Using Invoke-Command to get around UnathorizedAccessException

PowerShell Help
1

I’m trying to understand the use of Invoke-Command in a very specific scenario.

Get-ChildItem -Path C:\Windows\csc -Recurse -File

Running the above command produces the following error:

Get-ChildItem : Access to the path 'C:\Windows\csc' is denied.
At line:1 char:1
+ Get-ChildItem -Path C:\Windows\csc -Recurse -File
+ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    + CategoryInfo          : PermissionDenied: (C:\Windows\csc:String) [Get-C 
   hildItem], UnauthorizedAccessException
    + FullyQualifiedErrorId : DirUnauthorizedAccessError,Microsoft.PowerShell. 
   Commands.GetChildItemCommand
Invoke-Command -ComputerName localhost -ScriptBlock {Get-ChildItem -Path C:\Windows\csc -Recurse -File}

Wrapping that same command in the ScriptBlock of Invoke-Command as shown above
will actually output all the files in that folder.

What is Invoke-Command doing that allows it to output all the files instead
of generating an error?

2

Running from ISE or normal Powershell console?

3

Is PowerShell in administrator mode? check the rights of the user by which you are executing the command.

4

I get the same result from the console or the ISE running as administrator. Both commands are run back to back.

Test it out. I imagine you get the same result.

5

If you try to look at the permissions on the folder you’ll see you don’t have any. Its not a PowerShell issue its a Windows permissions issue. PowerShell won’t and can’t so anything that you don’t have permissions to do or access

6

I understand I don’t have permissions to that folder which explains the default behavior of Get-Childitem and the access denied error. When wrapped in the scriptblock of Invoke-Command though I can view the files in that folder just fine. So what is Invoke-Command doing that allows me to view the files of a folder that I don’t have permissions to?

7

At the below post, the moderator says “The difference is that, with Invoke, you are bypassing UAC.” Not sure if that’s the answer, but there ya go.

https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/windowsserver/en-US/4d78bba6-084a-4a41-8d54-6dde2408535f/get-folder-where-access-is-denied?forum=winserverpowershell