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Windows Command Mastery for Ethical Hackers 🖥⚔️💻 | Complete Guide 2025

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Windows Command Mastery for Ethical Hackers 🖥⚔️💻

Windows is everywhere — desktops, servers, cloud instances — which makes mastering its command-line tools indispensable for any ethical hacker, security analyst, or penetration tester. This article gives you a practical, defense-minded approach to the most useful Windows commands (both Command Prompt and PowerShell), how and when to use them, and safe practices to follow while testing and hardening systems.

⚠️ Important: Only run hacking or auditing commands on systems you own or have explicit authorization to test. Unauthorized testing is illegal. This guide emphasizes defensive and authorized offensive use.

Why Windows CLI skills matter

GUI tools are convenient, but command-line mastery gives you:

  • Speed — run checks across many hosts quickly.

  • Scripting — automate repetitive tasks and audits.

  • Stealth & Forensics — capture information that GUI tools may hide.

  • Precision — target specific services, accounts, or configurations.

Windows admins and attackers both use CLI. Ethical hackers use the same commands to discover weaknesses, then recommend fixes.

Getting started: environment & privileges

  • Command Prompt (cmd.exe) — classic, lightweight; good for legacy commands.

  • PowerShell (pwsh / powershell.exe) — modern, object-oriented; preferred for scripting and automation.

  • Run as Administrator — many commands require elevated rights. Use Run as administrator consciously.

  • Use labs — set up Hyper-V/VMware/VirtualBox test labs or cloud test environments to practice safely.

Essential network reconnaissance commands

These show network configuration and connectivity.

  • ipconfig /all
    Prints IP config, DNS, DHCP server, MAC address.

  • ping <host>
    Basic reachability test.

  • tracert <host>
    Route path to target.

  • nslookup <domain>
    DNS lookup.

  • netstat -anob (cmd) / Get-NetTCPConnection (PowerShell via NetTCPIP module)
    Lists listening ports, established connections, and owning processes (requires admin to show executables).

  • arp -a
    Shows ARP cache — useful to check local MAC to IP mappings.

  • route print
    Displays routing table.

Enumerating users, groups & privileges

Knowing accounts and groups is vital for auditing.

  • whoami
    Shows current account and group memberships.

  • net user
    Lists local users. net user username shows details.

  • net localgroup
    Lists local groups. net localgroup Administrators shows members.

  • PowerShell:

    • Get-LocalUser

    • Get-LocalGroup

    • Get-LocalGroupMember -Group "Administrators"

  • whoami /priv
    Shows enabled/available privileges for current account.

Filesystem, permissions & artifacts

Check files, ownership and auditability.

  • dir /s (cmd) or Get-ChildItem -Recurse (PowerShell)
    Recursively list files.

  • icacls <file_or_dir>
    View or set NTFS permissions.

  • takeown /F <file> and icacls <file> /grant <user>:(F)
    Administrative ownership change (use responsibly).

  • cipher /w:<path>
    Securely wipes free space (useful in forensics/cleanup).

  • attrib / fsutil / compact
    Inspect attributes and filesystem flags.

Processes, services & scheduled tasks

Identify suspicious services, processes, and persistent tasks.

  • tasklist / taskkill /PID <pid>
    Show or terminate processes.

  • PowerShell: Get-Process / Stop-Process -Id <pid>

  • sc query <service> / Get-Service
    Query service state.

  • schtasks /query /fo LIST /v or Get-ScheduledTask
    List scheduled tasks; check for suspicious autoruns.

  • wmic process list brief
    Older utility useful on legacy systems.

Event logs & forensic data

Event logs are essential for incident analysis.

  • Event Viewer GUI is fine, but CLI is more scriptable:

    • wevtutil qe System /c:20 /f:text — query last 20 System events.

    • PowerShell: Get-WinEvent -LogName Security -MaxEvents 100 or Get-EventLog -LogName Application -Newest 50

  • fltmc / driverquery / sigcheck (Sysinternals)
    Check loaded drivers and signed binaries.

Account and credential checks

Validate authentication-related settings.

  • net accounts
    Shows password policy, lockout settings.

  • nltest /domain_trusts (part of RSAT)
    Domain trust checks.

  • PowerShell: Get-ADUser (requires ActiveDirectory module and permissions) for domain enumeration.

  • cmdkey /list
    Lists stored credentials (local).

Useful PowerShell one-liners (defensive)

PowerShell returns objects, making parsing and automation robust.

  • List open network connections with process names:

Get-NetTCPConnection | Select-Object LocalAddress,LocalPort,RemoteAddress,RemotePort,State,@{n='ProcessName';e={(Get-Process -Id $_.OwningProcess -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue).ProcessName}}

  • Get recent creation-modification files in user profile:

Get-ChildItem -Path $env:USERPROFILE -Recurse -File | Where-Object {$_.LastWriteTime -gt (Get-Date).AddDays(-7)} | Sort-Object LastWriteTime -Descending

  • Export installed programs:

Get-ItemProperty HKLM:\Software\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\* | Select-Object DisplayName,DisplayVersion,Publisher | Export-Csv installed_programs.csv -NoTypeInformation

Automation & scripting tips

  • Prefer PowerShell for scripts (PowerShell Core pwsh works cross-platform).

  • Use -WhatIf and -Confirm in destructive cmdlets.

  • Log command outputs to files for audit trails.

  • Use scheduled tasks or CI pipelines for repeatable scans (in authorized environments).

Defensive use-cases & quick audits

  • Open ports & services: netstat -anob then cross-check binary paths.

  • Privilege enumeration: whoami /priv, Get-LocalGroupMember Administrators.

  • Persistence checks: schtasks /query, Get-Service, check HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run.

  • Log review: Get-WinEvent -FilterHashtable @{LogName='Security';Id=4625} -MaxEvents 100 (failed logon events).

These help discover misconfigurations and signs of compromise.

Ethics, legality & best practices

  1. Always have written authorization. Pen testing without permission is illegal.

  2. Use non-production labs for testing new commands or tools.

  3. Document everything — steps, outputs, timestamps — for reproducibility and reporting.

  4. Minimize disruption — avoid destructive commands unless part of an agreed test.

  5. Report findings responsibly with remediation steps.

Further learning & tools (suggested)

  • Sysinternals Suite — procmon, autoruns, psExec, sigcheck.

  • PowerShell scripting — practice modules, defensive scripts, and logging.

  • Windows Internals (book) — for deep OS knowledge.

  • Create a lab with domain controller + Windows clients to practice AD, GPO and lateral movement techniques ethically.



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