How Do I run Powershell x86 from Powershell? - powershell

Question

I read this answer: How to Open Powershell from Powershell
start powershell
This opens the base, large resolution PS instance. How do I open PS(x86)?

Answer 1

Start-Process $Env:WINDIR\SysWOW64\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0\powershell.exe

Answer 2

I recommend Caleb's answer. But personally, I have a function in the PowerShell profile that loads on startup and launches a new PowerShell x86 shell when running x86 as this is so commonly required.
Function x86{
Start-Process $($env:SystemRoot + "\syswow64\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0\powershell.exe")
}
NB: $env:windir and $env:SystemRoot are equivalent here. Maybe not always

Answer 3

For a quick fix I think this solution will help you
start 'C:\Users\(Your-username here)\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Windows PowerShell\Windows PowerShell (x86).lnk'
Please note this is just a quick fix.
The following code will Dynamically switch Powershell to run in 64-bit mode
if ($env:PROCESSOR_ARCHITEW6432 -eq "AMD64") {
    write-warning "Y'arg Matey, we're off to 64-bit land....."
    if ($myInvocation.Line) {
        &"$env:WINDIR\sysnative\windowspowershell\v1.0\powershell.exe" -NonInteractive -NoProfile $myInvocation.Line
    }else{
        &"$env:WINDIR\sysnative\windowspowershell\v1.0\powershell.exe" -NonInteractive -NoProfile -file "$($myInvocation.InvocationName)" $args
    }
exit $lastexitcode
}
 
 
write-host "Main script body"

Answer 4

You will need the complete path to the x86 Powershell executable. If you are launching it from the command prompt (CMD.EXE), you would use
start "" "%SystemRoot%\SysWOW64\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0\powershell.exe"
If you were starting it from a PowerShell session, you would use
start "" "$env:SystemRoot\SysWOW64\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0\powershell.exe"
or
Start-Process -FilePath "$env:SystemRoot\SysWOW64\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0\powershell.exe"

Answer 5

When I last had to run a 32-bit version of PowerShell it was for something specific (there was no 64-bit version of a DLL that I needed to access, reference: View All Certificates On Smart Card). When that was the case I simply executed the needed code as a background job using the -RunAs32 switch for New-Job. Full code that I ended up using can be found in the referenced question, but the general concepts are:
$RunAs32Bit = {
Do some stuff that requires 32-bit
}
#Run the code in 32bit mode if PowerShell isn't already running in 32bit mode
If($env:PROCESSOR_ARCHITECTURE -ne "x86"){
Write-Warning "Non-32bit architecture detected, collecting certificate information in separate 32bit process."
$Job = Start-Job $RunAs32Bit -RunAs32
$SCStore = $Job | Wait-Job | Receive-Job
}Else{
$SCStore = $RunAs32Bit.Invoke()
}

Answer 6

Download PSExec
Then, run this in PowerShell: PATH_TO_PSEXEC\psexec.exe -i powershell

Answer 7

The core structure including passing of parameters in either scenario is given below
Param(
[String] $Param1 =#("Param1"),
[String] $Param2 =#("Param2")
)
$ScriptLocation = Split-Path $script:MyInvocation.MyCommand.Path -Parent
Write-Host $ScriptLocation
$RunAs32Bit = {
Param(
[String] $Param1 =#("Param1"),
[String] $Param2 =#("Param2")
)
...
return $Result
}
#Run the code in 32bit mode if PowerShell isn't already running in 32bit mode
If($env:PROCESSOR_ARCHITECTURE -ne "x86"){
Write-Warning "Non-32bit architecture detected, processing original request in separate 32bit process."
$Job = Start-Job $RunAs32Bit -RunAs32 -ArgumentList ($Param1, $Param2, $ScriptLocation)
$Result = $Job | Wait-Job | Receive-Job
}Else{
$Result = Invoke-Command -ScriptBlock $RunAs32Bit -ArgumentList ($Param1, $Param2, $ScriptLocation)
}