # Default color
        }

        # Display the log entry in the corresponding color
        Write-Host $LogEntry -ForegroundColor $Color
    }
}

Example Usage
To view the last lines of a log file using the Windows tail command in PowerShell, run:

# get last lines of log file
tail .\testLog.txt 15

The function colors and associated messages can be customized – tailor it to your needs!

Summary of the Windows Tail

Using a PowerShell function like Tail we’ve created here in this post is a great way to quickly pinpoint errors, warnings, or critical messages within logs without manually sifting through large files. It provides a fast and efficient way to monitor logs, especially for troubleshooting.

But we can make this even better by enhancing the script to function like the tail -f command in Linux. By adding a -Wait parameter to the PowerShell function, we can keep it running and automatically display new log entries as they are added. This transforms the script into a real-time log monitor, making it even more useful.

I hope this was a useful post maybe for the cross platform folks. Cheers!