PowerShell Get-Process: Complete Guide to Query Running Processes

Overview

The Get-Process cmdlet retrieves information about running processes on local or remote computers. It’s essential for system administration, troubleshooting, and process management.

Common Tasks:

• List all running processes
• Find specific process by name
• Monitor CPU and memory usage
• Find processes using most resources
• Identify zombie/stuck processes
• Export process list
• Find processes by user
• Monitor process performance

Prerequisites:

• PowerShell 5.1 or later
• Administrator privileges (for some operations)
• Network access to remote computers (for remote queries)

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Syntax

Get-Process [-Name] <string> [-Id <Int>] [-ComputerName <string[]>] [-IncludeUserName] [-Module] [-FileVersionInfo]

Key Parameters

Parameter	Type	Description
-Name	String	Process name pattern
-Id	Int	Process ID
-ComputerName	String[]	Query remote computer
-IncludeUserName	Switch	Include user running process
-Module	Switch	Show loaded modules
-FileVersionInfo	Switch	Include file version info

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Examples

Example 1: List All Processes

Get-Process | Select-Object Name, Id, Handles, Memory

Output: Shows all running processes with key properties.

Example 2: Get Specific Process by Name

Get-Process -Name "chrome"

Output: Shows all instances of the Chrome process.

Example 3: Find Processes Using Most Memory

Get-Process | Sort-Object -Property Memory -Descending | Select-Object -First 5 Name, Id, Memory

Output: Lists top 5 processes consuming most memory.

Example 4: Find Processes Using Most CPU

Get-Process | Where-Object { $_.CPU -gt 1000 } | Select-Object Name, CPU, Memory

Output: Shows processes with high CPU usage (>1000 seconds).

Example 5: Find Process by User

Get-Process -IncludeUserName | Where-Object { $_.UserName -eq "DOMAIN\jsmith" }

Output: Lists all processes running under specific user account.

Example 6: Monitor High Memory Processes

Get-Process | Where-Object { $_.WorkingSet -gt 500MB } | Select-Object Name, @{name="MemoryMB";expression={[math]::Round($_.Memory/1MB,2)}}

Output: Shows processes consuming more than 500MB of memory, formatted in MB.

Example 7: Get Process on Remote Computer

Get-Process -ComputerName "server01" -Name "sqlserver"

Output: Retrieves SQL Server process info from remote machine.

Example 8: Find Processes by Handle Count

Get-Process | Where-Object { $_.Handles -gt 1000 } | Select-Object Name, Handles

Output: Shows processes with many open handles (potential memory leaks).

Example 9: Export Process List to CSV

Get-Process | Select-Object Name, Id, CPU, Memory, Handles |
Export-Csv -Path "C:\processes-$(Get-Date -Format 'yyyy-MM-dd').csv" -NoTypeInformation

Output: Creates timestamped CSV file with process inventory.

Example 10: Find Stuck/Zombie Processes

Get-Process | Where-Object { $_.CPU -eq 0 -and $_.Memory -gt 100MB } | Select-Object Name, Memory

Output: Shows processes not using CPU but holding significant memory.

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Common Use Cases

Monitor High CPU Processes

Get-Process | Where-Object { $_.CPU -gt 2000 } | Select-Object Name, CPU, Memory, Id

Find Specific Process by ID

Get-Process -Id 1234

Get Process with Modules Loaded

Get-Process -Name "powershell" -Module | Select-Object Name, ModuleName

Kill Process by Name (with caution!)

Stop-Process -Name "notepad" -Force

Monitor Process Count Over Time

while ($true) {
    $count = @(Get-Process).Count
    Write-Host "$(Get-Date): $count processes running"
    Start-Sleep -Seconds 60
}

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Best Practices

✅ Use specific names - Avoid retrieving all processes unless needed ✅ Sort by resource usage - Identify heavy processes ✅ Use filters - Don’t pipe all data unnecessarily ✅ Monitor over time - Track trends for performance issues ✅ Document baseline - Know normal process count and memory

Common Mistakes

• Running Get-Process without filters (slow on large systems)
• Killing processes without proper investigation
• Not considering dependencies (some processes depend on others)
• Assuming high CPU is always a problem (might be legitimate)

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Troubleshooting

Process Won’t Stop

# Try graceful shutdown first
$process = Get-Process -Name "app"
$process.CloseMainWindow()
Start-Sleep -Seconds 5

# If still running, force kill
if (-not $process.HasExited) {
    $process | Stop-Process -Force
}

Find Process Causing High Memory

$processHighMemory = Get-Process | Sort-Object Memory -Descending | Select-Object -First 1
Write-Host "Process with highest memory: $($processHighMemory.Name) - $([math]::Round($processHighMemory.Memory/1MB,2)) MB"

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Related Commands

• Stop-Process - Kill processes
• Start-Process - Start new processes
• Get-Service - Query services
• Complete PowerShell Guide - PowerShell overview

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FAQs

Q: How do I see which user runs a process? A: Use -IncludeUserName parameter and check UserName property.

Q: Can I get process information from remote computer? A: Yes, use -ComputerName parameter with computer name or IP.

Q: How do I see memory usage in MB? A: Create custom expression: @{name="MemoryMB";expression={[math]::Round($_.Memory/1MB, 2)}}

Q: What’s the difference between Memory and WorkingSet? A: Memory is total memory, WorkingSet is physical RAM currently used.

Q: How do I find which process is listening on a port? A: Use netstat or Get-NetTCPConnection combined with Get-Process by PID.

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See Also

• PowerShell Get-Service - Query services
• Complete PowerShell Guide - PowerShell overview
• System Administration - System management guide

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Last Updated: February 6, 2026 Difficulty Level: Intermediate Reading Time: 10 minutes

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Related Articles

Core Process Management

• PowerShell Get CPU Usage - Monitor CPU per process
• PowerShell Get Memory Usage - Monitor memory per process
• PowerShell Get Process Name - Extract process names
• PowerShell Get Process ID - Get process identifiers

Filtering & Selection

• PowerShell Where-Object - Filter processes by properties
• PowerShell Select-Object - Select process properties
• PowerShell ForEach-Object - Process each item
• PowerShell If-Else Statement - Conditional process handling

Sorting & Aggregation

• PowerShell Sort-Object - Sort process lists (if article exists)
• PowerShell Measure-Object - Calculate process statistics
• PowerShell Group-Object - Group processes by property

Data Structures

• PowerShell Arrays - Work with process arrays
• PowerShell Hashtables - Create process data structures
• PowerShell Variables - Store process information

Control Flow & Logic

• PowerShell Switch Statement - Switch-based process logic
• PowerShell Try-Catch - Error handling with processes
• PowerShell For Loops - Loop through processes

File & Output Operations

• PowerShell Output to File - Export process data
• PowerShell Export CSV - Export process list to CSV
• PowerShell Format Table - Display processes

Functions & Automation

• PowerShell Functions - Create reusable process functions
• PowerShell Add-Member - Add custom properties to processes

Advanced Operations

• PowerShell Get-Service - Related system management
• PowerShell Get-Partition - System disk monitoring
• PowerShell Get-NetAdapter - Network monitoring

Comprehensive Guides

• Complete PowerShell Guide - Full PowerShell with system management
• Complete PowerShell Tutorial - Comprehensive course