Powershell exclude pdf extension files - powershell

Question

I am trying to run powershell script to separate files of all extensions by iterating all the subfolders and creating a subfolder attachments at depth 3 except pdf but it is not working. Can someone help me out by pointing what I am doing incorrectly in script.
Thanks in advance
ForEach($Folder in (Get-ChildItem -Directory .\*\*\*)){
echo "Done"
Get-ChildItem -path $Folder -Exclude *.pdf | Move-Item -Destination $Folder\Attachments -ErrorAction Stop
}

Answer 1

I'd suggest adding the -WhatIf parameter to Move-Item to troubleshoot what that command is actually trying to do. It will probably be quite clear from the output that it's not doing what you think it's doing.
My guess is the problem is the fact that $Folder contains a DirectoryInfo item. The default string expansion for that is just the name, and you probably want the FullName.
Try:
ForEach($Folder in (Get-ChildItem -Directory .\*\*\*)){
echo "Done"
Get-ChildItem -path $Folder -Exclude *.pdf | Move-Item -Destination "$($Folder.FullName)\Attachments" -ErrorAction Stop
}
However, it's not clear from your question what you're actually trying to accomplish, primarily because "it doesn't work" is not a problem description. I'm not sure where the attachments folder is supposed to be.

Answer 2

Extending from my comment. Try something like this.
'PowerShell -Whatif or Confirm'
$Destination = 'D:\temp'
(Get-ChildItem -Directory -Recurse -Exclude '*.pdf' -Depth 3) |
ForEach-Object {
Write-Verbose -Message "Processing: $PSItem" -Verbose
# Remove the whatIf after you validate the results of the move and run it again.
Try {Move-Item -Path $PSItem.FullName -Destination "$Destination\Attachments" -ErrorAction Stop -WhatIf}
Catch
{
Write-Warning -Message "Error processing request"
$PSItem.Exception.Message
}
}
# Results
<#
VERBOSE: Processing: D:\Scripts\.vs
What if: Performing the operation "Move Directory" on target "Item: D:\Scripts\.vs Destination: D:\temp\Attachments".
VERBOSE: Processing: D:\Scripts\.vs\Scripts
What if: Performing the operation "Move Directory" on target "Item: D:\Scripts\.vs\Scripts Destination: D:\temp\Attachments".
VERBOSE: Processing: D:\Scripts\.vs\Scripts\v16
What if: Performing the operation "Move Directory" on target "Item: D:\Scripts\.vs\Scripts\v16 Destination: D:\temp\Attachments".
...
#>
If you want to see what is happening under the covers as part of your check, you can do this.
Trace-Command
# Review what the command expression is doing
Trace-Command -Name metadata,parameterbinding,cmdlet -Expression {
$Destination = 'D:\temp'
(Get-ChildItem -Directory -Recurse -Exclude '*.pdf' -Depth 3) |
ForEach-Object {
Write-Verbose -Message "Processing: $PSItem" -Verbose
# Remove the whatIf after you validate the results of the move and run it again.
Try {Move-Item -Path $PSItem.FullName -Destination "$Destination\Attachments" -ErrorAction Stop -WhatIf}
Catch
{
Write-Warning -Message "Error processing request"
$PSItem.Exception.Message
}
}
} -PSHost