Shell tab completion for ysonet

Scripts that add tab completion for ysonet.exe: option names, gadget names (-g / --bgc), plugin names (-p), formatter names (-f / --sf), output formats (-o), --list categories, and file paths (--outputpath).

The value lists are read live from the tool through its --list flag, so they stay correct as gadgets, plugins, and formatters are added. You do not edit the scripts when the tool grows.

Easiest: enable it for the current session (recommended)

No install, no profile edit, no reload, and it is not affected by execution policy. From a PowerShell window, run the exe once:

.\ysonet.exe completion powershell | Out-String | Invoke-Expression

Then type and press Tab:

ysonet -g Object<Tab>          ysonet -f Mess<Tab>          ysonet -p V<Tab>

It lasts until you close the window. The one-liner also sets $env:YSONET_EXE to that exe, so value completion works even when ysonet is not on PATH.

Why this is not blocked by execution policy: PowerShell execution policy restricts script files, not commands evaluated in the session. Piping into Invoke-Expression runs in memory, so a Restricted policy still allows it.

Make it permanent (PowerShell 7+ only)

install writes a loader to your PowerShell 7+ (pwsh) profile so completion is on in every new window:

.\ysonet.exe completion install     # then open a new PowerShell 7 window
.\ysonet.exe completion status      # detected shell, policy, install state
.\ysonet.exe completion uninstall   # remove it again (deletes the file if empty)

Why PowerShell 7+ only: a profile is a script file, so it only loads if the execution policy allows unsigned local scripts. Windows PowerShell 5.1 is often AllSigned or Restricted (which block it), and we do not want to ask you to change a machine-wide policy. install reads the effective policy first and, if it would block the profile, refuses instead of leaving a profile that errors on every new window (override with ... install force). It also clears the OneDrive mark-of-the-web on the profile it writes, so RemoteSigned accepts it.

In Windows PowerShell 5.1, use the current-session one-liner above instead. It is not a file, so no execution policy applies and it works there too.

If a profile cannot be read or changed, the command prints its path and exits nonzero. status reports an unreadable profile as unknown. If uninstall checks both editions, it continues after a failure but still returns nonzero.

Each PowerShell policy probe has a 15-second timeout. A failed or timed-out probe does not authorize an install. Printed setup commands quote the executable path, including spaces and apostrophes.

Available scripts

• ysonet.ps1 - PowerShell (Windows PowerShell 5.1 and PowerShell 7+ on Windows, Linux, macOS). This is the same script the exe emits and installs; it is kept here as the single source of truth (a test checks it against the tool's real options).

Completion is a shell feature, so each shell needs its own script. A PowerShell script does not work in bash/zsh/fish and vice versa.

Manual load (without installing)

One session only, straight from the exe:

ysonet completion powershell | Out-String | Invoke-Expression

Or dot-source the script file directly (from this folder):

. .\ysonet.ps1

Add either line to your profile (notepad $PROFILE) to make it permanent.

The script finds ysonet.exe from how you type the command: a path you type (.\ysonet.exe, a full path) is used directly; a bare ysonet is looked up on PATH, then falls back to $env:YSONET_EXE (which install sets). If it cannot find the exe, option-name completion still works and value lists come back empty.

The --list flag

The scripts are thin wrappers over the tool's own machine-readable listing:

ysonet.exe --list gadgets|plugins|formatters|options|outputs|values|value-options
ysonet.exe -g <gadget> --list formatters   # that gadget's formatters
ysonet.exe -g <gadget> --list options      # that gadget's extra options
ysonet.exe -p <plugin> --list options      # that plugin's options
ysonet.exe -p <plugin> --list value-options # options that take a value
ysonet.exe -p Resx --list values --option mode # declared mode suggestions

It prints one item per line to stdout and exits, so it is easy to reuse from any other tooling or shell.

Module completion uses explicit option metadata. After -g or -p, TAB offers that module's options and declared values, including --name=value. Value-taking options come from NDesk's declarations; flags do not consume the next completion position. No help-text parsing is involved. Free-text fields have no invented suggestions.

The first argument also completes doctor. The --list category suggestions include catalog and catalog-schema for JSON integrations. Completion continues to query the existing line-oriented name/value categories.