How to Save Terminal Commands in Windows Using PowerShell Transcript

Have you ever finished a complex series of terminal commands and wished you had recorded them? Maybe you need to document your workflow, create a tutorial, or simply remember the exact steps you took. Good news - Windows PowerShell has a built-in feature that does exactly this!

The Problem

As developers, we often run multiple commands in sequence:

Setting up new projects
Installing dependencies
Running build scripts
Deploying applications

Remembering or recreating these exact commands later can be frustrating. Screenshots don't capture everything, and manually copying commands is tedious and error-prone.

The Solution: PowerShell Transcript

PowerShell Transcript is a built-in feature that records everything that happens in your PowerShell session - both the commands you type and their output. It's like a flight recorder for your terminal!
How to Use PowerShell Transcript

Step 1: Start Recording

Before you begin your work, start the transcript with this command:

Start-Transcript -Path "C:\path\to\commands.txt"

Replace C:\path\to\commands.txt with your desired file location. For example:

powershell

Start-Transcript -Path "C:\Users\YourName\Desktop\my-session.txt"

You'll see a confirmation message:

Transcript started, output file is C:\Users\YourName\Desktop\my-session.txt

Step 2:

Now perform all your tasks normally.

Every command and its output will be recorded:

powershell example :

git status

Step 3: Stop Recording

When you're finished, stop the transcript:

go back to powershell

Stop-Transcript

You'll see:

Transcript stopped, output file is C:\Users\YourName\Desktop\my-session.txt

What Gets Saved?

The transcript file includes:

Timestamp of when recording started
All commands you typed
All output from those commands
Error messages if any occurred
Timestamp of when recording ended

Example output:

Pro Tips

1. Automatic File Naming

Use timestamps in your filename to organize multiple sessions:

powershell$date = Get-Date -Format "yyyyMMdd_HHmmss"

Start-Transcript -Path "C:\logs\session_$date.txt"

1. Append to Existing File

Continue recording to the same file across sessions:

powershellStart-Transcript -Path "C:\path\to\commands.txt" -Append