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Backslashes in Powershell

Why does the string for the -split parameter require two backslashes while the string for the -join parameter requires only one backslash? The backtick is the escape character in Powershell. What does a backslash preceding a character do for you?

$path = 'C:\folder\test\unit1\testing\results\report.txt'

$path -split '\\' -notlike '*test*' -join '\'

http://powershell.com/cs/blogs/tips/archive/2014/06/17/fun-with-path-names.aspx

Solution

  • -split splits on a regex by default. So it is the regex that requires escaping a backslash. You can tell PowerShell not to use a regex like so:

    $path -split '\',-1,'SimpleMatch'

    -join is just taking whatever characters you supply to use as the delimiter to stick between the strings being joined.