PowerCLI Reimagined: Deep Dive into VCF PowerCLI 9.0

Introduction

PowerCLI has long established itself as one of the most trusted and widely adopted automation tools across VMware environments. With over 1.5 to 2 million downloads annually, its impact is significant and measurable. (You can verify these numbers on the PowerShell Gallery.)

The effectiveness of PowerCLI is rooted in two key strengths:

PowerShell Foundation – PowerCLI offers a powerful CLI experience with access to rich programming constructs.
API Abstraction – It simplifies VMware’s complex APIs into consistent and intuitive cmdlets using the Verb-Noun syntax.

With the release of VCF PowerCLI 9.0 (formerly VMware PowerCLI), this critical tool evolves in name, performance, and functionality to align with the VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) lifecycle.

What’s New in VCF PowerCLI 9.0

This release introduces:

Performance enhancements
New modules (NSX VPC & SDDC Manager)
Improved usability and SDK
Global Authorization API support
Numerous bug fixes

Refer to the VCF 9.0 Release Notes for the full list.

Highlights

Feature	Description
Performance	Rewritten cmdlets using .NET for faster execution
NSX VPC Module	Create & manage Virtual Private Clouds
SDDC Manager Module	Interact with SDDC components directly via PowerCLI
PowerCLI SDK Enhancements	Streamlined experience with improved discovery cmdlets
Global Authorization APIs	Manage roles, permissions, and privileges programmatically

Performance Enhancements

Script vs. Compiled Cmdlets

PowerCLI cmdlets are developed either as:

Script-based: Flexible, but interpreted at runtime (slower)
.NET-based: Precompiled, statically typed classes (faster)

On Windows Server 2025:

VMware.PowerCLI import time: ~1 min
VCF.PowerCLI: ~18 seconds

Repackaged Submodules

Fewer .psm1, .psd1, and .dll files mean:

Less memory usage
Faster module imports
Better I/O performance

NSX Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) Module

What is a VPC?

A VPC is a logically isolated subnet grouped under an NSX Project.

Subnet Type	Description
Private – VPC	Isolated inside VPC only (requires NAT for external access)
Private – Transit Gateway	Enables inter-VPC connectivity without NAT
Public	Accessible externally and from other VPCs

Example: Create VPC for App “Holodeck”

$subnetRequired = @('Web','App','DB')
New-Vpc -Name "Holodeck-Vpc" -PrivateIp "192.168.0.0/24" -Description "PowerCLI 9.0 Demo, VPC!"
$vpc = Get-Vpc -Name "Holodeck-Vpc"

foreach($subnet in $subnetRequired) {
   New-VpcSubnet -Vpc $vpc -Name $subnet -AccessMode Private -DhcpMode Server
}

Get-VM -Name 'HoloDeck-vpc-App' | Get-NetworkAdapter | Set-NetworkAdapter -Subnet 'App' -Confirm:$false
Get-VM -Name 'HoloDeck-vpc-Web' | Get-NetworkAdapter | Set-NetworkAdapter -Subnet 'Web' -Confirm:$false
Get-VM -Name 'HoloDeck-vpc-DB' | Get-NetworkAdapter | Set-NetworkAdapter -Subnet 'DB' -Confirm:$false

SDDC Manager Module

Getting Started

Connect-VcfSddcManager -Server sddcmanager-a.site-a.vcf.lab -User 'administrator@vsphere.local'

Core Cmdlets

Get-SddcCluster
Get-SddcDomain
Get-SddcHost
Get-SddcVcenter

For full API parity, use the VMware.Sdk.Vcf.SddcManager module.

PowerCLI SDK Enhancements

Why It Matters

When VCF releases a new feature, high-level cmdlets can lag. The SDK fills that gap with auto-generated cmdlets from OpenAPI specs.

Cmdlet Syntax

Verb	Purpose
`Initialize-`	Client-side data structure setup
`Invoke-`	Executes server-side API operations

Example: Create Tag

$TaggingCategoryCreateSpec = Initialize-TaggingCategoryCreateSpec -Name "Holodeck" -Description "Tag category for folders" -Cardinality "SINGLE" -AssociableTypes "Folder"
$tagCategoryID = Invoke-CreateCategory -TaggingCategoryCreateSpec $TaggingCategoryCreateSpec

$TaggingTagCreateSpec = Initialize-TaggingTagCreateSpec -Name "Holodeck-App" -Description "App tag" -CategoryId $tagCategoryID
$tagID = Invoke-CreateTag -TaggingTagCreateSpec $TaggingTagCreateSpec

Discovery Cmdlets

Cmdlet	Module
`Get-NsxOperation`	VMware.Sdk.Nsx.Policy
`Get-SrmOperation`	VMware.Sdk.Srm
`Get-VcfInstallerOperation`	VMware.Sdk.Vcf.Installer
`Get-VcfOpsOperation`	VMware.Sdk.Vcf.Ops
`Get-VcfSddcManagerOperation`	VMware.Sdk.Vcf.SddcManager
`Get-vSphereOperation`	VMware.Sdk.vSphere

Global Authorization API Bindings

Component	Cmdlet	Description
Privileges	`Invoke-VcenterAuthorizationPrivilegesList`	Lists all vCenter privileges
Roles	`Invoke-VcenterAuthorizationRolesCreate`	Creates new roles
Permissions	`Invoke-VcenterAuthorizationPermissionsCreate`	Grants roles to users/groups

This API support enables end-to-end programmatic management of vSphere roles and privileges—a long-requested feature.

Bug Fixes

Numerous bug fixes have been included in this release. For complete details, refer to the Release Notes.

Installation & Upgrade

As this is a renamed module:

Uninstall-Module VMware.PowerCLI
Install-Module VCF.PowerCLI

Refer to official documentation for upgrade best practices.

Conclusion

VCF PowerCLI 9.0 delivers on multiple fronts:

Performance and architectural optimizations
Expanded support for VPC and SDDC management
Immediate API access via SDK
Automation for vSphere role management

Whether you’re managing traditional vSphere clusters or full VCF deployments, this release ensures you have a modern, efficient, and reliable toolset.