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Is Bash more commonly used in security work than PowerShell? If so, why? (Now that Powershell can be used on Linux)

I tried to Google around for an answer on this, and the only questions we seem to have here are quite different, e.g.:

What should I learn for Cyber security https://stackoverflow.com/questions/573623/is-powershell-ready-to-replace-my-cygwin-shell-on-windows

I know this is dangerously close to "opinion based", but this question has concrete answers in other areas - for example Kali over Windows / other Linux implementations for OS, Python over C#/Java in terms of the most common languages for security, etc.

VSO
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  • Why is Powershell not popular on Linux? Because I snickered when you told me it was now available on Linux... Yeah, that's not going to catch on... – schroeder Feb 10 '21 at 22:33
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    The answer is simple: you use the tool that does what you need. Learn the tool that you like better, if both are equal. All questions here of the type "which should I learn, X or Y?" are the same: make a utilitarian choice based on *your* context. We can't tell you what you *should* do because we don't know (and can't know) all of your context. – schroeder Feb 10 '21 at 22:35
  • My answer to these questions is always the same, and basically the same as what schroeder said: it doesn't really matter where you start your infosec journey; if you pick a technology (_any_ technology) and learn it deeply enough to understand its security, then you're well on your way to being a security professional. _Are there linux shops that need bash security experts?_ Yes. _Are there Windows shops that need PS security experts?_ Yes. _Are there **more** linux shops than Windows shops?_ Does it matter? Are you planning to work for all of them? – Mike Ounsworth Feb 10 '21 at 22:42

1 Answers1

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Is Bash more commonly used in security work than PowerShell?

Yes. For example, github appears to have more Security sh/bash scripts than it has ps1 scripts:

Search Term Hits
github security sh 14,100,000
github security bash 9,110,000
github security ps1 635,000

If so, why? (Now that Powershell can be used on Linux)

Rome wasn't built in a day. People have been writing sh and sh-compatible scripts on Unix and Linux for 40 years. Powershell may now be available on Linux, but it will still take quite some time for adoption to spread.

gowenfawr
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